Standard Disclaimer: I by no means make any claim to the
characters or to the story of Ranma  .  They are the
exclusive property of Rumiko Takahashi, Viz Video, Kitty
Productions, etc.  I am merely a fan who had an idea for a
story and decided to share it with others.


Please Note:
When dealing with a trans-genderal character such as
Ranma it sometimes becomes difficult to establish the usage
of he/his v.s. she/her.  In dealing with memories, I have used
masculine as this was Ranma's form at the time.  In other
cases, it will depend on the perception of the characters
involved.  If he is male, or _thought_ to be male, the
masculine terms are used, and vice versa, though
occasionally I have used the opposite to reinforce from time
to time his current state.  I have tried to catch each example
of this, but if I have missed any, please bear with me.

You can contact me at:
bloodblade@geocities.com

or visit my website at:
http://www.geocities.com/tokyo/towers/5920


Index:
"Quotes" are for spoken words.
<Brackets> are for thoughts.
[Braces] are for 'sign' language.
*Stars* are for sounds or actions.

That said... enjoy! ^_^


***********************************

"Mom?  It's me, Ranma."

"Ranma?"  Nodoka was just returning from her short trip
out to the market and picking up Nuriko from school.  She
wasn't sure what had been going on before her arrival, but
she couldn't help but feel that she'd missed something
important, like when you hear the punch line but not the
joke.  Now that she had the chance, she took a closer look
at the stranger in her home that claimed she was their
mother.  At a guess, the age was about right, though it was
hard to be sure because of the person's short stature.  The
build didn't seem quite right either.  Much lighter than she
would have expected of someone who had spent the past
decade training in martial arts, though she knew that not
everyone developed at the same pace, or in the same way. 
And the hair.  Red!  Ranma hadn't been born with red hair,
his had been black.  Then again, things like hair colour
could be changed.  She knew this all too well, having the
need to touch up the small amount of grey in her own hair
every week or so.

But it was the eyes that decided it.  Those eyes blew away
any argument or doubt she might have.  She remembered
those deep blue, beautiful eyes that had looked up at her
when she had first given birth to her son, and of the many
times she had seen them in her child as he grew.  They were
the same eyes that looked up at her how, filled with
recognition and a sort of desperate hopefulness that that
recognition would be returned.  Without a doubt, this was
her child.  Her baby boy.  Her Ranma.


**********
The Youngest Tendo
by Stephen Sparrow

Chapter 2: Relations
**********


"Oh Ranma," she said as she swept him up in a tight hug,
tears of joy beginning to trickle from the corners of her
eyes.  "How I've missed you so."

"I've missed you too, mom," Ranma said, returning the
embrace.  Though her father had told her over the years that
crying was for the weak and unmanly, having no place in the
Art, she just couldn't stop the tears from flowing, and she
found that she didn't even want to try.

Genma was flipping out.  How had she known that they
were here?!?  The only person he had told was Soun in the
postcard he had sent.  But now that Nodoka was here, he
was as good as dead, and Ranma too.  There was no way
with the boy's curse that she would ever consider him to be
a man among men, which meant... which meant that both he
and Ranma would have to commit seppuku to preserve the
family's honor.  Genma was a coward, and he knew it.  He
had spent too many years under the none too gentle tutelage
of Master Happosai not to be, and now there was only one
thing to do.  He didn't think that he would ever have to use
this again, but if he had any chance of keeping his furry hide
in one piece, he needed to get away and think.  Utilizing the
'Saotome Anything Goes Final Attack', he picked himself off
the floor and made a beeline for the garden doors.

Kasumi had been right.  She had hoped desperately that she
had been wrong, that it had just been some sort of
misunderstanding of hers, or a queer coincidence, but there
was no denying it now.  Earlier, when she had asked her
father what Ranma's last name was, she had thought it
sounded familiar.  And it was.  It was the same last name as
Nana's before she came to live with them, before she had
married their father and become a Tendo.  Her step-mother
had been Nodoka Saotome.  She looked towards Akane and
Nabiki and was not surprised to see the shock on their faces
as realization began to set in.  Kasumi closed her eyes and
shook her head sadly, a single tear tracing down her cheek. 
Never before had she been ashamed to be a Tendo, but she
could not fully forgive in her heart the actions of her father.

Ranma felt deliriously happy.  She was finally reunited with
her mother.  Over the years when she had been training with
Genma, she had often thought of her mother, but the warm
memories of her childhood had become faded with time. 
Whenever Ranma had asked her father about her, he'd been
evasive, saying little more that she was a loving, warm and
caring person, and that it had been necessary to take him
away from her for the sake of the Art.  When asked why it
was necessary, Genma always stated that he would go soft
if she was always there, hovering over him, ready to make
the 'boo-boos' go away.  A real man, a man among men,
needed to know about pain, how to deal with it, and how to
defeat it.  Pain was everywhere in life, a constant reminder
that you were still alive, and that it never let up.  Pain is the
opponent of every true martial artist, and any opponent
must be defeated. _That_ is why they traveled, just the two
of them, to train Ranma to be the best martial artist there is,
and to do that, he could not fear pain, and he would never
achieve that if his mother were there.

Ranma often thought her father was full of it, and this
moment was no exception.  This felt so right, being together
again with her mother, that it couldn't possibly be wrong.  A
part of her wished that this moment wouldn't end.

*WHAM*

Ranma gave a mental sigh. _Of course_ something would
have to happen.  It always did.  Twisting around out of her
mother's grasp to see what the noise was, she found her
father sprawled out on the floor, unconscious.  Apparently
he had tripped over the end of the table and knocked himself
out.  Trust 'good 'ol pop' to totally screw up the moment.

"Ranma?"  The tone was confused at first, but it quickly
turned suspicious.  "No, you're not my Ranma.  Who are
you, and why did you try to deceive me?"

Ranma turned back to her mother only to be met with a
sternly cool expression.  "W-what do you mean I'm not
Ranma.  Of course I am.  I'm your son."

Nodoka considered the stranger in front of her, bristling
slightly.  How could she have been so wrong?  She had been
so certain that this was her long absent child, but it couldn't
be.  When 'Ranma' had twisted in her arms, she had felt
something large and soft, brush up against her chest. 
_Two_ large soft somethings that shouldn't... couldn't be
there if this person was her child.

"I don't know who you are, but you aren't my son, or
anyone else's for that matter.  Drop this foolish pretense and
tell me who you are young lady."

***///***

"Daddy, who's that girl hugging mommy?"

Soun turned to look at his youngest daughter, Nuriko, still
clinging to his neck.  She had only been home a minute or
so, but had noticed what he had not; that Ranma was
(currently) a girl.  True, his perception had been clouded by
his preconceptions, but such lapses in attention were ill
befitting a martial artist of his caliber.  Time and again his
youngest child managed to surprise him.

"That's Ranma, Nuriko.  He's your mommy's son."

"He?" he watched as her small face scrunched up in
confusion.  "But she's a girl."

Soun decided to admit defeat right then.  There wasn't any
reasonable way to explain to the young girl the curse that
Ranma was under.  It was still hard for even himself to
believe and he had seen it happen.  Fortunately he was
spared the need to reply as he watched first Genma kiss the
floor after gracelessly tripping over the living room table,
and then in a matter of moments, witness a happy reunion
between mother and child turn bitter.

"I'll explain later, honey." he said poking her gently in the
nose before standing up.  "Nodoka?"

"Yes, Soun?" turning towards his voice "Do you know who
this girl is?" she asked, indicating Ranma.

"Yes, I do dear."  He heaved a sigh.  This was going to be a
long day, and it was going to get worse before it ever got
better.  "Please come over here and have a seat," he said 
motioning her to join the place beside him.  "The rest of you 
too.  Akane, Kasumi, Nabiki, Ranma," he waved for them 
come over as well, "please, sit.  We will probably get this
straightened out best if we _all_ start from the beginning."

Genma had to be revived, then retrieved as he tried once
more to make a break for the door, and eventually got him
to sit at the table with the rest of group with a little help of
an arm bar from Ranma.

