Slayers Fan Fiction / Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ Magic in Nerima! ❯ 4 ( Chapter 4 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Disclaimer: None of the series, characters, or locations mentioned in this story are owned by the author of this story unless stated otherwise.

For the sake of one reader, I've decided to try and cut down on my Japanese words used in the story. Although it will take a significant amount of effort on my part, as I tend to watch the non-translated versions of anime/manga and it's easier for me to imagine the characters speaking Japanese, only names, techniques, and words that can only be translated to complicated phrases will remain in the original language, or so I'll try to keep it that way. The latter will be translated at the bottom of the chapter, if I can remember to.

Also, any glaring errors will be fixed tomorrow 'cause I'm too lazy to fix it right now and I would like to get a response soon.

---Chapter 4: The transformation of Ryoga and the Black Rose---

Interior of the guest room in the Tendo Dojo of Indiscriminate Grappling. A digital clock reads 2:06, and rain can be heard pattering on the roof of the home as three of the room's occupants can be heard sleeping (two of them rather audibly). The other occupant is sitting at the head of one futon, looking down at his prey.

“Wake up, Ranma. It's me, Ryoga.” There was no response, and Ryoga blinked. “Fight me! Hey! Ranma!” The lost boy growled and his fist rose in the air before shooting towards Ranma's head like a bullet. He blinked as his fist impacted the ground and when he raised his hand to look at it, the pillow was around his arm, as he had punched a hole through it. He blinked again in confusion and glanced at Ranma. He struck again, only to find Ranma dodging him again. He growled before inhaling a deep breath and—

“WAKE UP, DAMMIT!” Instantly, the other three occupants in the room awoke. Ranko and Genma-Panda glared at Ryoga and Ranma

Ten seconds later, the only ones left in the room were Ranko and Genma-Panda. Soon after, the dual trumpets were once again blaring at full blast.

Ranma screamed as his sister and father tossed both him and Ryoga out into the rain. With a splash she landed in the over flowing Koi Pond and was totally submerged. The enraged girl scrambled out of the pond and scowled at Ryoga.

“What the hell are you doing here, Ryoga?! It's the middle of the night!”

“Revenge knows no night or day!” The eternally lost boy proclaimed.

“Quit that crap all ready!” She yelled, crossing her arms. “You've got nothing left to have revenge for!”

“…” Ryoga closed his eyes and Ranma could feel a tangible aura of anger emanating from him. “I'll tell you one thing before I send you to hell, Ranma. When you ran out on our duel, I followed you…all the way to China!” He announced. Ranma's eyes widened significantly at the implications.

“Y-you mean…” `Nabiki and my little sister were right?!' “Y-you don't…you couldn't possibly have followed us to Jusenkyo?” She noticed his open umbrella and blinked. “You turn into something when you get wet?”

“SILENCE!” Ryoga commanded as he leapt at her, careful to shield himself from all water. “The time for words is OVER!” He went into a high-jump kick from there and Ranma jumped at him with the same attack. Suddenly, an iron bar with three large weights on each side slammed into Ryoga's head and Ranma blinked as the lost boy's umbrella slipped from his hand.

“Ryoga?” She blinked as the lost boy blurred to the side immediately before she could even see what he'd transformed into. “Ryoga!” She called out, but it was too late.

In the house, Ranko blinked at the dog that Ranma brought in.

“Ranma, what the hell are you doing with the Yamanes' dog?”

“…Eh?”

“That's the neighbor's dog. Why did you bring it in the house?” She said, angrily.

“Oh, well that, um…” She blinked as the dog cowered when Ranko approached it.

“Shoo! Get out of here!” She waved her arms at it and the dog yipped before bolting out of the house. Ranma sweat dropped and looked at Ranko. “I don't get along well with dogs.” She shrugged before turning around. “Anyway, you woke me up again with that fight out there. Father is still trying to go back to sleep but I don't think he can at this point.”

“Ranko? Ranma?” Akane asked as she walked into the room. Ranko's eyes twitched as she saw what was in Akane's arms and Ranma merely blinked. `Think fast! How can I keep Ryoga from falling in love with Akane?! How!?' An idea started forming and she gasped.

“Is that a piglet?” Ranma-chan asked, scratching her head. “Where'd it come from?”

“Look at the cute little piggy!” Ranko flew over to Akane, scaring everyone in the room. “Wow! How adorable!” She snatched it out of Akane's hands and clutched it to her chest. Akane blinked and looked at her empty arms.

“Uhh…” Ranma blinked and looked at Akane, who only shook her head and shrugged.

“Where did you find him?” She asked Akane. The pig in question was sweating quite a bit from his position.

“It was in my room, soaking wet, the poor thing.” Akane said, joining the other girl to poke at the piglet and what not. Ranma rolled her eyes and turned around, walking away. “Oh, where are you going?” Akane asked.

“To take a hot bath,” Ranma said, annoyed.

“Oh, well take the pig with you,” Ranko insisted, holding the little critter out. The pig squirmed uncomfortably and Ranma looked at her sister before the image of a boy wearing a bandana inexplicably appeared in her mind and she noticed what was around the pig's neck. A grin crept on her face and she gladly accepted the pig.

“I don't see any problems with taking a bath with this poor thing,” Ranma said. “Soaked the bone, aren't you?” She walked away, cuddling the little creature. Ranko blinked in confusion and Akane stared after her.

“I didn't know your brother had the capacity for that kind of sympathy,” Akane said, looking at Ranko. Ranko blinked.

“Actually, I'm wondering what just happened, too…”

“Okay, Ryoga,” Ranma said as she held the pig above the furo with one hand. “Time to change back!” She slammed the pig into the water and after a few seconds of bubbles found herself sitting face-to-breasts with one Hibiki Ryoga. “Instant pain-in-the-ass mix! Just add hot-water!” She said, giving him the thumbs up.

