Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ Custody Battle ❯ Sightseeing ( Chapter 4 )

Custody Battle

By

Maricruz(Mari, Maric, Maricc, Mar, Animeiac, Anime-iac)

co-authored by Baran3

Disclaimer: All of the Ranma characters are © properties of Rumiko Takahashi. The Randelsons are © properties of Mari and Skyler, ,Jennifer (koneko_101), and Baran3

Bold Font is written by Skyyler (Myzories Company) [her final additions are the first six paragraphs.]

Normal Font is written by Mari

Italic Font is written by Jennifer

A/N: I have good news and bad news. The good news is that co-author, koneko_101, recently joined the Navy. The bad news is that I have to let go so that she can concentrate on her training and study. On the bright side I have a new co-author. Say hello to Baran3^_^

Chapter 04: Sightseeing

~*~

The following day dawned bright and early for Ranma, the cheerful chirping of the birds like a sign of good things to come. The young man rubbed his hands together nervously and breathed out a deep sigh. Pushing himself up from his futon, he quickly changed into a pair of black gi pants and long sleeved Chinese style blue shirt. He slipped on the handmade bracelet under the cuff of his sleeve, making sure the fabric covered it completely. He paused, getting ready to listen for the telltale sounds of breakfast being served, and was relieved to hear that both his father and Soun were indeed sitting down to eat with the rest of the household. Fortunately for Ranma he can perform the Umisenken for situations like this. He puffed out another calming breath before tossing up a prayer to any gods who may have been listening and dashing out the back and through the garden. He kept a wary eye out for anyone who may have been following him as he made his way to the hotel, backtracking and taking side trips when that niggling feeling of being watched began to surface.

It was a quarter past eleven when he finally reached the hotel and a feeling of relief washed over him as he was sure he dodged a few bullets regarding some of the more wandering members of the Nerima Wrecking Crew. Quickly stepping into the lobby he made his way toward the front desk, the balding man behind the counter smiling at him in that speculative, snooty way only fancy hotel managers could perfected.

“Um, I'm looking for the Randelson family,” he said quickly, his eyes darting nervously about the plush interior.

The man nodded briskly, the clicking of computer keys filling the air.

“They're in room 417,” the man said after a beat of silence, pointing to a set of polished gold elevators. The dark haired youth nodded a quick thank you to the man and made his way to the elevators, the butterflies in his stomach moving over to accommodate the swarm of angry bees that had taken its place. He had never been so nervous before in his life.

“Well, here goes nothing,” Ranma told himself and politely knocks the door.

“Who is it?” said a familiar woman's voice.

“It's Ranma, Aunt Ginako.” Ranma recognized his aunt's voice from behind the door. The door opened and revealed Ginako.

“Oh, Ranma, I'm so glad that you are here!” she greeted her nephew with a hug.

“Same here, Aunt Ginako.” Ranma hugged back his aunt.

“Please come in,” Gina invited Ranma to their hotel room, “everyone's been wanting to meet you.”

“Thanks, Aunt Ginako.” Ranma gladly accepted her invitation and entered the room.

“Nick! Kids! Ranma's here!” Gina called for her family. The rest of Ginako's family came running in to meet Ranma for the very first time.

“So, this is the Ranma we've heard so much about.” said Nick.

“Ooh, he's cute.” Nicki complimented Ranma.

“Yo dude, what's up?” Jackie greeted.

“He looks like you, Mama.” Randy compared Ranma to Ginako and smiled.

Looking at the two of them proved that the same blood flowed in their veins. They had the same cheekbones, nose and eye structures, and even the same shade of hair. Only the sexual attributes, age and height separated the nephew from his aunt.

“Okay everyone, why don't we give Ranma some room.” Ginako laughed a bit at the sight of the attention Ranma was getting from her family. “Ranma, why don't go and sit down so you can settle in.”

“Okay, Aunt Ginako.” Ranma found a couch and sat there. His three cousins joined him as well.

“So, what do you think, Nick?” Ginako asked her husband.

“Well, he seems pretty normal.” Nick observed Ranma, who looked slightly nervous. “Of course, from what he's been through, telling us through his letters, I'm surprised the kid hasn't gone psycho yet.”

“That's why I want us to get him out of here.” Ginako said, making her point. “If Ranma stays here with Genma, not only he'll be a danger to himself, but to everybody else around him.”

“I see your point.” Nick understood his nephew's problem. “But how are you going to make your brother give us custody of Ranma?”

“Well, knowing Genma, he would have a criminal record since he was trained by his master.” Ginako conducted her plan of action. “All we have to do is look for it, and present it to the court, and if they ask for Ranma into the stand, he'll have to tell them the truth. At least initially it will be that simple. After the first volley, the stupidity of my brother will show up and Hell will break loose."

“That's a good plan, Gina.” Nick complimented on his wife's thinking. “But do you think it will work?”

“I hope so, Nick,” Ginako prayed, “for Ranma's sake.”