Nuriko, on the other hand, had been quite fascinated with
the large black and white panda and its presence in the
house.  Her several attempts to poke and pet Genma were
blocked by Nodoka (who couldn't understand why they
didn't just keep the creature outside), and she had to be told
twice that she couldn't play with strange animals before she
settled down and Soun could finally begin his speech.

"Though you three girls have already heard this, I think it's
best that I repeat it for the others." he cleared his throat,
"About twenty years ago, my friend and I had been training 
in the Art under our Master.  When the Master uhhhh... met
with an unfortunate end, we were both eager to get on with
our lives.  However, before we parted ways, we made a
pact that would ensure our future friendship and the
continuation of the family school.  When our children came 
of age, we would unite them in marriage."

Nodoka felt her annoyance and anger rise.  This was the 
first time she had ever heard of this ‘engagement’, despite 
the many opportunities Soun had to inform her.  Why had 
she been left out of such a vitally important decision?  She 
shot Soun a cold glance, which fortunately for him he did 
not see, otherwise he may not have had the nerve to 
continue.

"However, many things have changed since that day." he
looked at his three eldest daughters, "Kasumi.  Nabiki. 
Akane.  I hope you don't believe that I betrayed the memory
of your mother.  I still cherish all the time we spent
together, all the laughter and the tears." he gave his head a
small shake, "After she died, it felt like my heart had been
ripped out, and I hope that none of you ever have to go
through the same pain that I did.  A part of me died that day
and I never thought that I would be able to love again." he
turned to give Nodoka a smile, her hard expression was
now gone as he had continued, "But I was wrong.  I did
find love again, and I was glad that you all approved of my
marriage to your step-mother, Nodoka.  I-"

"GROAWWWRRR!!!!!"

Genma launched himself across the table, easily ripping free
of his son's grasp and barreled into Soun.  Now, it should be
said that Genma is not the brightest of individuals.  He is
neither quick to take a hint nor avoid simple traps, but not
even his brain could fail to figure out what was going on. 
The warm smiles that his best friend gave his wife; the way
Nodoka seemed completely at home in the Tendo house;
this mysterious fourth daughter that he had never heard
about.  It all came together to form a decidedly unpleasant
picture.

This day, Genma had gone through a spectrum of emotions. 
Happiness that the promise that he share with Soun to unite
their two houses would now be fulfilled.  Disappointment in
his son that he would defy his father's wishes in the matter
of the engagement.  Confusion once he had finally reached
the Tendo dojo that Soun seemed less than overjoyed to see
him and Ranma arrive.  Stark terror upon finding Nodoka
here and that she would surely kill him.  And now... Rage! 
Blinding, burning rage over this... this utter and absolute
betrayal.  But when Soun mentioned the word 'marriage',
Genma went through another spectrum, from
Ultra-violent... to Infra-Dead.


Genma's cursed form easily knocked the smaller man to the
floor and effectively pinned him there, preventing his
escape.  He wrapped his paws around Soun's neck,
intending to choke the life out of him, slamming the other
man's head against the floor repeatedly.  It was fortunate for
Soun that pandas don't have opposable thumbs or he would
have found it impossible to breathe, but as it was, the blows
to his head were doing him no good and having several
hundred pounds of panda on his chest was slowly
smothering him.

Nodoka instinctively pulled Nuriko away from the table and
out of the way from the rampaging animal.  She didn't know
what had cause the creature to become so violent, but
whatever the reason, it was attacking her husband and she
had to do something.  Nabiki and Kasumi both had jumped
away from the table like she had and Nodoka pushed
Nuriko in their direction.  "Get Nuriko out of here and keep
her safe.  I have to get something." she said before running
up the stairs to the second floor.

Nabiki had learned a little of the Art when she was young,
but hadn't practiced it in years.  Kasumi was no better. 
Both knew they were way out of their league here and were
relieved when they saw both Ranma and Akane jumping
into the fray, trying to pry Genma off of their father.   She
knew the length of Akane's skill in martial arts and of her
impressive strength.  She'd seen Akane take on the total
population of male athletes at Furinkan and not even break a
sweat, so she knew her little sister could handle herself in
this.  She didn't know the length of Ranma's skills, but he
was likely to be pretty good as well if he'd been training all
of these years.   "Come on, Squirt.  This is no place for us." 
Nabiki decided to leave this to them and picked up her
slightly protesting little sister and carried her down the
hallway and out of the house.  Kasumi could only nod in
agreement, following a step behind.

***

For Ranma, nothing was making sense.  Things had failed to
make sense almost from the moment she had gotten up this
morning, and it became increasingly jumbled as time went
on.  The engagement, her arrival at the Tendo dojo, her
mother's presence, her acceptance and then her sudden cold
rebuff, Pop's weird behavior around mom, and now this.  
Ranma could tell that her father was really and truly angry
from the way he was behaving.  There was no evidence of
control or restraint that should have been present from a
martial artist.  He had simply attacked the other man
savagely and blindly.

Jumping up, Ranma grabbed onto one of Genma's arms and
tried to pull the furry paw away from the other man's neck,
but found that her smaller female form only slowed her
father's pounding rather than halt it.  When Akane joined in
a moment later on the other side, their combined effort
arrested the motion entirely, but they could still not pry him
off.  Genma seemed oblivious to their efforts, continuing to
focus on Soun entirely and the three of them struggled in a
stalemate for another few moments.  That is, until they all
heard a sound.

*schinkt*

Ranma subconsciously catalogued it as the gentle rasping of
a steel blade leaving its sheath.  She had heard it a couple of
times while on the road with her father, and it had always
been associated with danger.  She could feel herself tense
instinctively, her martial arts skill anticipating and preparing
for an attack, but she couldn't let go of her father's arm yet. 
Fortunately, the sound had apparently broken through
Genma's berserker state and he froze.  Taking advantage of
the lack of resistance, Ranma and Akane were able to haul
the large panda's frame off of Soun, allowing him to crawl
free.  That now dealt with, Ranma turned to deal with the
new threat, allowing Akane to look to her father.

Ranma was surprised by what she saw.  The sheath, still
partially wrapped in it's silk covering lay discarded on the
floor, the blade, however, lay elsewhere.

Taking a step forward, Nodoka advanced on the panda with
a determined look on her face, the gleaming katana held
firmly between her hands.

Seeing that the blade was not pointing at her, Ranma spared
a quick glance towards its intended destination though did
not fully drop her guard.  Wide eyed, Genma was back
peddling himself into a corner, trying to put as much
distance between himself and the woman with the sword. 
Seeing that her mother did not seem to be letting up now
that Genma had stopped, and that the older woman
continued to angrily advance, Ranma interceded by stepping
between her two parents and spread her arms wide.

"Get out of the way, child.  That animal is dangerous." she
said gesturing menacingly with the sword.

"I ain't gonna pretend I understand everything that's going
on, but I'm not gonna let you hurt him."

"Don't be foolish.  That panda is probably rabid and should
be destroyed. I'm only going to ask you to move aside one
more time young lady."  

That did it!  Nodoka didn't even see her move, but suddenly
her hands were empty and katana was in grasp of the
red-headed girl. "I AM NOT A LADY!" Ranma slammed
the blade down into the floor, wedging the blade nearly a
foot into the boards.  "And you are _not_ 'destroying'
anyone, least of all Pop.  Now back off!"

Ranma rounded on her father, who looked quite pale, if a
panda could be said to look pale, and grabbed him by the
scruff.  "And you!  I don't know what the heck you thought
you were trying to accomplish back there, but since I just
saved your worthless hide from being chopped up into
panda steaks, you're going to explain it to me.  And I mean
_now_!"  Before, Ranma could barely even budge one of
her father's arms, but now she seemed to have no problem
dragging him bodily across the floor and into the kitchen.

Nodoka wasn't sure what to make of all that just happened. 
She'd never been addressed by anyone in tones like that
before, but somehow she felt she had gotten off lucky.  She
had been disarmed before she had known it.  One moment
the hilt had been in her hands, the next it was gone.  She
hadn't even seen the girl move.  As she looked at the family
blade, indignantly sheathed in the floor, she noted how
deeply it was wedged into the wood.  She had lived around
martial artists long enough to know that this was a
combination of strength and skill that few could even dream
of achieving.  She hated to think what might have happened
to her if the girl had decided to do more than simply disarm
her.  Very lucky indeed.