“Ranma…” the boy growled. “You are DEAD!” He tried to punch the girl and she blocked it with a ladle.

“So, you did go to the springs,” She sighed.

“Indeed! Chasing you, I wandered the wilderness of China!” Ryoga said as he growled. “Days I wandered, until that fateful day…some strange girl chasing a panda knocked me off of the cliff and into the spring! Then…it was one horror after another!” He clenched his fist and eyes. “The hideous body that curses me…the devouring that nearly befell me…they're YOUR fault, Ranma!” He pointed at the girl. “Because you ran out on our duel!”

“Hold it, you jerk!” She screamed. “You were knocked into that pool by some weird girl, right?”

“Yeah, so?”

“Why should you be mad at me?!” She indicated herself with her thumb. “You should be mad at that girl and the p-……” Ranma fell silent.

Suddenly, the door slid open and a panda with a towel around its neck stepped in. It blinked at the naked boy and girl before it immediately retreated, leaving only a sign with the phrase -E-Excuse me.- Before slamming the door shut. Ryoga went into shock and turned to face Ranma.

Ranma, for her part, was giving that year's best double fisted smile of cuteness. “Heh…”

“…Soooo…” Ryoga growled, climbing out of the furo. “That girl…WAS YOU! RANMA!” He thundered as he gave chase.

“Gaaaaaa!” She turned around and bolted away on all fours. Ryoga suddenly stopped advancing and when she reached the other wall with the showerhead, she turned to face him and almost immediately turned it on full blast.

She did not expect him to be standing there with a glazed look in his eyes and blood freely flowing from his nose as he crumpled over. It was then that she realized just what he'd gotten a peek at as she crawled away. “Uhhh…” She poked his twitching form with a toe and blinked. “Wow. Okay. Wow.”

Outside the door, Ranko was listening in confusion. `Wait a minute. Ranma's supposed to scream at this part. And chase the pig out of the bathroom.' She waited a few more minutes before there was some more shuffling inside as she heard Ranma-chan's voice.

“Hey, wake up, buddy!” She said, slapping Ryoga's face several times. There was no reaction and she sighed before carrying the boy over to the furo and submerging his head. There were some bubbles and Ryoga suddenly forced himself up from the water, gasping for breath and simultaneously coughing up water. Ranma quickly went to patting him on the back.

“What the hell,” Ryoga said angrily. “Are you trying to drown me!?”

“Hell no! I just wanted to wake you up! You wouldn't even respond to my slapping!” She retorted, irritably. “Now Ryoga, let's talk this out, like grown men-“

“That's not possible,” Ryoga growled. “Not when you're a woman!” He blushed, turning away.

“Oh, yeah,” She said. She looked down at the water and flinched; it was clouded with the lost boy's blood and she definitely did not want to get in there. “Uh, well…Just close your eyes, okay!?” Ryoga complied but his face only became redder and he re-opened his eyes.

“It keeps…coming back to me…” He stuttered.

“Dammit,” She growled as she walked away from him. `Well at least I can talk to him while he's distracted and not trying to kill me,' the redhead crossed her arms and sat down, facing away from the boy. “Ryoga, You're not blameless in this mess either,' She started. “I know it's my fault that you fell into the spring, but it's your fault for following me to China, and most of the blame rests on pop's shoulders `cause he was the one who dragged me there anyway,”

“My fault!?” Ryoga shouted, turning to face Ranma, before his eyes bulged and he turned away again. “How is any of this my fault!?”

“I just told you, idiot!” She said, facing him. “Listen, I'm really sorry about your curse, but there's nothing I can do about it! And it's not like you're the only one, either!” He said.

“Don't even compare our curses,” He growled. “Your father turns into an endangered species, so the worst he has to fear is some over zealous zoologist or something, and you…look at yourself! You're still human!” He clenched his eyes shut. “You don't know how many times I've narrowly escaped death! Some people don't try to boil their pork alive!” Ranma-chan growled at this and turned to face the boy.

“You don't know how many times I've caught men ogling my body,” She said in a low voice. “You don't know how many times I can feel them undressing me in their minds and then having their way with me,” Ryoga slowly opened his eyes to look at the girl. She was trembling, with her gaze cast towards the floor. “You don't KNOW what I've suffered since I had this curse! You DON'T!”

“That's nothing,” Ryoga snapped. “The pain I've endured-“

“Don't talk to me about pain, asshole.” She interrupted. “You know, I've learned more about a girl's body in the last two to three months than I did my entire life before then?” Ryoga sat there in shock as the meaning set in. “You don't know how confused I was the first time,” She said in a shaky voice. “Pop ignored it. I could tell he knew what it was but he acted like it wasn't happening. You don't know what it's like to experience pain, so don't even start that bull with me!” She'd finally finished, looking him straight in the eyes.

Ryoga could only sit there in silence, staring at her.

“I'm going to have to talk to him when this is over,” Ranko muttered. “Find out just how much of a girl he becomes when he does. This kind of thing can't be ignored.”

“I'm not tryin' to say your curse don't suck or nothin',” Ranko finally continued nervously. “But you can't say mine don't either, because you're not the one who has it.”

There was silence for at least a minute as Ryoga processed that information. Then-

“It's still mostly my fault you were knocked into the spring, though,” She said. “So I promise I'll make it up to you some how. But for now, there's not much I can do…wait, I know! If ever I catch wind of a cure, I'll make sure you get it first,” She said.

“W-what?” Ryoga's eyes widened significantly. “You mean that? You'd do that for me?”