Back to Ranma on the couch, there was an awkward silence between him and cousins. They have been staring at each for quite a while now, waiting to see who will speak first. Ranma wasn't sure what to say; this was the first time he met his new found family. Now, he felt even more nervous than before. He kept on fiddling his fingers, and his eyes went from looking at the kids, to the floor, back to his cousins, and so on.

Finally, Randy thought it would have been a good time to break the ice.

“So, is it true that you can turn into the girl?” Of course, that's was the ice breaker not everyone had in mind.

“Randy!” Nicki and Jackie scold their little brother, since they knew it made him feel uncomfortable talking about it.

“Um, I don't mind, and yes, I do.” Ranma chuckled at the smallest of his cousins.

“Really?” Randy smiled, causing the others to smile around him. “How do you change?”

“Well, how about I just show you?”

“Kay!”

Ranma stood up and went into the small kitchen they used with the others right behind him. He turned on the sink faucet and splashed himself with cold water, turning him into a girl instantly. His cousins were in awe as they witnessed this change.

Gina and Nick entered the kitchen only to face a red-haired Ranma and their awe-struck children.

“WOW! That's so cool!” all three of his cousin exclaimed.

Gina and Nick just smiled softly, glad that their children accepted this strange boy's curse.

“It's not that cool. It made my life miserable ever since I got it. There are others who change into different stuff.” Ranma mumbled, blushing softly because no one really thought that his curse was “cool.”

“For real? Like what?” Jackie asked, wondering what else people in Japan can change into.

“There are people who change into a pig, a duck, a mix of yeti, eel, crane, ox and octopus, and a-" Ranma paused for a moment, his face showing fear.

“And what?” Nicki asked.

Gina knew what was coming; Ranma's worst fear.

“Okay kids, how about you and your cousin Ranma go on a little sightseeing?” Gina stepped in to save Ranma the embarrassment. “Ranma, since you know this town so well, can you can give them a tour? Your uncle and I have some business to attend to.” She felt a momentary feeling of worry by letting her children alone in the so-called Mecca of Martial Arts, but she was confident that she had taught them enough skills to defend themselves. `At least again anyone under the skill of Ranma and his closest rivals, and my nephew will ensure nothing happened to them. They're family after all.'

“Sure, Aunt Ginako.” Ranma was somewhat relieve that Gina got him out of that tight spot.

“Okay, here are some spending money for some souvenirs and maybe something to eat, but don't spend too much. After all, we need have enough to last us on this trip.” Nick gave Ranma and the kids about 10,000 yen each to let them buy whatever they want.

“Yeah! Shopping money!” said Nicki excitedly, since she loves to shop.

“No one has ever just given me money before.” Ranma admitted. “Usually, I have to make a deal with a certain someone just to borrow some.” He was referring to Nabiki, of course. Although it would be good for once to be able to use money to buy some snacks and play a few games without having to use his girl-side cuteness against poor hormonal male teenagers.

“Well, dear, this is on us.” Gina reassured her nephew and gave him a kiss on the cheek. “Now, you and the kids go out and have a good time.”

“Okay, and thanks.” Ranma and his cousins left the hotel room with the youngest one closing the door from behind.

“That went better than what I've expected.” Nick complimented his kids' behavior towards Ranma's curse.

“Oh, what did you expect?” Gina gave her husband the signature Ranma cocky look.

“Oh, I don't know; a lot screaming and yelling, possibly a riot and an angry mob with torches and pitch forks.” Nick joked.

“Well, lucky for us, we raised our kids better than that.” Gina playfully punched his arm, laughing softly.

With Ranma and his cousins, they wandered around an alley full of shops near the hotel.

Nicki looked around all excited to go shopping in an actual Japanese store.

“I'm going to leave you guys, so let's meet up at that restaurant.” Nicki said, pointing at a restaurant nearby, a restaurant Ranma hoped to stay away from; the Cat Café.

“Do we really have to? Can't we meet up somewhere else? Like the hotel?” Ranma questioned with a shaky voice.It seemed that all his efforts to dodge a certain purple cyclist from hell and a blind duck would be vain.

“But we have to eat.” Jackie said in a monotone voice. Randy just looked at a candy shop nearby.

“But does it have to be that restaurant?” Ranma sounded a bit pathetic, but there was no way he was going in there.

“It sounds cute, so it's final; we're going there.” Nicki said, and that was the end of that conversation. She ran over to a shop full of clothes, leaving Ranma, Jackie, and Randy alone.

“So, uh, do you have any suggestions on where to go?” Jackie asked Ranma.

Ranma glanced at Randy, who was staring at the candy store. “Why don't we stop by the candy store for Randy?”

The boys walked into the candy store and bought Randy some candy. They even bought some candy for themselves.

“Man I can't believe we paid 500 yen for a small box of pocky.” Jackie couldn't believe how much the sweets cost in Japan. “I mean I could get a bigger box for about $3.50 back in the states.”