There was some clattering and sounds of running water
coming from the kitchen, but there was likely little she could
do about whatever the girl was up to, even if she wanted to,
so instead she turned towards the two remaining occupants
of the room.  Soun was coughing slightly and rubbing at his
throat to reduce the pain of the bruises that were already
starting to purple.  Akane knelt beside him, supporting him
as he sat, a worried expression across her face.  As Nodoka
knelt down to join them, Akane spoke up, though her eyes
never left her father.

"Nana?  Do you love father?"

Nodoka was puzzled by the nature and timing of the
question.  "What brought this on, Akane?"

Akane still did not look up, but her expression became
tense.  "Please, Nana, just answer the question.  It's really
important.  Do you love daddy?"

"Yes, of course I love him, but what-"

"Is there anything that would ever make you want to leave
him?"  This time she did look up.  Her eyes held an intense
seriousness in them.

Nodoka looked aghast at the question, "Akane, IÆm
shocked at you.  How could you even suggest such a thing. 
I love your father, and I plan to stay by his side until my
dying day."

Akane's face relaxed, and she smiled.  "Good, because I
don't want to lose you, too."

Nodoka didn't understand the cryptic response, but she
didn't have much time to decipher it when she noticed some
movement from the kitchen out of the corner of her eye. 
Turning, she expected the girl and the panda to emerge once
more into the living room having accomplished whatever it
was they had been doing.  However, she hadn't been
expecting this.  A boy, some sixteen or seventeen years of
age, with black hair, blue eyes and wearing familiar Chinese
clothing walked into the room.  Behind him was an older
heavy set man wearing a light tan martial artist's gi and a
white kerchief that covered his entire head.

"G-Genma?!?"  If she hadn't been already sitting she
probably would have fallen over in shock.

"Hello, Nodoka, my... wife."  It was hard to say what other
emotions were mixed in with that statement, but the
sarcasm was impossible to miss.

<Oh no.> Her hand covered her mouth reflexively, <He
already knows.  I hoped I could break this to him gently, but
he already knows.  How he must think of me.> "W-When
did you get here?"

"I've been here since before you arrived, Nodoka."  He
walked over to stand in front of her, "So, did you ever love
me, or was our whole marriage merely a farce?"

"No!  No no no.  It's not like that.  Please don't think that
Genma.  I loved you.  I wouldn't have married you
otherwise."

"But still you'd pick him over me, the man I had considered,
until now, to be my best and oldest friend.  I've been faithful
to you over all these ten years, so why couldn't you be
faithful to me?  Did he give you presents?  Promise you
things I couldn't provide?  Did he worm his way into your
heart, seducing you, making you love him rather than me?"

Nodoka jumped up and slapped Genma across the face. 
The angry flush in her cheeks warred at odds with the tears
falling from her eyes.  "Don't you dare say that.  Soun is a
gentleman and would never do such a thing."  The tears
finally won out and she fell to her knees, sobbing into her
hands.  "I'm sorry Genma.  I-I'm so, so sorry.  I never meant
to hurt you.  Blame me if you must, but please, don't blame
Soun."  Any more was lost as she wept uncontrollably. 

Genma's face, the red hand print stark across his cheek,
softened, saddened.  For years now, the thought had tickled
at the back of his mind, whispering ever so gently, that in
the many years that he was away, his wife may not have
remained faithful to him.  His life on the road was a lonely
one, and there was the rare occasion where he had
considered finding companionship in the arms of another
woman, but he had never acted upon such an impulse.

It was in these times when the whispering made itself most
felt, that if such thoughts had occurred to him, then surely
they must have occurred to her as well.  Afterwards, he
would always berate himself, both for his weakness and his
foolishness, quashing the whispering down into the
background once again.  His relationship with Nodoka was
not some thing of fancy or fleeting physicality, but
something strong and enduring.  This is what he had told
himself to harden his resolve every time that he smothered
that quiet voice, that she felt as strongly towards him as he
did towards her and that they would always stay true to one
another.

But still... a small part of him worried that they might have
been right.

Now, it seemed, those near silent fears had been justified. 
As he reached a hand to his cheek, he realized that the
stinging was gone, replaced by a shocked numbness.  The
earlier fear was gone, as was the rage, the betrayal, every
emotion seemed to have dropped away leaving him feeling
empty.

But there was one thing he had to know.  He knelt down
next to his former wife.  "Why him?  Why did it have to be
him?  At the very least why couldn't it have been someone
else?  Someone I didn't know?  Please, tell me that at least."

When her crying finally subsided she looked up at him and
replied, "Because... because we were both lonely people,
and somehow... somehow we managed to find comfort in
being with each other.  When you went away on your
training mission with Ranma, you not only took my son
away from me, you took away my husband too.  I never
meant to betray you, Genma, but you were never there. 
You were never there to be a wife to, never there to hold,
never there to love or to love me back." she paused, trying
to find the strength to say these next words, "I-I fell out of
love with you, and though I didn't know it at the time, Soun
with his kind words and gentle ways, found his way into the
space you left in my heart, like I did with him.

"And not just him.  I came to love each of the girls too like
they were my own daughters, and though I wasn't their
mother, they loved me back and welcomed me.  They all
became family to me."

"Are the fireworks over yet?"

Everyone turned at the sound of Nabiki's voice.  She was
standing there in the doorway with Kasumi and Nuriko, the
youngest girl had an ice cream cone in hand and a tell tale
ring of chocolate around her mouth.  When the three of
them had left the house earlier, Nuriko had been rather
voluble about wanting to know what was going on inside,
and why they had to leave, and what the panda was doing in
their house, and...  However, neither Nabiki nor Kasumi had
answers to her questions, at least not ones that would have
made any sense to a six year old, from what they themselves
could understand of the situation.  Though, of course,
Nabiki knew Nuriko's secret weakness, and so when
mentioned that maybe they should go get some ice cream,
there was a large 'Yay!  Ice cream!' from Nuriko, silencing
any further questions much to the older girls' relief.  Now
here again they stood, their quest for the elusive dairy
product now complete.

"Yes, I think that it should be alright to come back in now. 
Please have a seat and join us.  You both should hear this." 
Nodoka said waving them over.  "And perhaps you might
want to have a seat too, Genma.  This may take a while to
explain."

There was a *squink* sound, like a cork being extracted
from a wine bottle that made Nodoka realize that she had
forgotten one other person, the unfamiliar boy in the
Chinese clothing.  The sound apparently had occurred when
he had extracted her katana from the floor and she watched
as he replaced the blade in its sheath before walking over to
her.  He knelt down at the table to join the others and held
out the weapon towards her.

"I'm, errrr... I'm... sorry 'bout what I said earlier, Mom." 
Apologies were not something Ranma did very well, or very
often for that matter, but somehow he felt that this was
important to say to her.

<Mom?> Nodoka looked the young man over.  This time
there was no mistaking the individual for a boy, the voice
was too deep and the build was too angular for even the
most awkward of girls.  But the eyes, those deep blue eyes
were exactly the same as before.  "Ranma?  But... but you
were that girl before.  How...?  When...?"

Ranma gave a small sigh.  I looked like another
demonstration of his curse was in order.  "It's a long story."
He began to stand up, "Here, just give me a sec to go get
some hot water and I'll-" he stopped as he felt Nodoka's
restraining hand on his wrist.

"No, wait.  I believe it's you.  I don't know what's happened
to you or how, but I believe it's you.  Whatever the reason is
can wait until later, but for now, please, just join the rest of
us.  There is something that needs to be said and you should
be here to hear it."

He hesitated a moment before giving a nod.  She waited
until he and the others were all comfortably settled before
taking a final deep breath to calm herself and begin her
story.


"Kimiko and I had come to be friends before she passed
away.  Not close friends really, we'd only seen each other a
few times other than when Genma and Soun got together,
but when I heard about her death, I came over to offer my
condolences and my support.  Soun was a wreck.  He hadn't
slept or eaten in days as he seemed to crawl within himself
with grief.  The girls weren't doing much better either since
the loss of their mother.