“Of course! If I wasn't so blinded with rage, I'd have never knocked ya in, right?”

“That's right,” Ryoga snorted. “It's your fault.”

“Don't be a jerk about it, I already said I was sorry,” She snapped.

“…”

“Listen, it's been a while,” Ranma said. “We should leave the washroom already. If you don't want them to know about your curse, you should hurry up and change back,” She announced.

“Eh?!”

“A black piglet walked in, they'll be expecting a black piglet to come out,” Ranma-chan nodded sagely, with her arms crossed.

Outside, Ranko hurried away from the door and went back downstairs. Soon, the door opened and a male Ranma walked out with the piglet on his shoulder. He dressed himself before he went downstairs and found Ranko sitting in a chair, sipping some tea out of a cup.

“Oh, Ranma. I hope he wasn't too much trouble, was he?” She asked, looking up at the boy. Ranma shrugged and glanced at the creature on his shoulder before shaking his head.

“Naw, not really,” He commented lazily. “I've seen worse.”

“I can imagine,” She muttered.

“Huh?”

“Oh, nothing!” She giggled, setting her cup down. She stood up and bounced over to the boy, taking the pig away from him. He blinked at her, sweating a bit.

`She's never acted like this before…oh well, she is a girl…'

“Come on, P-chan,” She said, rubbing her nose against the little pig's. `P-chan' for his part was looking around, nervously. “Now that you're nice and clean, you can come to bed,” She said. Ranma's eyes shot open and he held up a hand.

“W-wait,” He said. P-chan looked over at him with a relieved look. “I think it would be best if we uh, gave him to…Akane,” He blinked. `Wait a minute, the tomboy is a girl too…I think…' Ranko looked at him as if he'd slapped her and shook her head.

“No no no no. That's not possible, I can't have my little P-chan sleeping in the same room as her,” She said, cuddling the little thing. Inwardly, she was ready to vomit, but there was no way she would give Ryoga a chance to fall in love with Akane. At the same time, treating him like dirt when he was human would serve to keep him away from her. It was a foolproof plan.

“Uh, well maybe it would be best if we let him sleep—“

“He's sleeping in the same room I am,” She growled, narrowing her eyes. “And that's final, big brother.”

“…No way,” Ranma growled. “I'm not letting him do that.”

“Well if you want, you can make sure he stays on father's side of the room. But there's no way I'm letting him out of my sight,” She declared. She made girly noises as she cuddled the thing to her chest and Ryoga quickly seemed to be losing conciousness. She held up the limp piglet and shrugged.

“I don't think you're fit to raise it. You nearly suffocated him!” Ranma said, snatching the pig away. She snatched it back and soon it was a tug-of-war with the prize as one black pig. It awoke and started squeaking in pain, and Ranko's eyes widened before she let go of it without warning and Ranma fell backwards.

“You poor thing,” She cooed, snatching it away. “Ranma nearly pulled you apart!”

“That's not true! You wouldn't give him back to me!” He snapped.

“You be quiet,” She instructed, petting the thing on its head. She walked away and left Ranma sitting on the ground.

“Damn,” Ranma sighed. “This is going to be annoying.”

After school, Ranma was once again a female and wearing Ranko's clothes, as all of his male clothes were dirty again. You'd think he'd learn his lesson about doing his laundry, but no.

And like last time, to take her mind away from being a girl, Ranko was instructing her in the ways of magic.

“So wait,” Ranma said, confused. “How does the chant go, again?”

“Simple,” Ranko sighed. “Source of all power, crimson fire burning bright, gather in my hand and become my strength! Fireball!” She tossed a small orange projectile at a straw dummy and it burst into flames, instantly. In seconds, it burned away to ash. There was a gasp off to the side and the twins turned to see Ryoga standing at the door. He was gaping at the place where the dummy was. “Oh, you,” She growled. “What do you want?”

“Ranko,” Ranma snapped. “He's a guest too, you should be a bit more—“

“That's all right, Ranma,” Ryoga said, getting a hold of himself. “I don't need a girl to defend me,” he sneered.

“What?!”

“Anyway,” Ryoga chuckled, walking over to the girls. “What the hell was that?”

“It's a family secret, Hibiki-san,” Ranko huffed, crossing her arms. There was a choking sound nearby and the three teens looked around in confusion. When the door suddenly closed itself, they all stared at it for a while.

“What the hell was that?”

“I think I might know,” Ranko said, narrowing her eyes. “It's not important right now, though, but we should be more aware of our surroundings next time.” She said.

“What did you come here for, anyway, Ryoga?” Ranma asked.

“Actually, I was looking for the bathroom,” Ryoga said, irritably.

“I'll show you where it is,” Ranko growled in annoyance.

“That's not necessary,” the lost boy snapped. “This is just a new place for me, that's all. I'll find it on my own,” He said, walking away. Ranko snorted and followed him.

“You can't be trusted in this house. Who knows what you'd do while Ranma and I are in here,”

“Ranko, I can do it,” Ranma said, waving her hands. “I mean it! Really. You just stay here and I promise I'll have that spell down when I get back.” She walked over to Ryoga and led him away by the hand. “Come on, P-chan, we're goin' for a walk.”

“Whatever,” Ryoga snorted, glaring over his shoulder at Ranko. Ranko responded by pulling her eyelid down and giving him a raspberry. Ryoga's eyes widened in anger and he growled, pulling away from Ranma. “Listen, you little brat, if you wanna go, I can take you anytime!” He said, pointing at her.

“Yeah, I'm sure you could, you honorless coward!”

“I'm not a coward, you, you…paipan!” Ranma and Ranko's eyes widened significantly and Ranko visibly quivered with rage.