“Just be glad that they were on sale.” Ranma did his best console his cousin. “If it wasn't, you would've paid 1300 yen instead of 500 yen.”

“Well, where shall we go next?” Jackie got over his problem quickly.

“Well, I think there's an arcade nearby.” Ranma guessed.

“Please tell me that you mean a video game arcade.” Jackie hoped. Is there any other kind of arcade?

“Yeah. What did you think I said?”

“Awesome let's go!”

After a couple hours of mindless games, the three boys left the arcade in bliss, although the Randelson brothers were pouting a little after meeting Ranma's Anything Goes Martial Art branch of Video Fighting Games. A few of those games WEREN'T supposed to allow Ultimate-Instant-Death-Combo, and that new technique called “Mouko Takabisha”... At least Jackie managed to win a few games when he teased Ranma by choosing female characters that looked like or moved like his girl-side. Ranma was even suspicious about the appearance of some that were TOO MUCH alike.

“That was fun. What time is it?” Ranma asked Jackie.

Jackie glanced at his wrist watch. “It's 10 till noon, so I think we should head over to the cafe soon.” he replied. Ranma had to stop himself from shivering.

“I'm hungry!” Randy piped, breaking Ranma's concentration, causing him to shiver.

Unfortunately, Jackie caught him in action. “ You ok, Ranma?”

Ranma weakly nodded.

“Well, then we should start heading there. Let's go.” Jackie grabbed Randy's hand, leading him through the crowd of people.

Ranma followed as slow as he can. He wanted to prolong his soon-to-be death. What would she think if she saw Nicki? Would she jump to conclusions? Even if she doesn't, he'd have to explain to her why he's with Nicki and her brothers, which may lead to him telling her about him moving to a different country, which may also lead to her following him or beating the crap out of him or the Randelsons.

“Maybe I should tell them I'm sick. Sick of that place. Plus, it'd be rude, and they probably won't believe me...Maybe Randy would...” he mumbled. By the time he finished mumbling, he smacked right into someone; Nicki.

“Hey Ranma! I was looking for you!”

Ranma must have had a confused face, because Nicki giggled.

“Jackie told me that he lost you, so you probably weren't far behind.”

Ranma tried to think up a good excuse. “Well I, uh, had to buy something on my way here.”

“Like what, dude?” Jackie got curious of Ranma's behavior.

“Oh, nothing important, just a pair of these.” Ranma held up a pair of sunglasses that he bought before they entered the arcade to a street vendor, and then walked with his cousins. Ranma was still learning on how to be good with disguises ever since he's been using his girl-disguises on Ryoga just to learn about a new cure or technique or that one time he was spying on Ryoga and Akane on that date they had. But somehow he could manage to pretend to be another, at least for a few moments… Or perhaps his rivals and fiancées were as naïve as him…? Naaaah…

“Is that all, cuz?” Nicki wondered why he would need a pair of sunglasses.

All they were doing was going inside the Cat Cafe.

“Trust me; they'll be useful once we go in.” Ranma put on the sunglasses.

“Okay, if you say so.” Jackie accepted Ranma's answer as the four kids entered the restaurant.

Once they got in, they were greeted by one person Ranma hope he'd never have to see today of all days.

“Ni hao! Welcome to Cat Cafe.” A female, purple-haired Amazon introduce herself. “I am Shampoo, and I'll be your server for today.”

“Whoa, if the Chinese chicks are cute as you, then I'll eat Chinese food everyday for the rest of my life.” Jackie said, trying his charm on Shampoo.

Shampoo didn't like to be flirted with, especially by white smelly barbarians or in contact range. But it was a customer and there was a female in their party, so she decided to let it slide for now. She led her customers to their table.

The youngest boy was on one side while the two older boys and the girl sat on the other side.

For some odd reason, Shampoo had the urge to push the girl off her chair, away from what it looked like her Airen. They could have been brothers and sisters, or cousins at the most, but Shampoo has a one track mind, especially when her Airen was concerned and no matter the age difference. One day, she surprised herself by refraining to bark at an elderly woman who was simply asking for help to her obviously grandson that looked like a little like Ranma with a black ponytail and a red T-shirt, so she didn't see this option in the present situation. She shook her head, abandoning her urges and waited for them to get settled.

Nicki was about smack some sense into Jackie, when she suddenly just realized where she heard that name before. It was in one of Ranma's letter, telling them that he once beat a girl named Shampoo twice. The first fight was when he and his father accidentally ate the prize for an Amazon tournament. Because he was a girl when this had happened, Shampoo had gave him the Kiss of Death, a vow stating that Shampoo will chase Ranma to the ends of the Earth just to kill him. The second time was when he kicked one of Shampoo's Bonbori's away when she was about to attack Akane, but this resulted in him getting a Kiss of Marriage.

'So that's why Ranma bought the sunglasses.' Nicki thought, thinking that he wanted to disguise himself, so that this Shampoo chick wouldn't recognize him.