"Akane seemed confused and continually on the verge of
tears, not fully understanding what had happened and that
her mother wasn't coming back.  Nabiki was suffering from
strong denial, showing little outward emotion, but what she
did show seemed to be anger at something she could do
nothing about.  Kasumi was doing the best she could. 
Being the eldest, she felt it fell upon her to look after
everyone else and to do the jobs her mother had.  She had
picked up some basic skills in cooking and cleaning from
her mother, but it was clear that she was overwhelmed."

***///***

The door opened and Nodoka was surprised to see it was
young and tired looking Kasumi who answered her knock
and not Soun.  It took the young girl a few moments to
recognize her visitor before bowing politely.

"Oh, hello Saotome-san.  Please come in."

Nodoka did so, removing her shoes in the atrium before
entering the house.  "Hello, Kasumi-chan.  I was hoping to
come and pay my respects.  Your mother was a friend of
mine, I'm sorry for your loss."  She saw the little girl's eyes
shimmer for a moment before she gave a sniff and wipe her
eyes with her sleeve.

"Yeah, I miss her a lot."

She was trying very hard to look like a grown-up, to be
strong and supportive for her family, but she still looked like
a sad little girl trying to wear shoes that were many sizes
too big for her.  Nodoka couldn't stand to see the little girl
suffer, so she knelt down and pulled her into a hug.  Kasumi
didn't resist the embrace as an up welling of suppressed
emotion from the past few days resurfaced.  She gripped the
older woman back as though she were drowning and this
was her lifeline, she sobbed in great heaves as her tears
dampened Nodoka's kimono.  As she cried, Nodoka gently
stroked Kasumi's soft brown hair, and after a minute or so
the tears slowly decreased.

"I'm <hic> I'm sorry for getting your dress wet, Nana."
Kasumi said as she finally released her grip.

Nodoka just smiled gently. 'Nana' was the name she was
called by the three girls.  A couple of years ago when she
had come by for a visit, she had tried to get the four year
old Akane to call her 'Auntie Nodoka', but the closest she
managed to get with the small girl was 'Auntie Nana'.  The
other two girls picked this up too and it had stuck, but
Nodoka didn't mind.  She though the name was adorable. 
She had actually been a little surprised when Kasumi called
her 'Saotome-san', but she understood that she had done it
playing the role of the polite hostess rather than as a familiar
nine year old.
 
 "That's all right dear, I don't mind.  It's good to cry if you're
feeling sad.  It makes you feel better afterwards."  And it
was true, Kasumi did look better than she had when she first
arrived, a little of the sadness seemed to have been lifted
from her.  "So, where is everyone else?"
"Daddy's the porch just looking out into the back yard.  He
cries a lot, but I don't think it makes him feel any better.  I
think Nabiki is up in her room.  She hasn't said much in the
past couple of days.  I left Akane in the living room to
watch tv while I made dinner," her eyes widened briefly,
"Oh, no!  Dinner!  I left the stove on!" and with that she ran
down the hallway and into the kitchen.

Nodoka was only a couple of steps behind Kasumi, and
from the sight she found she could understand why the girl
had been distressed.  Two pots were boiling over and
making a terrible mess of the stove top while a thin stream
of black smoke came from one corner of the oven.  Kasumi
was frantically turning the elements off and moving the pots
to the counter, but already the damage had been done.  The
dinner she had so carefully prepared was now ruined.  It
looked as if she might begin to cry again when Nodoka
spoke up.

"It's okay, Kasumi."  She pulled out a handkerchief and
dabbed the girl's cheeks and eyes, removing the trails of old
tears and the new ones forming.  "It's my fault that this
happened because you came to answer the door.  Tell you
what. Why don't you let me make you all dinner to make it
up to you?  And afterwards, I'll help you around the house. 
Is that ok?" she said finishing with a warm smile.

Kasumi returned the smile and nodded. "Un."
***

"After that day I would come by once or twice a week to
help Kasumi clean up, prepare a meal, or to be there to
comfort the girls.  Nabiki suffered from some terrible
nightmares during that time, but aside from that, they all
seemed to slowly be returning to normal in the weeks that
followed.

"Kasumi was still busy trying to take care of everything, but
she didn't seem quite so burdened as before.  Nabiki finally
started opening up and would talk to everyone again, and
though she tried hard to hide it, I know she still missed her
mother deeply.  Little Akane no longer seemed as confused
over the absence of her missing parent and began to act like
a normal six year old again.  Soun finally came out of his
depression and became responsive once again to the needs
of his family, though he still seemed quite fragile in some
ways.  With time, their wounds were slowly starting to heal.

"We ended up spending a lot of time together over the next
couple of years.  The house had been so quiet with Genma
and Ranma both away on their training mission that I looked
forward to my visits with Soun and girls.  Towards the end I
would see them nearly every other day.  Maybe it's the
mother in me, but I loved to spend time with the girls,
teaching them and watching them grow.  Sometimes Soun
and I would just chat away for hours after the girls had gone
to bed.  It was nice just to have the company.

"I don't know when it really happened, but somewhere
along the line, the simple friendship I had with Soun became
something more for me, and for him too.  The point that we
did finally realize the attraction between us was over seven
years ago.  

"I don't expect you girls to remember it clearly, but little
Akane became terribly sick when she was about eight years
old.  Your father took her to see the doctor who said that
she had the measles, but with plenty of rest and care, her
system would fight it off in about a week."

***

"I've finally managed to get her to sleep, but she's still
fussing and feverish.  I expect that she won't get much sleep
tonight, and I'll need to go and check on her in a short
while," Nodoka said, walking into the living room and
having a seat at the table beside Soun.

Soun looked up from watching the late night news.  "Thank
you Nodoka.  You can't imagine what a relief its been
having you here during this time.  I really appreciate your
assistance in helping me look after Akane."

"Oh, it's no trouble, Soun," she said, giving him a smile "I've
grown fond of all three girls and I hate to see one of them
suffer so."

"Did you plan on staying the night again?"

Nodoka had stayed over the past four nights, ever since
Akane first got sick, so that she could stay close to the small
girl.  "Yes, I think I will, if you're sure it's not an
inconvenience."

Soun gave a small laugh.  "If there is one thing your
presence here is not, it's an inconvenience.  Nodoka, you've
so greatly helped me and the girls over these past few years
that you are welcome in my home anytime.  Akane, Nabiki
and Kasumi, they all adore you.  There was a large gap in
their lives after... after Kimiko died, but your being here
helped to ease that pain.  I think that they consider you to
be a sort of surrogate mother to them.  And I appreciate
your presence here as well."  He gave her hand a pat. "It's
been wonderful being able to have someone to talk to, and
just being around is... comforting.  I'm not sure if I can
really explain this very well, but there's a certain additional
warmness to the house whenever you're here."

Nodoka felt her face flush from the unexpected praise.  "It's
always been my pleasure spend time with you and the girls,
so there's no need to thank me, but I appreciate the thought
anyway.  It was a very sweet thing to say."  She leaned over
and gave him a small peck on the cheek.

That was all she had intended to do, just a simple friendly
kiss on the cheek, but as she was leaning back, she
hesitated.  She wasn't sure where the impulse came from,
but she leaned forwards once again and kissed him again,
only this time on the lips.

Soun was a little surprised at first by the sudden and
unexpected advance on her part, but after a moment he
found himself responding to the kiss.  It felt warm and soft
and wonderful. They stayed like that for about a minute, just
holding each other, sharing the passionate embrace, when a
cry rang out.
"NanaaaAAA!"

They were apart in a flash.  Nodoka brought her hand up,
covering her mouth in shock. <How did...?  What was I...? 
How could I...?>  Remembering the cry, she focused on that
and quickly stumbled to her feet.  "I ummm... I need to go
check on Akane."  And with that she was gone, leaving an
equally shocked and confused Soun alone in the living
room.