“You bastard,” she breathed before holding her hands up. “When I'm done with you you'll be the least masculine person in this room!” She thundered as her hands rose into the air, crackling with power neither of the other two had seen before. “Darkness beyond the twilight, redder than blood that flows. Buried in the flow of time-”

“That's enough!” Cried out a new voice. Ranko stopped her chant and the dark energies surrounding her vanished as she spotted Genma standing at the door. “Ranko! What in the world are you doing?!” He thundered.

“F-father,” She said, looking rapidly from Ryoga to Genma. “I was…” `Wait a minute, what the hell am I nervous about?!' “…I was about to turn him into a eunuch,” she growled.

“That would not be in your best interests, daughter,” Genma said. “After all, how can you marry someone who doesn't have--”

“That's the idea,” She hissed.

“W-wait. Marry?” Ryoga asked, his eyes widening to ungodly proportions. Ranma's eyes widened with recognition and she did the fist-in-palm pose.

“That's right! Our Pop arranged with yours for you to marry sis,” `So he can get his hands on your secret technique or something.' “So you can integrate the schools or something.”

“That's right exactly,” Genma grinned at his son-turned-daughter, who was conspiratorially grinning back. They both wanted whatever technique it was that Ryoga had. (Actually, Ranma just wanted his sister and friend to suffer the way he was, and the possibility of a new technique was a bonus. Ranma also had an idea of what that technique might be.) “Hibiki-san and I agreed that it would be in the best interests if our children combined techniques to make a truly powerful school.” `I had wondered why they were so desperate to marry their son off. Now I know that no one in their right mind would marry the poor lost fool,'

“I can't believe this,” Ryoga growled. “It's not like my parents to do something like that behind my back! I won't believe this!” Ryoga said, clenching a fist.

“Behind your back? Boy, your parents hadn't seen you in a month when we made the agreement,” Genma snorted.

“Show me proof of this pact!” Ryoga roared.

“It's right here in print,” Genma snorted again, holding up a photocopy of the original pact. The fine print was illegible from Ranko and Ryoga's distances, but the Hibiki Clan and Saotome Clan seals were both visible on the paper.

“Did you even talk this over with mother?!” Ranko asked, angrily.

“Of course I did,” Genma snorted. “Not that I needed to, but I thought since she was raising you, she would know you best and I couldn't very well pick the wrong person for my little girl,” He said reassuringly. `She had almost given up hope you'd ever find a husband.' “Now what is this nonsense? Girl, I already told you that Hibiki Ryoga was your husband-to-be, why aren't you warming up to him?”

“As if,” She growled. “I can't marry this honorless coward!”

“Ranko, It's not that big a deal. I mean, I'm already engaged to Akane. Ryoga's not that bad of a guy, and you're wrong about him being honorless; he almost always officially challenges me before he gets the stuffing beat out of him,” the girl piped up, patting her rival on the shoulder. Ryoga growled at that but turned to Genma while Ranko glared at her brother.

“I'm sorry, Saotome-san, but I can't marry your daughter. She's an immature tomboy.” Ranko's eyes widened at the insult that was usually directed towards her friend and she clenched her fingers.

“Nonsense,” Genma insisted. “She's just nervous about it and taking it out on you,”

“Father…” Ranko growled.

“Come now, Ranko,” Genma said in a commanding voice. “Apologize to your fiancé!”

“Apologize to him? Father, he called me paipan!”

“Apologize!”

`I don't believe this!' She bubbled with rage and looked over at Ryoga.

“That's okay,” Ryoga said, walking to the door. “I don't need her apology. I think I should leave, actually.”

“Wait, boy!” Genma said suddenly. “It's a formal agreement! You can't just leave without marrying my daughter!”

“Oh yeah? What did we get for a dowry?” Ryoga asked, seriously.

“Uh, well…” Genma blinked. “Our house,”

“But his house is bigger than ours,” Ranko said. Genma glared at her and tried to think of something else - fast.

“As well as joint ownership of what will then be the Tendo-Saotome Dojo, to make it the Hibiki-Tendo-Saotome dojo,”

“W-what?!” this time, all three teens reacted.

“We can't give him something we don't own, pop,” Ranma-chan growled.

“We will own that, because you're marrying Akane, remember?” Genma smirked.

All of the teens present looked at each other and started cracking their knuckles and Genma had this strange feeling of impending doom and the instinct to run.

---

Ranko opened her eyes slowly and sighed. `Man, I became my brother yesterday,' She thought to herself. `I can't wait until the other fiancées…and fiancés start showing up.' She thought bitterly, closing her eyes and wishing she could go back to sleep.

“Ko-chan,” came a familiar voice to her side. “It's time to get up. The baby needs you,”

`Ko-chan? Baby?' Ranko rubbed her eyes and found herself answering back. “Just a little more,” She grumbled.

“Ranko! Come take care of your brat already!” Came another familiar voice. Ranko groaned as an infant's whining became apparent and she sat up in bed, turning to get up, when she realized her state of dress. `What the hell is goin on?' Ranko yawned and threw her own clothes on without worrying about a bra and headed to the guest room. It was decorated as a nursery and the reason why was soon apparent; there was an infant in a crib in the center of the room. `It's the Tendo-Dojo still, but what the heck? What's going on!?'

“There there, Ryouko,” Ranko cooed as she approached the baby's crib. “Mommy's here,” She said. `Wait. Mommy? What…the…hell…' She picked up the whining child and got a good look at it.

The child had a pig-like snout and animalistic beady black eyes as well as black fur growing on its entire body.

---

“KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!” Ranko screamed as she shot up from her futon, eyes wide and with ragged breaths. “WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!” She looked around and noticed she was the only person in the guest room. A glance at the clock told her it was almost afternoon. `Oh yeah, it's Sunday. No school.'