“What any youlike today?” Shampoo asked the four customers, smiling really big. Three of them looked like they were foreigners, but the person with the sunglasses looked vaguely familiar. She just decided to brush this off, even though this one customer was cute, but not as cute as her Ranma. She handed them the menus and waited for a moment for them to decide.

“I'll have the udon!” Jackie ordered, a little surprised to find Japanese dishes in a Chinese restaurant, but he supposed that the need to appeal to the average Japanese was a requirement in the Food industry.

Randy pointed at the pot stickers.

“Hm, my cousin and I will have ramen, and we all will have ice tea.” Nicki ordered, relieving Ranma of his ongoing stress.

Ranma glanced at Nicki, wondering if she knew who Shampoo was. He does remember that he mentioned Shampoo in his letters, but he didn't know if Aunt Ginako told his cousins.

Nicki caught his worried glance, winking at him in return.

Ranma smiled softly, knowing that she knew and won't tip Shampoo off, but did Randy and Jackie know?

“Ok. Be right back with your order.” Shampoo scribbled on her small notebook, walking through the kitchen door.

Nicki waved Jackie and Randy closer.

“From now on, Ranma will be called Lenny, ok?” Nicki whispered, hoping no one but them would here their conversation.

“Why? Is there something wrong?” Jackie asked.

Randy just shut his eyes, trying to engrave this new information into his brain.

“Do you know who that was? The waitress you were just flirting with?”

“Yeah, a Chinese native.”

“You idiot! That was the girl that pledged herself as Ranma's wife! That's Shampoo!” Nicki raised her voice, but not enough for other people to turn their heads towards them.

“Shampoo? Oh, her! Wait, why is her name Shampoo? Just a minute! So that's why Ran - I mean Lenny bought sunglasses.”

“Yeah. So here's the backup story: Lenny is our cousin, visiting his country after being in America for so long. He's been blind since he was a baby, hence the sunglasses. Alright? And let me do the talking, unless she's not around. We don't want to jeopardize our chances of smuggling Ranma out of this hell place.”

The others nodded.

Shampoo walked out of the kitchen with their orders. Her customers were close together, like they were having a conversation. “- out of this hell place.” was the only thing that she heard as she walked towards them. She frowned. Did they not find this place to their needs? She breathes slowly, calming herself down. Maybe they couldn't wait to go back to their original country. She placed their orders in front of them.

They had a shocked face, wondering if Shampoo heard them.

Shampoo just smiled at them, acting like nothing happened.

“Here are your orders. The total is 2500 yen.”

They just nodded and started eating.

The one with the sunglasses still haven't taken them off, but that was okay.

Shampoo left for the kitchen, getting other customers their orders.

“That was a close call.” Jackie sighed.

The others just nodded. They continued eating with their small conversations between them.

“So what do you guys want to do after lunch?” Ranma/Lenny asked his cousins.

Nicki was about to suggest to do some more shopping when she heard some sort of commotion. She looked slightly to her right, and she saw the same purple hair Chinese girl beating up on some poor yet cute guy with long hair and bottle lens glasses.

“Shampoo said no for a thousandth time!” she yelled at the boy.

The boy just hunched his back, submitting to her ferociousness.

“I wonder what's going on.” Nicki mused.

The other customers stopped eating and turned towards the commotion. The rest turned around and watched also.

“When Shampoo said no, she means no! Plus, Shampoo is Ramna's wife,” she yelled at the boy.

He just cowered in fear.

Nicki didn't like how Shampoo treated the boy. She was nice to them just a minute ago. Nicki sighed. `Guess that proves that we shouldn't judge a book by its cover,' she thought, getting up from her seat.

Ranma and the others turned their attention to Nicki, who was walking up to Shampoo and the boy.

“Now go away, Mousse, Shampoo has lots of work to do.” She turned around to meet Nicki's hand.

Nicki was furious, she couldn't stand seeing some innocent person getting beat up just for the simplest things. So Nicki decided to set things straight by slapping the other girl in the face. “You didn't have to humiliate him, you know! You could have just said 'No,' quietly.” Nicki brushed passed by Shampoo and helped Mousse up on his feet.

“You dare hit Shampoo?! Shampoo is a mighty Amazon. Shampoo challenges you to a duel!” Shampoo pulled out her bonbori hammers from nowhere, slamming it on the floor near Nicki.

Nicki was surprised by the Ki-powered sub-space trick that was almost unknown in the “normal” martial arts community. She tried to soften the blow by rolling away, but she underestimated the strength from the hit and the shockwave threw her into a wall, stunning her.

When Nicki stood up for Mousse, he was happy. Not many people stood up for him, especially against Shampoo, since she was the reigning champion in their village, all the female warriors of their generation respected or simply feared her. He wasn't thinking about the males since he himself rid them off if they only dared to look at his Shampoo… He was off in his own little world until he felt the rush of air from the shockwave in his face. He saw the girl who stood up for him a few feet away against a wall, dazed. It looked like she might be bleeding too. He didn't know why, but he suddenly felt mad. How dare Shampoo do something like that to someone who FINALLY cared about him? He stood up, facing Shampoo. “Don't hit her!” he yelled at Shampoo.