***///***

"I really don't know what came over me that night.  I mean,
I was a married woman, and as a proper wife, I should be
faithful to my husband," she said, lowering her head
shamefully, "But I hadn't been.  I kissed another man, and
found I liked it.  I was very confused and embarrassed over
my actions, and it was quite difficult to look Soun in the
eyes after that.  I would have avoided him completely if I
could, but Akane still needed someone to look after her
during most of the day, so I stayed and tried to sort out my
feelings."

***

Nodoka was glad that Akane had finally gotten over her
illness, her temperature finally coming down to normal
yesterday afternoon.  She was in the process of brushing the
girl's long dark hair when Akane spoke up.

"Nana?  Can I ask you something?"

"Sure you can, honey.  What would you like to know?"

"Well... ummm... did you and daddy have a fight or
something?"

Nodoka blinked in response to the question, pausing
momentarily in her brushing before continuing.  "Why
would you think that we had a fight, Akane?"

"Well, I was over at my friend Yuka's house once and her
parents had a big fight.  Later Yuka told me that they didn't
want to talk to each other for a couple of days after that.  Is
that why you don't talk to daddy anymore?"

Nodoka was a little surprised.  True, she had tried to avoid
Soun in the past couple of days, using Akane as an excuse
to keep busy, but she hadn't thought it had been all that
obvious.  Apparently she had underestimated the girl's
observational skills and couldn't help but wonder if Kasumi
and Nabiki had noticed as well.  Probably.  She knew that
Kasumi had a sort of empathy, making her sensitive to the
moods of others around her, and Nabiki had a sharp mind,
picking up on patterns   with decided ease.  Coming back to
the moment, she gave Akane a reassuring smile. "No,
Akane, your daddy and I didn't have a fight, but something
did happen between us and I've been trying to think about
what to do."

Akane bounced around on her chair, a promising look on
her face.  "Maybe I can help.  Sensei says that I'm a good
with problems."

Nodoka smiled again at the innocence of that statement,
giving Akane's head a small caress..  "That's very sweet of
you dear, but I don't think that it will help."

"But I wanna help.  I don't like it when you and daddy don't
get along." she punctuated the statement by folding her
arms over her chest and going into a full blown pout.

Nodoka couldn't help but give a slight chuckle at Akane's
expression, and when the little girl's face turned indignant
she laughed outright.  "Ok, ok.  I give up Akane, I'll tell
you, but you have to put that pout away.  It doesn't look
very pretty on a young lady." and when Akane finally did,
she continued.  "Have you ever kissed a boy, Akane?"

Akane managed to look utterly disgusted with the question,
sticking out her tongue, "Yeck!  Boys are gross.  Who
would ever want to kiss one of them?"
Nodoka just smiled, "You might not feel the same way
about boys in the future."

"I don't think so.  They're all weird.  But what does this
have to do with kissing?"

"Well, there's two kinds of kissing.  One is a kiss that you
give to friends or family, and the other is a kiss that only
grown-ups use.  I gave your daddy a grown-up kiss."

"What's the difference?" she asked, not understanding the
distinction.

"You'll understand some day, but basically a grown-up kiss
is one you should share only if you're  in love."

"So... does this mean that you're in love with daddy?"

Nodoka paused to consider that statement.  Was she?  She
was a married woman and it was disgraceful to even
consider the idea that she might be in love with another
man.  But did she love him?  For the past couple of days she
had tried to come up with some explanation for what she'd
done that night.  The best solution she had come up with
was that it had been a long day and that she had been feeling
tired and a little stressed in worrying over Akane, so she
hadn't really been thinking straight at the time.  She had
thought that that was the most likely answer, but could the
answer be much simpler?  Wisdom from the mouth of
babes?

"I-I don't know, Akane.  I'll have to think about it, but I tell
you later when I figure it out."

"Promise?" she extended her right hand with the pinky out.

"I promise." she said, grasping the pinky with her own,
"Now, let's get you some breakfast and get you off to
school."

***

<Am I in love with Soun?> The thought still seemed so
foreign, so inconceivable, that to even consider it was
ludicrous.  And yet... she couldn't shake the idea no matter
how hard she tried.  Nodoka had been brought up by her
own mother to be proper and traditional, and that meant
being a good mother and wife, and being faithful to one's
husband.  She had lived her life around these lessons, and
yet she had failed in them in some way.  But how?  It just
didn't make sense.  But then again, when had love ever
followed logic?

Nodoka looked around for something to do, for anything
that would keep her mind occupied and off of this
increasingly taboo train of thought.  However, there was
nothing left to do.  The kitchen had been cleaned, the
bathroom was scrubbed, the washing done and hung out to
dry, and the entire house had been dusted from top to
bottom.  She'd even done some minor mending of the girls'
clothes where they had been worn out from play.  It was all
done, and it hadn't helped then either.

Realizing that this wasn't going to go away just because she
wanted it to, she finally decided to sit down and work this
out.  Since obviously she couldn't decipher how she felt
about Soun, she decided to try a different tack. <I married
Genma Saotome, I am his wife and I love him. I love _him_
and no one else.> Nodoka frowned.  Why did it sound like
was she trying so hard to convince herself?  What exactly
did she have to prove?

And then it hit her.

She _didn't_ love him, at least...  not like she used to. 
Certainly there was still an attraction she had for Genma,
but it was dim, more like friendly affection than any sort of
romantic interest.  This realization utterly shocked her.  She
no longer loved the man she married.  She immediately tried
to recall his face, the things he said to her, the things they
had done together, and found that her memories too had
become faded.

<Three years,> she thought absently, <It's been three years
since I last saw him.  Three years since he took Ranma away
on that training mission.  I wonder how he is and whether
Genma is taking care of him right.  Is he healthy?  Is he
making friends?> These and a dozen or more questions
suddenly plagued her, but what bothered her the most was
that she realized she had not thought about her family in
quite some time.  Weeks in fact.  This was her family and
she couldn't even remember to wonder about them from
time to time?  She received the occasional letter from
Genma, but they were few and far between and didn't tell
her much of what they were doing other than training and
the fact that they continuously moved around meant that she
could never send a reply, furthering their separation.  It also
didn't help that Genma or Ranma had never come by to the
house in all the time they had been gone, but still, why had
this happened?

"Nodoka?  May I... speak with you for a moment."

She turned to see Soun standing in the doorway looking
somewhere between nervous and anxious.  Apparently he
had grown tired of her avoiding him and decided to
confront her about the other night. <Perhaps it's best that I
apologize to him now rather than let this whole situation
fester any longer.  I can't imagine what he must think of me
because of my impetuousness.>
"Certainly, but before you begin, there's something I need to
say."

"This cannot wait."  He came over and knelt across from
her, back straight and balled fists on his thighs.  His
expression was serious, more serious than Nodoka could
recall him looking.

<He must be very upset with me if he won't even allow me a
chance to try to explain.> She thought with a slight frown. 
She was about to break in again, to begin her apology to
him, when the unexpected happened.

He bowed to her, his brow touching the floor, palms
splayed to the side.

"Please forgive me for my actions, Nodoka-san."

She blinked a couple of times.  "What are you talking about,
Soun?  You haven't done anything wrong."

"But I have." he said, still not rising from the bow.  "I
deeply regret my weakness.  I took advantage of you the
other night, and though I cannot forgive myself, I ask that
you try to find it in your heart to forgive me."
<He took advantage of me?> If she wasn't confused before,
she was now.  "Soun?"  He still didn't move.  "Soun, please
sit up.  You're embarrassing me."  He did so, but only
reluctantly, though he still kept his head down.  "I don't
know what you think you did, but you have never taken
advantage of me.  _I_ should be the one asking for _your_
forgiveness."

"No.  As a man of honor, I cannot allow you to place my
shame on yourself.  When I kissed you the other night-"

"_You_ kissed _me_?  I was the one who kissed you, not
the other way around."   Soun finally looked up, surprised. 
"I don't know what came over me that night, but it wasn't
your fault, Soun."

"But... but I thought that I scared you away.  You broke off
so suddenly that night, and the way seem to avoid me the
past few days, I thought my actions had repulsed you."