When Ranko got out of the furo, she put on a simple red sundress and put her hair in a ponytail. As she ambled around the house trying to think of something to do, she heard noises coming from the Dojo and decided to check it out. When she walked in, she noticed Ranma sitting on the sidelines while Akane was messing around with some a hoola-hoop, a ribbon, and some clubs. She spotted P-chan leaving the dojo and blinked, before realizing what he was up to. Finally, when Akane gave up, she sat down next to Ranma and started crying while waving her arms.

“I'm a klutz! I'm a klutz! I'm a klutz!”

“What can I do about it?!” Ranma asked.

“Err, Akane,” Ranko inquired while she walked into the dojo. “What's going on?”

“Yo,” Ranma called out, raising a hand in greeting. Ranko waved back and sat down on the other side of Akane. Akane blinked at her friend and looked her up and down.

“You rarely wear dresses outside of school.”

“I know,” the redhead nodded. “So what's up? What are you doing in here?”

“Eh,” Ranma said. “The rhythmic gymnastics team begged her to take over their part in next week's match,” Ranma started.

Upstairs, Soun was enjoying a nice, hot bath. The water was working wonders on his muscles and stiffness, although being a rather lax man he didn't have much in the way of tension. `Hmm, maybe now that Genma is here, I should re-open the Dojo. Two well known, experienced masters will better attract students than two barely-adults, and with the marriage nearing, it won't be long before we can retire, and Akane still hasn't reached master level of the Tendo-Ryu. Oh, if only the gods could send forth some sort of sign—eh?' He blinked as he noticed a small black piglet enter the washroom and leap up into the furo. There were some bubbles and suddenly an unfamiliar young man stood up from the furo before walking away.

Soun merely stared in the direction he'd gone. After at least a minute, he looked up at the ceiling.

`What the hell is that supposed to mean?'

“And so you just blindly accepted the position,” Ranko said, grinning. “Even though you know you suck at gymnastics.” `Hmm, I totally forgot about this part. I don't have a plan at all.'

“Hey! You're one to talk!” Akane said angrily.

“Heh, I never really tried,” Ranko shrugged. “I've always thought of Rythmic Gymnastics as a joke. I've heard of martial arts eating styles that can be taken more seriously.”

“Really? Like what?” Ranma asked.

“Something called `parlay foie du gras' or some such. I'm not quite sure how it works, only that it can be used to lose weight while being fed a full course meal. And I mean full course. As in royal banquet.”

“That sounds incredible,” both other teens responded with wide eyes.

“I know, that's why I wanted to learn it. Unfortunately, I couldn't really find out much about it.” `Heh, I've been practicing it ever since those two came here, actually,' she thought in reference to Genma and Ranma. The old man had decided she needed to be on the same eating regime that he and Ranma were on, and neither of them had noticed her flinging her food into their mouths simultaneously stealing theirs, letting her own food serve as a distraction to the two. “But about this…rhythmic gymnastics,” She spoke up. “What do you plan to do about this?”

“I can help with that,” Ryoga's voice came from the door. Ranko groaned and put a hand on her head while Ranma blinked.

“You know rhythmic gymnastics?” Ranma asked.

“Yes. My expertise particularly shines in the mastery of the fighting component.”

“Figures you would know a girl's sport,” Ranko snorted, crossing her arms.

“Figures you wouldn't,” Ryoga smirked as he walked into dojo.

“Why you…” Ranko growled as she balled up her fist.

“Ranko! Ryoga! That's enough!” Akane said. “If Ryoga's willing to help, let's not alienate him!”

“I dunno,” Ranma said. “Let's see what he can do first,” the boy suggested, standing up. Ryoga nodded and picked up the ribbon and the two walked out into the center of the Dojo. Ryoga began twirling the ribbon in a spiral before him and nodded at Ranma.

“Come at me from any direction.”

“You got it,” Ranma smirked as he speedily charged the lost boy. Ryoga didn't even flinch when Ranma disappeared from view and he felt his danger sense flaring behind him. Instantly he turned and without moving his lower body swung the ribbon in a complicated blur. Ranma was tangled by the ribbon and Ryoga flung him into the ground with the ribbon before snapping his wrist up and the ribbon easily un-entangled itself from Ranma.

“W…wow…” Akane breathed.

“Hmph,” Ranko crossed her arms.

“You can teach me how to do that?” Akane asked, stars in her eyes.

“To save the honor of your school, I can try,” He shrugged. “Will you accept me as your teacher, even after what I did, though?” Akane blinked as she tried to remember what he'd done.

“O…of course,” She said. “I'd been meaning to cut it, and you only forced me to go along with a decision I'd made a while ago.”

“I…see.” Ryoga said, turning to his rival who was standing up. “In that case, the training must begin immediately.”

`He seems to be neutral with her,' Ranko said. `I'll have to keep him from getting too close to her if he's to remain friendly with Ranma.' “If Akane's going to learn it, I will too,” Ranko declared, stubborn.

“O-oh?” Ryoga stuttered. “Well, I suppose.” He turned to face Ranma. “What about you?”

“I think I'll just watch,” The boy said, putting his arms behind his head as he approached the wall.

Soon, it was nighttime and two of the four teens were exhausted from training, and another was merely exhausted from boredom.

Ranko panted as she glared at her snoring brother for a moment before looking up at her instructor. The entire day he'd been glancing at her from time to time while instructing Akane, so she'd had to listen to what he told Akane and just try to replicate it on her own. She thought that she did fairly well at it; she wasn't tangled up in her own ribbon like Akane was and her hoop didn't sport any of the duct tape that her friend's did.