Shampoo looked at Mousse with a shocked face.

With Ranma and the others, they just thought that Nicki was suicidal. How can she stand up to a powerful Amazon? And what if she gave away Ranma?

When Nicki was blown away, Ranma had to use lots of self-control, unconsciously slipping into the Soul of Ice technique, trying not to murder Shampoo for hurting his cousin.

When they saw Mousse stand up to Shampoo, they decided to take action. They all stood up from their chair and walked to where Shampoo, Mousse, and Nicki were.

“Mousse, what you think you doing?” Shampoo still couldn't believe that Mousse actually told her not to hurt the other girl.

“I'm sorry Shampoo, but I can't allow you to hurt an innocent person.”

“What you mean innocent? That other girl slapped Shampoo's face!”

“Whatever the reason, it's her business!”

“Nicki, are you okay?” Ranma asked, trying to snap his cousin out of unconsciousness.

“Ugh, man, what hit me?” Nicki was miraculously brought back to the living, rubbing her head. Luckily for her she is not bleeding.

“That purple haired Chinese chick knocked you out when you defended that dude wearing the glasses.” Jackie gave his twin sister the heads up.

“Now, the guy is protecting you.” Randy added in.

“What were you thinking, Nicki? Didn't Aunt Ginako tell you about Shampoo from my letters?” Ranma said softly, trying not to catch Shampoo's attention.

“Hey, the bitch was the one who was bullying him.” Nicki quickly recovered from her haziness. She got up and walked towards the Amazon, who was still arguing with Mousse.

“Shampoo doesn't care if Shampoo goes to jail. She slapped Shampoo!” Shampoo yelled to Mousse, infuriated that the girl slapped her.

“You bitch, you nearly killed me! I don't know what your deal is, but killing someone in revenge for a slap isn't fair or even sane!”

Shampoo pulled back her bonbori, ready to hit the girl again. When she swung her bonbori, Nicki got into a Jeet-Kun-Do stance, ready for anything that Shampoo can dish out.

When nothing happened, Nicki was in a bit of a surprise. In front of her was Mousse holding the bonbori in his hand.

The other customers and Shampoo gasped at this historic moment.

Mousse yanked the bonbori's out of Shampoo's hands, throwing it back at her in the stomach.

Shampoo lost her breath and collapsed under the weight of her bonbori.

Ranma ushered his cousins out the café.

Mousse turned around and started running towards Ranma and the others. “Wait!” he yelled.

Ramna and his cousins stopped, letting Mousse catch up.

Jackie stepped forward. “What do you want?” he asked in a menacing way.

“I just wanted to thank your sister.” Mousse turned towards Nicki. “No one has ever stood up for me to Shampoo. Thank you.” Mousse bowed in gratitude.

Nicki giggled a little. “No problem. You should find another girl, someone better than that bitch.” Nicki just smiled.

Mousse blushed at her radiating smile. "Whoa, she's really pretty, for a foreigner."

Nicki and the others chuckled. “Thank you.”

Mousse blushed even harder. “Did I just say that out loud?” `That wave from the Bonbori hit has really shaken me up.'

Nicki nodded. She just gave him a reassuring smile. “It's ok because you're really cute, for a Chinese guy.” Nicki kissed Mousse on the lips.

The kiss was only for a second, but it was enough to send Mousse to heaven. He sighed and fainted away.

“Yo Mousse, you okay?” Ranma wondered what caused to Mousse act that way.

“I'll let you know as soon as the little pink bunnies finish singing.” Mousse responded with dreamy look and a goofy smile on his face.

“Whoa Sis I know that you're popular with dudes but not like this way before.” Jackie examined Mousse's condition.

“What can I say, it's a gift?”

“Does this mean we can't eat at this place anymore?” Randy asked like a small child that he is.

“'fraid not little Bro,” Nicki answered, “Looks like we're going to have find someplace else.” Then she turn to Ranma. “No offense, Cuz, but do you think you know some other eating places where you don't know anyone?”

“Sure, but first we need to get you to a doctor to see if you have any other injuries.” Ranma recommended. “I don't think your parents would want to know how you got them. Luckily, I know a clinic not too far from here.”

“Okay fine,” Nicki felt deflated, “but don't tell my mom and dad that I was in a fight, okay?”

“You three go on ahead, I'll return Nicki's new boyfriend back to that Cat Cafe place.” Jackie volunteered as he picked up Mousse. “Easy up there, dude.”

“Please little pink bunnies sing me another song.” Mousse was still delusional from Nicki's kiss as Jackie carried him back to the Cat Cafe.

“Did you really have to kiss him like that?” Ranma was cautious about Nicki's action.