"I was avoiding you because I was embarrassed and
confused by what I did, not by what you did."  She placed a
hand on his shoulder.  "Please don't think of yourself as
anything less than a gentleman, Soun, because you have not
treated me with anything less than friendship and respect. 
I'm sorry that my impetuous action put you through so
much anguish.  I hope that you can forgive me."

Soun seemed to chew on this new idea for a second before
replying.  The more he thought about it now, the more he
recalled about the few moments just before they had kissed. 
She _had_ initiated the contact, but he was just as guilty for
not trying to stop it afterwards.  Frankly he was just happy
that she did not hate him like he so greatly feared, though
why her possible rejection of him scared him so he could not
say.

"We've been friends for too long now for something silly
like this to come between us.  I forgive you if you promise
to forgive my foolishness as well."

Nodoka breathed a sigh of relief.  Finally this awkward
situation between them would be over.  "Of course I'll
forgive you."  After a moment though, she began to chuckle
as a thought occurred to her.
Soun, of course, did not get the private joke. "Did I miss
something, Nodoka?"

"Oh, it just struck me what a silly situation this has been.  I
mean, here we are, two emotionally mature adults behaving
like awkward teenagers," she said before continuing to
laugh softly.  
After considering this for a second, Soun had to agree that
it did seem pretty silly for them to have behaved the way
they did, and proceeded to join her in laughing.  After a
moment though, the laughter between them died down and
there was a pregnant pause as each didn't really know what
more to say.

"They're not going to do it, Akane."

The words were barely above a whisper, but they were still
audible to the both of them.  As the two of them turned
towards the doorway, they saw three small heads quickly
duck around the corner, but not fast enough for them not to
be noticed.  Apparently school was out for the day.

"Kasumi.  Nabiki.  Akane.  Please come in here."

After a moment's hesitation at being discovered, the three
girls walked into the room at their father's command.  Each
of them wore a guilty expression on their face, like they'd
been caught with their hand in the cookie jar, shuffling
nervously from foot to foot.

"I've told you before that it's not nice to spy on people. 
Now what do you have to say for yourselves?"

Each of them lowered their head shamefully, unable to meet
their father's eyes, as they all chimed out,  "I'm sorry,
Daddy."

Soun let them stand there another moment before speaking
again.  "Alright, but don't do it again.  It's not polite to
intrude on other people's business.  I don't want any of my
girls to grow up thinking that it's all right to do that."  Soun
knew that the chastising and their embarrassment would
likely be enough to prevent further incidents like this one. 
"I forgive you girls, but I want to know what it was that you
found so interesting about our conversation."
After a few more seconds of foot shuffling, Nabiki was the
first to speak up.  "We... we wanted to see if you and Nana
were going to kiss each other."

Soun blinked a couple of times at this.  This was not the
kind of reply he had been expecting.  "What made you think
we were going to kiss each other, Nabiki?"

"Well... Nana told Akane that you and her kissed each other
the other night.  She said it was a kiss that people who love
each other do. We all just wanted to know if you were in
love with Nana."


<In love with Nodoka?> The thought seemed foreign to
Soun.  He looked towards Nodoka.  Certainly she was an
attractive woman and wonderful person to talk to.  She was
an excellent cook, knew how to take care of a household,
and had done almost as much as he to raise his three girls in
the past two years.  But he had never considered her to be
anything beyond a friend, after all, she was married to
Genma and he felt that he had never truly gotten over the
loss of Kimiko.

Still... there was always this feeling he got when she was
around, a feeling that wasn't there when she left.  It didn't
feel like love, at least not like what he had felt for his
departed wife, but when the two of them had kissed, there
had been something more than what he would have felt for
just a friend.

Soun closed his eyes and shook his head in confusion, as if
the motion might cause a solution to fall loose.  What was
going on?  Why should he feel so uncertain like this?  He
was a martial artist.  He'd spent a greater part of his life
learning to control his emotions, so why couldn't he do
something simple like figure out how he felt?

He opened his eyes and looked at Nodoka again, only this
time he _really_ looked, taking in every aspect of her face. 
His eyes traced the graceful curve of her slender neck up to
the tapered point of her chin and the rounded lines of her
glossy lips.  Her high cheek bones were set off by a slight
amount of blush that afforded a look of elegance and
regalness, framing the dainty nose between them perfectly. 
Her soft chestnut hair crowned her head in lazy waves, only
partially covering the delicate contours of her ears.

Soun had met his wife over twelve years ago, and from the
day they were married until the day that she died, he had
never looked at another woman with romantic interest. 
However, as his gaze lingered on Nodoka, he could feel his
pulse quicken and a warmth well up from inside.

This was not love though, this was desire.  The earthly
desire that any normal person experiences when they behold
an attractive member of the opposite sex.  But when he
looked into her eyes, he no longer felt confused about how
he felt.

They say that the eyes are the window to the soul.  As Soun
looked into Nodoka's eyes, he felt as if he would be
swallowed up into those deep brown pools, drawn into
them by an inner beauty that equaled the outer.

This was not desire... he knew what desire felt like, and this
was not it.  It was something he had not felt in many years,
not since Kimiko passed away.  This was love.

But it was wrong.  He should not feel this way about
another man's wife, especially that of his best friend, and he
should not betray the memory of his own wife in this way. 
But he couldn't help himself.

<I'm sorry my dear Kimiko.  I swore to you on our wedding
day that I would never love any woman other than you, and
I have tried to be faithful to my word, but my heart has
opened to another.  Please forgive me.>

He felt at odds with himself as his mind told him one thing,
but his heart cried out for the exact opposite.  What was he
to do?  Which should he follow? <Please, Kami-sama.  Tell
me.  What should I do?> 

As if in response to his silent prayer, a memory came to him
from just before Kimiko's death.

/*/*/*/

Soun sat in the uncomfortable chair next to his wife's
hospital bed.  He had sat there for the past four days, and if
he hadn't needed to eat or occasionally use the washroom,
he wouldn't have been away from her side for even a
moment.  She looked so pale and fragile as she rested
beneath the sheets, and he watched as her chest gently rose
and fell as she slept.

Four days ago she had collapsed in the middle of the living
room floor, totally unconscious, and he had immediately
rushed her here to the hospital.  The doctors had all been
very nice and polite, but that didn't matter.  From the
moment they had told him that she had a malignant tumor of
the brain and that they 'were sorry, but there's nothing that
can be done for her', it wouldn't have mattered to him if they
were Saints in disguise.  He felt impotent, being able to do
nothing other than slowly watch his beloved wife die by
inches.  It felt as though his heart and soul were being
dragged over burning coals and broken glass every minute
that he had to look at her in that bed, but as much as it tore
at his very being, he wished that it would never stop,
because it meant that she was still here with him.

"Soun?"

He looked at his wife's face.  She had apparently woken
while he had been lost in thought.  She had been
unconscious most of the time she had been here, only
occasionally coming back into the waking world, and never
for very long.  He inwardly cursed himself for missing even
a few precious seconds because of his inattentiveness.

"I'm here, Kimiko," he said taking a hold of her hand in his
while gently caressing her forehead with the other.  "How
do you feel?"

She lay her head back against the pillow and closed her
eyes.  "Tired.  Very tired."

"Well, don't worry.  The doctors said that you'll be fine in
no time."

She opened her eyes again and gave him a sad smile. 
"Lying doesn't become you, Soun.  Please, I'm your wife. 
Please tell me the truth."

Soun felt his throat tighten up.  He hadn't wanted to tell her,
to spare her some small amount of anguish at the end, but
he couldn't deny her request.  He lowered his head and his
voice became very soft.  "You... you have a cancer of the
brain.  The doctors say that they can't do anything to help
you, that it's too far advanced.  They..."  He felt his throat
constrict even tighter and he had to choke out the final
words.  "They say you have only a few days left.  Maybe...
maybe even less."

"I see."  She had suspected something like this.  Her most
recent waking memories had been of this room, and each
time she had felt weaker and more tired than the last.  She
would never see her daughters grow up to become women,
she would not be able to grow old with Soun.  There were
so many things that she would miss about her family
because she wouldn't be there with them, but perhaps there
was one thing she could do before leaving this world for the
next.
"Soun.  There is something I want you to do for me."