“That's enough drilling for today,” Ryoga called out suddenly. Akane panted as she dropped the rubber ball and fell to her knees.

“Thank you…so much,” The Tendo girl panted.

“You're…doing better than you were earlier,” the lost boy told his student. “We still have a week left, so do not despair.”

“You're right,” Akane nodded.

“Hey! What about me?!” Ranko called out. “Aren't I doing better too?”

“You two should go take a bath now,” Ryoga ignored her and made to leave the dojo.

“Hey, you jerk!” Ranko growled.

“Ranko, I would give up if I were you,” Ryoga said. “It's just not in your nature to be feminine.” He turned around to smirk at her but all he saw was a red rubber ball rapidly closing in on his face.

“It's only a week before the match,” Akane said sadly as she and Ranko sat in furo. Ranko sighed and rolled her eyes.

“It's not like it's the end of the world if we lose, its just gymnastics and there's the fact that this other school has had far more practice than either of us. There's no need to get so upset about it.”

“But still…”

“You just don't want to lose is all,” Ranko snorted.

“Hey! If you were the one in my position, you'd hate the idea of losing either!” Akane said, knowingly.

“Well…That's…” Ranko blinked. There was silence and the two teens tried to relax in the hot water.

“Hey, Ranko,” Akane started. “Why do you dislike Ryoga so much? He's such a nice guy.”

“Right,” Ranko snorted. “You know, he's the biggest pig in the entire world. He'd take advantage of a girl in ways most guys couldn't.”

“That doesn't sound like him at all.”

“Whatever,” Ranko snorted.

“He's not even once tried anything perverted!”

“Neither has Ranma,”

“Don't change the subject!” Akane pointed at her friend. “You're just mean to him because you don't want to be forced into a marriage with him, am I right?”

“Look who's talking,” Akane ignored her this time.

“I bet you'd get to like him if you could be friends with him. He's calmed down about his revenge against Ranma, hasn't he?”

“Well, yeah, but that took a lot of effort on big brother's part,” She growled.

“Then why don't you give him a chance?”

“Because!”

“That's not a good reason,” Akane snorted.

“Well…he…”

“You can't think of a good reason not to like him, can you?”

“Akane, this discussion is over,” Ranko said in a cold voice, getting out of the furo.

“Hmph, fine.” `Ranko's never had a real boyfriend or even a crush on someone before. She doesn't know what kind of chance she's missing here! Ryoga's the one of the nicest boys I've met in my entire life and she's…she's…' Akane shook her head. `I've got to find some way to get them together.'

“It's embarrassing to watch,” Ranma said from atop a stone ornament. He span a rubber ball that belonged to the gymnastics team on his finger as sat with Ryoga.

“Sadly,” the lost boy admitted. “I don't think either of them will be ready by next week.”

“I thought Ranko was doing all right,”

“Feh. That might be true, but this other school is likely to be at expert level. You can't become an expert in a week.”

“Heh, I probably could,”

“Hmph, how arrogant.”

“But it's true. I'm the best there is,” Ranma snorted.

“Heh,” Ryoga stood up. “Care to test that theory?”

“I've been waiting for that all day,” Ranma smirked as he stood up. There was a noise above them and they both turned to look up. They saw a silhouette of someone on the roof of the Tendo estate and they both looked at each other before jumping leaping up into a tree and then onto the roof.

“Who was that?” Ryoga asked, confused. “A burglar?”

“I dunno, could be. Who else would try coming up here this late at night?” Ryoga nodded and cracked his knuckles.

“Well, I doubt they'll get very far,” Ranma laughed. “This part of the house is Akane's room.” He turned to Ryoga and sneered. “Now, weren't we doing something?”

Ryoga's answer was a smirk.

Ranko blinked as she heard a crash from Akane's room. She finished putting on her nightclothes, ran for the door and slammed it open, looking around.

“Akane! What's going on in here!?” She asked. She heard a groan behind her and turned to see a strange girl in a black leotard sandwiched between the open door and the wall. “Who the hell are you?!”

“Ugh,” She coughed. She pushed the door away and stood up before somersaulting over them and twirling a ribbon she hadn't been holding earlier. Ranko briefly wondered where it came from when suddenly black rose petals started flying around the room in the shape of the ribbon's spiral. The girls gasped as the other girl bounded onto the window and sneered. “I will be back!” She called before jumping up.

Ranko and Akane were speechless.

Ryoga smirked as he caught Ranma's punch and countered with his own strike. The other boy niftily ducked under the punch and fell to his back, throwing Ryoga over himself. He stood up and went back into his stance only to see a girl suddenly jump into Ryoga's trajectory. His eyes widened and he called out a warning. The girl reacted by turning in time to see Ryoga flying at her, attempting to regain balance in the air. The boy managed to flip his body in a way that made him fly over her and he landed behind her.

“Wh-what…” the girl blinked as she looked at the boy who'd cried out in warning.

“Are you okay?” Ranma asked as he jumped over to the girl. Ryoga stood up and dusted himself off like nothing had happened and looked at the girl.

“It's not safe to jump into a fight between us like that, miss.” He said evenly.

“Ah…I'm sorry,” She said, noticing the other boy for the first time.

“Well, what are you doing here?” Ranma asked, scratching his head.

“She was just leaving,” came two familiar voices from the side. Ranko and Akane were standing there, tapping their feet.

“Ah…yes! Ohohohohohoho!” The girl gave a laugh that disturbed everyone within hearing range and leapt away.

“…”

---

The next day, as the trio walked to school, they were ambushed. Kodachi dive-bombed Akane with wooden sword, which the other girl caught with the weapon hand barehanded.