“Why not? That Amazon girl of yours was so mean to him and it's not like she was going to be jealous about it. Beside I think he's pretty cute.” Nicki backed up her reason. In fact, she could still feel her lips tingling.

Mousse had been responding to her kiss somehow… At least near the end.

“Well, I assume that your mom mentioned Mousse from my letter.” Ranma reminded his female American cousin. “Just be careful around him okay.”

“Yeah like whatever.” Nicki shrugged. “Now, let's go see this doctor friend of yours.” Ranma took Nicki to go see Dr. Tofu with Jackie running behind. The Randelsons were curious to see the fabled doctor since he was in a good place in what they heard about their mother's plans.

Dr. Tofu was in his office, going through his paperwork when Ranma and the others came in the clinic. When he heard the entrance bell go off, Dr. Tofu got up to go see who it was. When he saw Ranma, he assumed Akane did something wrong again.

“Are you ok, Ranma? Did Akane injure you again?” He held back a chuckle. It seemed like every day, Ranma would come into his clinic because of Akane's “rough housing.”

Ranma glared at the doctor. "No. I'm escorting my-uh, my friend. She got into a fight, and we're just making sure she's okay.”

Dr. Tofu walked over to where Nicki was. He glanced at her, noting the resemblance between the two, but he didn't say anything. “Ok. Lie down on the table.”

Nicki nodded, lying down on the table in front of her.

Dr. Tofu lifted up her arm, poking her ribs.He then continued with a thorough western-type medical examination. A few shiatsu pokes enhanced her already well-developed Ki paths to his sensibility.

Nicki just giggled, and Ranma just stared with a blank face.

After a couple of more checkups, Dr. Tofu finally came up with a conclusion.

“Anything wrong, doctor?” Nicki asked. He shook his head.

“Nothing's wrong. Just make sure you refrain from doing stuff that'll make you nauseous. You just have a few bruises, but here is a cream that will take care of them in a few days. The hit at the back of your head wasn't a concussion, so you don't have to stay under observation.” He said, smiling.

Ranma sighed in content, happy that his cousin was fine.

“Well, thanks, Doc.” And with that, they left the clinic. When they caught up to Jackie and Randy, they decided to go to some random restaurant to finish their lunch and Ranma made sure they don't go near ANYONE he knew.

Meanwhile back at the hotel, Nick and Ginako were talking to a detective they called after Ranma took the kids out for the day. They just finished telling him their story about Ranma and the abusive upbringing of Genma.

“... and that's basically the story from Ranma's point of view.” Ginako concluded.

“So we were hoping that you would help us on this case, Detective Tsukikou.” Nick added.

“Let me see if I got this straight.” Detective Horitio Tsukikou was going to give this a lot of thought. He was simply a stout man in his early forties with his black hair in a clean buzz hair cut and Charlie Chan style mustache, and he was dressed in American style clothing that is usually seen in those 1940s detective movies. “Your nephew, Ranma, has been writing to you since he was ten about the abuse that your brother, Genma, his father, gave him during this ten year training trip. And while in those times, he made his own son steal food and other items as a part of his training. Plus, he also engaged Ranma to numerous families without his consent or even his knowledge.”

“That is correct, detective.” Ginako assured him.

“So now, you and your husband want to make Genma give up his full custody of Ranma so that you can adopt him legally.” He questioned once more.

They nodded, making the detective sighed. If this Genma was stubborn like this lady told him, then it would be one heck of a case.

“Is there anything you can do, detective?” Ginako asked, worried about the sigh.

“Well, unless there's actual proof, not just a statement, I'm sure we can take this up to court. Do you still have the letters that the boy sent you?” Ginako nodded, turning around to her luggage. She knew this would come in handy one day. She pulled out a large brown envelope that contained a certified copy of] all of the letters Ranma sent to her. She handed it to the detective.

“I make sure that's all of them in there. They're copies, of course, but I have still the originals in a sure place.” Ginako told him, making him nod.

“Thank you. After some research, I'll try and catch your brother in act. Until then, please don't leave the country.” He bowed to the couple and turned around to leave the room. Ginako looked at Nick with a worried expression.

“Do you think this will work?”

“It should. I heard that this detective works fast. Let's just hope that it's fast enough. Until then, I think there's no problem in letting Ranma live here until Detective Tsukikou is finished.” Nick reassured her.

“I sure hope so, for Ranma's sake.” Ginako felt her husband's gentle hand on her head as he brought her down to her shoulder for comfort support.

Later, back at the Tendo Dojo, two worrisome fathers were desperately trying to figure out how to stop Ginako's plan to take Ranma back to America with her.

“What are we going to do, Saotome? If your sister adopts Ranma, then the schools will never be joined.” Soun turned on his water works of flowing tears.

“Calm down Tendo. There's no way Ginako will ever get Ranma.” Genma tried his best to reassure his friend, but in his mind, he has some doubts.

“But what if he tells her about our schemes of making him and Akane marry each other?”