"Yes.  Of course.  Whatever it is I will do it.  Anything."

"Promise me.  Promise me that you won't mourn me too
long after I'm gone.  That you will go on with life without
me."

"How can I do that?  You are my love, my life.  You mean
everything to me, how can I-" his words were silenced as
she placed a slender finger on his lips.

"Please Soun.  When I go, it will be very hard on the girls
because they are still so very young, but if they see that their
father is always sad, I think that it will be even worse for
them.  Please be strong my darling, if not for me, then for
our children.  Promise me that my death won't be the end of
both our lives."

Soun felt ashamed.  Here was his wife, strong and noble at
the end of her life, while all he could do was to think of how
miserable the rest of his life would be without her.  He
reached over and gave her a fierce hug, full of strong,
desperate emotion.
"I promise, Kimiko.  I will find some way to go on because
you asked me to.  I love you."
"Thank you, Soun.  I love you too." she said in a whisper,
returning the hug.  A few crystal tears slipped from the
edges of her eyes as she buried her face in his shoulder. 
"I-I'm so scared, Soun.  I don't want to die.  I don't want to
leave you or the girls.  Please, hold me and don't let go."

"Don't worry, my love, I will never leave your side.  When
Death comes, I will frighten him away.  I won't let him take
you from me."

Kimiko smiled, this time taking comfort in the lie.  She fell
unconscious again soon after that, but he never let her go,
not even when sleep claimed him.
She passed away later that night, and when Soun awoke the
next morning his tears fell like the rain and would not stop.

/*/*/*/

Soun glanced towards the dojo, to the place where he knew
her ashes rested atop the family shrine, suddenly unsure
what to do. <Is this what you would have wanted?  Is this
what you made me promise for?>

"Well, are you?"

Soun turned his head at the sound of Nabiki's voice, and as
he looked at his three daughters standing there, each one a
small part of her, he found his answer.

He looked back to Nodoka, back into those deep, dark eyes
and said "Yes.  Yes, I am."  He took her hands into his, "I
don't know if you can return how I feel about you, Nodoka,
but I want you to know that I do love you."

When Soun had looked at her earlier, Nodoka had felt a
warm flush go through her body.  She had received stares
from other men who found her attractive, but none of them
had ever made her feel like this.  The way he looked at her
made her feel desirable and desired, but more than in just a
physical way.  It was something that she hadn't felt for
several years now, and she found she had missed it greatly. 
But when he turned away suddenly with a slight frown on
his face, the warm feeling dropped away instantly, replaced
by an almost painful knotting in her stomach.

What was happening to her?  It was like she was on a roller
coaster, on top of the world one instant, then having the
ground pulled out from underneath her in the next.  Why did
she feel this way?  Wh...?  Any further questions she may
have had were lost as his eyes came back to her.  When he
spoke those words, holding her hands in his own, it was like
a dam burst inside of her causing everything to come
pouring forth in a single moment.  She finally realized the
reason for everything she had felt today and for the past few
days.

She loved Soun Tendo.

"Oh Soun, I love you too."  With a joyful tear in her eye,
she wrapped her arms around him and their lips met.  This
time though, she was fully aware of her actions and there
was no hesitation on his part, but it was no less wonderful.

Kasumi had enough sense to give the two of them their
privacy and herded her two younger sisters out into the
kitchen, but that didn't keep the happy grin from spreading
across her face, matching the ones on her siblings' faces. 
Their daddy was happier than any of them had seen him in
years, and they were going to have a new mother.

***///***

Nodoka looked up from the table to meet Genma's gaze,
though the silent accusation that lay there made her flinch
and turn away.
"I know that there is nothing I can say that will ever make
up for what I've done to you, but please know that I never
meant to hurt you.  I wanted to tell you years ago, how I
felt about you, and how I felt about Soun, but I didn't have
any way of contacting you.  You never returned to the
house, and the few letters you sent didn't tell me where you
were.  I spent close to half a year trying to find you, visiting
the dojos, training grounds and monasteries in the areas that
you had recently visited.  At each one, I hoped to find some
clue that would lead me to where you were, but no matter
how hard I tried, I couldn't catch up to you.  You would
continually move on from one place to the next, and the few
times I met someone who had seen you, you had already
been gone for weeks.

"During this time, I hardly saw Soun or the girls, maybe
only a handful of days over the entire time, but every time I
left, I knew I wanted to go back and be with them.  Six
months had passed and I was no closer to finding you than
when I started. I hadn't seen you or Ranma for over three
and a half years and decided at that point I had to go on
with my life.  It was probably the most difficult decision I
ever had to make.
"When I returned to Nerima, I... I filed for a divorce."

She looked up into Genma's eyes for the first time since she
started, hoping to convey to him how trying it had been for
her to abandon that part of her life, but all she saw in his
gaze was barely constrained betrayal and fury.  She knew
that he had heard her words, but it was too late, too far
gone for words to soften the blow.

"I don't expect you to believe me, but for what it's worth,
besides the two times that Soun and I kissed, I was never
unfaithful to you while we were still married.  From the time
that I first realized that I loved Soun until the separation
was approved nearly a year later, I remained chaste and our
relation remained platonic.  We were married shortly after
that though, and Nuriko," she said, looking down at her
daughter and gently stroking her hair, "joined us about a
year later.  We've all been living together as a family ever
since."


Genma was not a man of great wealth or of things.  What
little he owned filled no more than his traveling backpack
which suited him just fine.  His training mission with Ranma
kept him constantly on the move, traveling from one place
to the next (sometime leaving with little or no notice), and
such a life didn't afford itself to many luxuries.  True, he
would much rather be rich and live a life of decadence, but
for the sake of his only son and the Saotome school of
Anything Goes Martial Arts, no sacrifice could be too great.

This didn't mean that he didn't have prized possessions,
though these few objects held sentimental rather than
material value.  It was an odd little collection; a figurine of a
chubby little man he'd picked up in Osaka, a single jade
hairpiece from Yokohama, a small scroll adorned with
images of swimming koi.  Each trinket had a memory
associated with it, but there was one that he treasured above
all the others; a lock of Nodoka's hair tied with a small blue
ribbon that she had given him on the day he left with
Ranma.  Whenever he held it, it had conjured up images of
her face and memories of their early marriage when their
passions ran high.   It had kept him warm on many a cold
and lonely night with the silent promise that someday, when
the boy's training was complete, he would be back and they
would be together again.

True, the boy's curse guaranteed a delay in their
homecoming, but he had felt that such a thing would be
temporary at best or could be gotten around.  But that was
not to be now.

His stomach aside, there were few things in Genma
Saotome's life that he considered to be important.  Five to
be exact.  His home, his wife, his son, his health, and his
honor.  Not a long list, but it encompassed everything he
ever really needed.

Today he learned that Nodoka and Soun had narrowed this
list to three.  Without him ever knowing, without a
challenge, without a enemy, without a chance to defend
what was his to protect, he had lost two of the things he
held most dear; his home... and his wife.

Three.  Son.  Health.  Honor.  Not an entirely pleasant
existence to look forward to, but he had managed with little
more than that for the past ten years as he traveled across
Japan with Ranma and he could do so again, _if_ he had the
chance.  However, it appeared that that too would be
denied him.  Nodoka had seen Ranma's girl form.   It was
only a matter of time before she understood the nature of
their curses, and once she did, he knew there could only be
one outcome after that.

Nodoka had always been very traditional in her actions and
ideas, and a real stickler when it came to issues of family
honor.  At least, she used to be.  He could not see how she
could look upon his attempts to raise Ranma as a 'man
among men' to be anything but a failure since their only son
was now also their daughter.  He knew that if anything
remained of the Nodoka he used to know, she would make
him fulfill his end of their agreement.  For he and his son to
commit seppuku in order to restore their family's honor.

Honor.  That's all that was really left for him now.