“Look at you! Ambushing us already!” Akane accused. “It's too early for this crap!”

“How absurd!” Kodachi returned. “I have merely come to meet the handsome young pig-tailed man who saved me yesterday!”

“Then go…see him!” Akane got a better grip on the sword and tossed the girl away…unfortunately, towards Ranma. Kodachi flipped in the air and landed just in front of the boy. Ranma raised an eyebrow as the girl smiled demurely before covering the remaining distance between the two in less than a single second.

“Err…” Ranma slightly cringed; there was a tangible aura of insanity emanating from the girl and it was reminding him of a certain wooden sword wielding foe of his. “C-can I help you?”

“You can,” The girl leaned in and put her hands on his chest. “Tell me, kind sir. What is your name?”

“R-R-Ranma Saotome.” He said simply.

“Ranma…” She sighed. “Oh my lord Ranma…such a magnificent name…” Ranma's eyes bulged as he felt something… grabbing him. “…and so fitting, too…”

“A-A-AAAAAAH!!!” Ranma screamed in a not-so-manly way before running from the lunatic. Akane and Ranko sweat dropped as he bolted from the school grounds, only to have Kodachi give chase.

Ranma's mind was a blur. `Shejusttouchedmethereshejusttouchedmethereshejusttouchedmethereshejusttou- ' “OOF!” He cried out intelligently as he fell down. He looked up at what he'd run into and sighed with distaste. Tatewaki merely looked down at the other boy as he stood up.

“Saotome. Do you bear some odd grudge against me?” He asked plainly.

“Err, well you see…” He stopped as he felt something grab him from behind. His eyes widened with fear and he focused straight ahead to avoid looking at the girl behind him.

“Ra N Ma Sa Ma…” Kodachi sighed as she hugged him from behind. Ranma began sweating and

“Hmmm…” Kuno said, circling around them. “Yes.”

“Y-yes what?” Ranma asked, as Tatewaki brandished a fan.

“You have my permission to go steady.”

“W-W-WHAT?!”

“Oh, Ranma-Sama!” Kodachi cried as she hugged him. Ranma was about to react when all of a sudden, Ranko appeared between him and Kodachi.

“NO!” She shouted vehemently. “Ranma is not allowed to date you, this I say as his sister!”

“His younger sister,” Kodachi sneered at the shorter girl. She couldn't have been less than a year younger than the two of them--

“It's only a few minutes! Why does everyone point it out!?” she shouted angrily.

“Regardless, who my Ranma-Sama dates is not up to you,” Kodachi snapped.

“You…You!” Ranko seethed. Ranma booted his sister away into the distance and looked at Kodachi angrily.

“Now hold on! When did I ever become your Ranma? I have no intention of da…ting…” He slowed down as Kodachi's eyes were suddenly overflowing with tears. “Uh, hold on now…you don't need to cry…”

“You HATE me?! Is that it?! Am I that repulsive?!” She demanded.

“YES! THAT'S IT EXACTLY!” Shouted Ranko as she appeared between the two again. “YOU'RE AN UGLY, CRAZY, CREEPY LITTLE TROoooollllop…” Her voice faded as Ranma booted her away again.

“Actually,” Ranma started. “I already have a fiancée, see!” He leapt over the fence of the school yard, before returning with Akane in his arms. The girl looked very bewildered and it was apparent that Ranma had grabbed her without warning.

“What the hell is going on?”

“Are you really his fiancée?” Kodachi asked the shorthaired girl.

“Eh? More or less,” The Tendo girl shrugged. Ranma fervently nodded his assent with that statement.

“I see.” Kodachi started. “Well then, girl! I challenge you for the ownership of your fiancé!” She declared loudly. “I am Kodachi, the Black Rose!” She said as she leapt up to the fence. “We shall meet again! Ohohohohohoho!” She leapt off and away, leaving four very disturbed teens.

“For some reason, that laugh gives me an incredibly horrible feeling, of foreboding. Almost as if some horrible person is about to make her presence known or something.” Ranko spoke up.

“That would be because you used to have a friend who did that all the time, did you not?” Said a new voice. All four teens turned to see a smiling purple haired man dressed in a grey business suit with a briefcase standing to their side. “You remember Gracia, don't you?”

“Don't call her that,” Ranko shuddered. “Naga matches her personality way more.”

“Ranko, Sensei…who are you two talking about?” Akane asked, curiously.

“It's…it's nothing,” Ranko waved it off. Akane and Kuno accepted this, but Ranma merely narrowed his eyes.

`She's hiding something…something big…'

“Ahem, anyway!” the girl said cheerfully. “What do you plan to do about that monster woman?” She asked. Kuno snorted.

“Monster woman indeed,” Kuno said as he began walking away. “My sister would not hesitate to cheat in the upcoming match. It would be best if you could proceed with caution, Akane Tendo.”

Akane and Ranma froze as the realization set in on the two.

“S-sister?” Ranma repeated.

“Oh my,” Xellos said suddenly as he looked at his watch. “We have three minutes until class starts. I would advise you make haste, children.” Ranma turned to look at the man just as he vanished, and his face went pale.

`He…he vanished…'

“Man, that guy's such a show off,” Ranko growled. “And he's never a big help when you need him to be.” She and Akane grabbed Ranma and ran for the school.

---

A week later, Ranko and Akane walked into the dojo wearing leotards with Ranma close behind.

“I still can't believe the nerve of that hag,” Ranko growled. “Treating my brother as if he was some prize to be won, instead of a person!”

“Er, well…” Akane stuttered nervously. She hadn't exactly denied the challenge, which made her a guilty party as well, but why bring that up?

The two began sizing the other up; Ranko wielded dual clubs and Akane a ribbon. Ranma was sitting on the sidelines, watching.