“He won't Tendo, not if knows what's good for him.” Genma said with a dark voice. He worked too much on his no-good son for his retirement to see his no-good sister stealing all the rewards. The boy was his and that was it!

Back with Ranma and his cousins, they were walking back to the hotel, all full from their lunch.

"So you're coming back with us, right Ranma?" Randy asked him with his puppy face.

Ranma didn't do anything but smile at the little kid. He has been like Randy, innocent and cute, before his father ruined his life. He hoped that Aunt Ginako will be able to release him from his father's grip.

"Randy, don't ask him that! That's his decision." Nicki scolded him. She hoped he would. Ranma was a fun person to hang out with, and it would be priceless to see his facial expression when he's finally in the US.

"Look, we're here." Jackie said, pointing at the tall hotel building.

Once they got inside, they headed for the elevator. When the elevator door opened, a suspicious looking guy dressed like a detective walked out. They stared at him for a moment, before getting on the elevator. They reached their floor, and they quickly got out and headed for the room. When they entered the room, they saw Ginako resting her head on Nick's shoulder.

"Oh, you're back. Welcome home." Ginako said with a smile on her face.

"Mom, can you believe it? A small box of pocky is $5! When are we going back home?" Jackie complained.

Ginako sighed inwardly. This was going to be one long vacation. "Sweetie, we can't go until we get full custody of Ranma. Now, we hired a detective to help us out. We're hoping to get my brother arrested, and since you're still a minor, Ranma, you'd need a guardian. During this whole process, you can stayhere. I'm sure you don't want to go back there." She was taking a little risk here since the Court could accuse them of taking the young man from his family, but Ranma was old enough even if he wasn't legally an adult. She sighed inwardly again. Of course, if he was, many of those actions wouldn't be necessary.

Ranma sighed happily. He nodded. "Let me just go get my stuff." he said, getting Ginako's nod of approval.

"Let Jackie and Nicki go with you. I'm sure they'll help you." They all nodded, heading back out of the door, leaving Ginako and Nick with a stubborn Randy who wanted to go along with his siblings.

“Perhaps I should go with them.” Nick volunteered, “you know for ground controled just in case your brother tries something.”

Ginako was about to debate but when she thought about it she decided it was a good idea. “Well I suppose it could be okay. Just be careful and make sure that the kids don't get into too much trouble.”

Nick kissed his wife and catch up with his kids and Ranma.

Not a moment too soon Ranma and his family arrived back at the Tendo Dojo.

"Should I sneak in, or go in like nothing happened?" Ranma asked his cousins while walking to the dojo he resided in. Amazing how he was trusting in his cousins already.

"You should go in there like nothing happened./ You should sneak in." Nicki and Jackie replied at the same time. They glared at each other, hoping the other would step down.

"He should go in, get his stuff, and get out like nothings wrong." Nicki told her brother.

"But what if his father,or even the other people in there try and stop him? I say he should sneak in." Jackie argued.

“Okay that's enough you too.” Nick refrained his kids from arguing any further. “Let Ranma decided how he should handle the situation.

"I'll just sneak in. It's less likely for me to get caught that way. I just want to be out of there as soon a possible." Yes… He had been right in his decision to stick to his cousins. They were arguing and presenting their conclusions to him. They weren't forcing a decision, or worse, telling him it was his fault that they couldn't reach a consensus. So refreshing compared to his so-called close family and friends.

Jackie stuck his tongue out at Nicki.

When they finally reached the dojo, Nicki and Jackie followed him to the tree that was next to his room.

Ranma quickly jumped into his room from a sturdy tree branch and started to pack his stuff. He looked through his drawers, the cabinets, his desk for anything that was important. The door opened, but he didn't notice and continued to pack.

"So you're going?" a soft voice asked.

Startled, Ranma turned around to see Akane. He just sighed. If it was his father or Soun, that would have been a problem, but Ranma noticed something the odd expression on Akane's face. She looked like she was sad about something.

'Could it be because I'm leaving Nerima? Nah it couldn't be that. She never wanted me to be here in the first place.'

“I'm just going out for a while.” That's all that Ranma could say, hoping that Akane would buy it.

“Oh, okay. That's nice.” Akane replied solomly as she down cast her eyes on the floor.

'That's it?' Ranma was surprised when Akane said that. 'No accusing me of going to see my other fiancees? No calling me a liar and cheater? No malleting me into LEO?' Ranma was going to ask her what is wrong, but every time Akane looked normal, she'd hit him with that damn mallet of hers. So he decided to keep his distance.

“Well, if anyone ask, tell them what I told you and not to worry about me, okay?”

“Okay, Ranma. Just make sure that you'll be careful.” Akane tried her best not sound upset by all of this.

“Good then.” Ranma just finished packing. “I guess that's about it.” The male pig-tailed youth strapped on his backpack and headed to the window where he came in from. “See ya, Akane.” He was about to leave when he turned around to look at her one more time.Akane still looked sad, but she tried so hard not to show it.

“Oh, and Akane?” The youngest Tendo daughter was startled when Ranma said her name.“Thanks for everything.” Ranma smiled and gave a thumbs up, then jumped out of the window.

Akane blushed and stared at the ground, hoping he didn't see. She started to regret that she didn't stop him, but at least he acknowledged her. She didn't want him to go to America, but what choice did she have? She wanted him to be happy deep down inside her heart, and going there would make him happy, right?

Back with Ranma, he reached the ground easily, scaring both of his anxious cousins.

"How did it go?" Jackie asked.

"Did you see anyone?" Nicki questioned.

Ranma hesitated to answer before signaling them to continue back to the hotel. "The only one I've seen was Akane, but she looked a bit funny." Ranma replied, pondering over what it could have been.

Curious, Nicki continued to question him. "Why? What's wrong with her?"

"Nothing, its just that she kind of looked... a bit sad When she came into my room." Ranma said, the look of confusion taking over his face.

"Why would find that weird?" Nicki asked.

"Well normally when I tell any body in that house that I'll be going out, Akane always accuses me of seeing the other fiancées then Pop and Mr. Tendo both barged in and saying stuff like how I am cheating on Akane or what an ungrateful son I am. But this time tonight, she just said to me 'okay' and then I left."

Nick put a reassuring hand on Ranma's shoulder. "I wouldn't be too worried about that Ranma. I'm sure she has a lot of things on her mind right now."

"Yeah that could be it." Ranma half heatedly agreed. "Come on lets get back to the hotel before either Pop or Mr. Tendo sees us."

Unbeknownst to them, Akane was watching Ranma and the Randelsons walking away from the house from the window with a solemn look on her face. 'So that must Ginako's family she was talking about.' The youngest Tendo girl retreated back from the window. 'They seem like nice people. Probably can take care of Ranma a lot better than we did.' Akane tried her best to fight back the tears. 'Yeah he would be better off with them. He's their problem now.' But her body and heart betrayed her as she sunk to her knees and broke down crying. "Ranma You Stupid Jerk! Why do you have to go and leave me like this? What am I going to do without you?"

"Akane, Dinner's ready"

Akane quickly dried up her tears when she heard Kasumi. Breaking out of her crying fit. "Coming!" Heading downstairs before Genma tries to eat all the food. "I just hope I can eat as fast as Ranma does." That final thought made her smile a bit.

Back at the Cat Cafe.

A not so happy female Amazon was chopping some vegetable for the dinner crowd but she is still furious about what happen this afternoon. "Aiya, I no can not believe some stupid outside girl slapped Shampoo and not get chance to give her kiss of death!"

"Now now Shampoo don't let that get the best of you." Cologne advised her great granddaughter and warrior in training. "You don't want to be like that Akane child do you?"

"What worst is that Stupid Mousse actually went up against Shampoo to defend that bitch!"

"Shampoo you know very well that warrior like yourself never swears." Cologne lectured Shampoo. "However it was very strange that Mr. Part-timer would try to protect some girl he doesn't know." The elder pondered on this and grasped to an idea. "Perhaps this could be our advantage."

"What you mean Great Grandmother?"

"If we can get Mousse to get interested in someone else, then maybe he'll start leave you alone and find ways to get Son-in-law."

Normally this would Shampoo very ecstatic, but for some reason the idea of Mousse being interested in another girl kind of makes her feel uncomfortable. "I don't, Mousse maybe stupid but he would never leave Shampoo for other girl. Especially one who dare go against me."

"Well just give it time then, he will come around. Speaking of Mousse where he is anyway. I haven't seen him since that young man brought him back here. Looking all in a daze while mumbling about singing pink bunnies and such."

"Don't know don't care." Shampoo answered bitterly, chopping the vegetables at a dangerous rate. "Probably talking to plant thinking it's me again."

What Shampoo didn't know that Mousse was sitting on top of the roof of the Cat Cafe just thinking about what happened today. For as long as he can remember he was in love with Shampoo since they were children and always try to get her to marry him. But now he's not so sure. The male Amazon kept on replaying these afternoon events over and over in his head. From when he told Shampoo to leave the girl alone to when he stopped her from attacking the girl. He never stood up to Shampoo before and for once he didn't feel bad it. Then there was the kiss that girl gave him. Mousse can still taste it as he felt his lips as though hers are still on them. 'Her lips tasted like pink lemonade.' Is it possible that there might be someone else in his heart. He looked up into the moon and saw the image of Nicki smiling down at him. "Who are you?" He asked the girl in the moon. The girl who might one day replace Shampoo.

A/N: Well that was an interesting chapter. The Randelson kids somewhat made an impression at the Cat Cafe. Looks like chaos runs in Ranma's family on Genma's side. Is that a good thing? What about Mousse? Could he be falling for Nicki? Will Nicki return his feelings for her? Should Shampoo be jealous? These answers and more in our on going Ranma fanfic, "Custody Battle".

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