Akane snapped her ribbon and Ranko jumped to the side, barely dodging it. Ranko tossed a hoop at Akane with her toes and dived at her when the projectile distracted her. She swung the two clubs at once and Akane snapped the ribbon up, grabbing both of the clubs with the ribbon and using them to toss her partner away from her. Ranko let go of the clubs and grabbed a rubber ball, hoop, and ribbon. Akane used the ribbon and clubs as an effective ball-and-chain attack, snapping the ribbon at the other girl until the clubs fell loose. Ranko jumped up and flung the hoop at Akane before flipping in the air to dodge the ribbon and spiked the ball at her opponent. Akane dodged both projectiles, only to find herself wrapped up in Ranko's ribbon. She kicked the rubber ball off to the side and it bounced off the wall before returning back to hit Ranko in the head from behind, and the girl dropped the ribbon as she rubbed the back of her head.

Ranma whistled, slightly impressed at the display, and the two girls continued their little sparring session.

“They have been getting better,” Ranma thought aloud as the two girls engaged each other. He soon became aware of a presence to his side and blinked; sitting to his side was none other than P-Chan with some strange boxes tied to his back. He looked at the little pig and blinked. “Oh, there you are. Where have you been, Ryoga?” He asked as he snatched the boxes away. “Cinnamon crackers from Hiroshima…Tea cakes from Kyoto…” He looked down at the piglet. “Just where were you headed the whole ti-“

“AHH!” “OWW!” Ranma and P-chan blinked before turning to look at the girls. A ball was rolling away from the two and Ranko was lying on the ground unconscious while Akane cried as she rubbed her ankle.

“Uhh…” They both looked at each other.

“Uh…What happened?” Ranko blinked open her eyes and looked around. She was in the guest room, and the morning sun gleamed in through the open shoji screen. She sat up and rubbed her eyes, before looking outside. “Eh…I guess today's the match.” She blinked as some loud banging sounds became apparent and rolled her eyes. “Ugh, I thought those two would have avoided staying up all night if they weren't trying to kill each other,” She mumbled. “Hmm, what am I going to do today…I've got to make that match easier on Ranma somehow…Oh! I got it!” She cackled as she rubbed her hands together in cruel delight.

Genma watched his daughter with more than a little bit of fear.

Later that day, Ranko walked into the school building, wearing the tight jeans and red shirt she'd lent to Ranma the other day. Her hair was brushed down and she smirked as she put a hand on her hip while walking in with a seductive gait. She pulled out four daggers and started juggling them. Several students watched, impressed, as she effortlessly tossed the knives up, catching them, and repeating the motion. She chuckled as she walked down the corridor that lead to the gymnasium. Once she got in, she whistled, impressed by the massive crowd.

“All these people have come for a fight that won't be lasting more than twenty minutes, and judges project to be a forfeit match before it even starts.” She chuckled again as she continued juggling the knives, walking down the steps that lead to the floor. “Heh. All I have to do is Shadow Snap the ring, and those girls underneath it won't be able to move it. In theory, anyway.” Ranko sneered as she imagined Kodachi confidently whistling for her teammates to move the ring in her direction, only to land on the ground, in utter, complete shock. “That cheating little scamp won't know…” She cackled again, much to the chagrin of those who heard her and saw the juggling act.

“Ranko-Chan!” came a familiar voice. “Such a surprise to see you here!” Ranko turned and blinked at the purple haired man who was sitting at one of the Judges panels. “I hope you enjoy the show.”

“Oh I will,” the girl promised as she chucked a knife into the ground where the ring's shadow was, embedding the blade in darkness.

“There's four of them - each one caused by those spot lights up there,” the purple haired man noted, pointing up at the overhead lights.

“Yes, thank you,” She said as she went to work, stabbing each of the ring's shadows with a dagger. As soon as she secured the last one, music started playing and the dull drone of the crowd became wild with cheers. Ranko walked over to the blue corner and waited. Ranma and Akane walked over to her as they waved at the crowd. “Oi! Akane! Ranma!” She waved as she called out. The other two teens blinked as they made their way to her.

“You're feeling better?” Ranma asked excitedly.

“Not enough to take your place,” Ranko said cheerfully. Her twin sagged at that and Ranko pat her on the back. “There, there. Get up there and show that little wretch who's the best,” Ranma looked at her for a few seconds before she shrugged and leapt up into the ring, before posing some. Kodachi was already waiting in the Ring, with a black rose in her mouth.

“In this corner, Kodachiiiii Kuuuuuno!” the announcer…announced. “And in this corner…” She paused before looking at the redheaded pig-tailed girl. “Excuse me. Your name is?”

“Saotome Ranma,” she supplied.

“Furinkan High School's very own Raaaaaanma Saotomeeeee!” There was a large amount of whispering on the part of Furinkan High's audience; The girl below had red hair and looked like Ranko, but her hair and name was like that of Ranko's male twin.

“They'll never figure it out,” Ranma giggled to her sister and fiancée.

“Right,” Ranko shrugged, but Akane looked somewhat nervous.

“Champions to the center!” the announcer called. “Now shake hands!” Ranma and Kodachi approached the center of the ring, and once they were done shaking hands, Ranma realized there was something cuffed to her right hand. She looked at the chain that lead to a small black piglet and frowned.

“Ryoga? What are you doing here?” The bandana sporting pig leapt up and bit her on the arm, and she gave it a half lidded glare. “You just live to louse me up, don't you?” She demanded the porcine runt.

There was a loud bell, signifying the beginning of the match.

----

Paipan: Refers to someone who does not have hair in all the right places yet…in other words, someone who hasn't quite started puberty.

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