Yes, despite numerous actions to the contrary on his part,
Genma Saotome was indeed an honorable man.  It was a
somewhat different code of honor than what some men
might follow, but it was coloured by personal philosophy as
a follower of Anything Goes Martial Arts; Victory was life. 
Failure is inevitable, but learn from it, and survive to win in
the end.

On numerous occasions he had been forced to decide
between his honor and survival, and ultimately, survival
would always win out since he had not only himself to look
out for, but his young son as well.  Dishonor could always
be redeemed, but only if you lived to do it.

Now he faced a similar crux.  To stay meant death to him
and his son though honor would be fulfilled.  To flee meant
survival, but in that instance, any shred of honor he may still
retain would be irredeemably lost.

No choice really, but perhaps not all was lost.

Genma turned stiffly to face Nodoka, his gaze hard and
level.

"Years ago, we made a promise together, that we would
always love each other and would be faithful to one
another."  His eyes briefly drifted over Soun and little
Nuriko before returning to his former wife.  "Though there
were times when I was sorely tempted, I have never looked
upon anyone else the way I did you.  I've always kept that
promise, and today I will keep the last promise I made to
you. But first," he trailed off, ignoring the puzzled glance
Nodoka gave him as he turned to Soun.  "There is one other
promise that I must first fulfill.  You _do_ remember our
promise, don't you Tendo?"

"Er, of course I do, Saotome.  Actually... about that..."

Genma's expression hardened.  "You're not trying to back
out on me, now are you?"

Nodoka tried to break in, completely confused by this new
tack in the conversation.
"What are you two talking about?  What promise?"

Both men passed a glance towards the other, then looked
briefly at her before turning back towards one another.
"You mean you never told her?" they chorused.

"Never told me _what_?" she asked a little suspiciously,
leaning slightly over the table.

Genma's expression turned serious again.  "Tendo and I
made a pact twenty years ago to unite our two families in
marriage.  Bluntly put, to satisfy our family honor, Ranma
has to marry one of his daughters."

Nodoka's eyes went wide as she slumped back onto her
heels.  She looked between the son she had given birth to
and the girls she had come to know as daughters in a sort of
mute shock before finding her voice again. "_You’re_ the 
friend Soun meant?!?  But...? Ranma...? He has to...? Oh, 
my." she finished, sounding very much like Kasumi as she 
looked at her husband, actually, husbands in total disbelief.
<How could they decide on something so... so... vital to 
their children's lives without ever telling me?  It was just 
so... completely irresponsible of them...>, and then she
realized that she was in no position to judge them for their
actions considering her own.

"Hey, Pop!  I already told you before.  I ain't gettin' engaged
just 'cuz you said so."

Ranma had watched quietly from the sidelines as the story
of his parents unfolded.  He thought he knew now what
people meant about train wrecks or car crashes; too horrible
to watch... yet too fascinating to turn away.  For the first
time in over a decade, he had a mother again, and a home
too he supposed, but as he watched on, all of that seemed to
crumble and erode away.  He hadn't lost his mother exactly,
but somehow it felt as if she was just as distant now as
when he'd been training, even though she was a mere arm's
reach across the table.

And he felt... well, he wasn't sure what he felt.  Confused
would probably best sum it up, but there were small traces
of other emotions intermixed as well; anger, sympathy, and
hurt betrayal.  He now understood why his father had gone
off the deep end and had tried to strangle Mr. Tendo.  But
he also thought he knew why his mother had done what she
did as well.  Ranma cared about his father... sort of... but he
couldn't see how someone could keep loving the big, fat,
stupid panda, especially when he'd been away, traipsing
across Japan and China for the past decade.  It still felt
wrong the way that she had done it, though there didn't
seem to be any right way for this sort of thing to happen,
but he felt he knew the 'why'.

He had said nothing throughout the whole of his mothers
monologue as he absorbed the story of what had gone on,
but now that the issue of his supposed engagement had
come up again, he felt the need to express his feelings on
the subject that so intimately involved him.

Genma scowled at the sudden resistance from his son's
corner and shot a look in his direction.  Didn't he realize
what was at stake here? "Shut up, boy.  This is for your
own good."

"No I'm not gonna shut up, Pop.  I'm not gonna marry some
strange girl because you made some stupid promise before I
was ever born."

Akane slammed her hands down on the table and glared
across at Ranma, face slightly flushed with anger.  "Hey! 
Who are _you_ to be calling _us_ strange?!?"  Her anger
only increased as both Saotome men continued to ignore
her.

Genma clenched his jaw in frustration and anger, locking his
gaze with his son as he ignored Akane's outburst.  Why
wouldn't the boy just shut up?  He was going to ruin
everything.
"I said; Be.  Quiet."

Ranma didn't know who the man was before him, but it was
not the father he had known for the past ten years.  It still
looked like Genma, but the whole mood of man had
changed.  His father was stupid, arrogant, lazy... but that
person was gone now, replaced with someone hard, sharp
eyed, and driven to an almost feverish pitch.  This was
someone dangerous if you got in their way of achieving
their goals, and right now, Ranma had become the center of
that someone's attention.  Ranma felt his defiance crumble
under his father's continued stare as he swallowed
nervously, but he wouldn't look away.  This was his life,
dammit, and he wasn't going to submit to some stupid
engagement.

Soun watched as Ranma's earlier confidence wither under
the older man's stare.  "Genma.  This has been a long and
stressful day for everyone.  Perhaps could we finish this
tomorrow when-"

"NO!" Everyone gave a start at the strength of the denial.
"No.  We will deal with this now." <Because I won't have a
chance to later.> "Will you honor your agreement to me to
marry a Tendo to a Saotome, or will you too break your
word to me?"  He hadn't been looking at her, but everyone
at the table knew who that biting comment was directed to.

Soun began to sweat slightly.  What could he do?  He didn't
want to go through with the agreement because he couldn't
see anything but grief come out of it for anyone involved,
but he had to agree as to do otherwise would violate his
honor and his entire life as a martial artist.  What he couldn't
understand was why Genma was so adamant about it.  He
wracked his brain, trying to find some way that both of
them could be satisfied when and idea came to him.  He felt
low to have even conceived it, like rubbing salt in the man's
already grievous wounds, but what other alternative did he
have?

"Actually," he said in a superior air that left a bad taste in
his mouth, "I think that promise was already fulfilled when I
married Nodoka."

Genma was a little taken aback by that as he blinked in
confusion.  He shook it off after a second with a snarl,
"Don't twist words with me Tendo.  You know perfectly
well we meant our children when we made that promise."

"But we never specifically said it had to be them, either."

Genma fumed and clenched his teeth so hard that he
thought they might crack.  Why was Tendo fighting him so
hard on this?  Why couldn't he leave him with some small
shred of dignity?

His eyes narrowed as he found the chink in his opponent's
defenses.  "You're forgetting something, Tendo.  Once she
divorced me, she was no longer a Saotome," he said
through his still locked jaw.  "Now, unless you want to
prove conclusively that have no honor, you will agree that
Ranma will marry one of your daughters.  I do not care
which one," his gaze passing over the girls, "even your
youngest daughter, Nuriko, but It.  Will.  Be.  Done."
Nodoka grabbed her child protectively, aghast that her
former husband could even suggest such a thing.  For
Ranma to marry his half-sister...

Soun wilted.  His last straw, flimsy as it was, was now gone.
"Very well Genma.  I-"

"No!  Genma!  Soun!  Please!  Not Nuriko.  It's immoral,
it's... it's... just not Nuriko.  Please!"  Tears streamed from
Nodoka's eyes as she held her confused daughter.

Both men shared another glance as an unspoken agreement
passed between them and the nodded.  Neither one of them
could ever stand see their wife cry.

"Very well.  Ranma will marry either Kasumi, Nabiki or
Akane." Soun said in a defeated tone.

Giving a grim nod, Genma turned to Nodoka.  "Will you
give your approval on this marriage?  Will you see to the
future happiness of your son and step-daughters?"

"I-I don't understand Genma.  Why are you doing this? 
Why-"

"Nodoka," he said, showing only the second touch of
softness towards her since her arrival, "if our time together
meant anything to you, just please say that you will agree to
this marriage."

"I... very well Genma," she said in the barest whisper, "you
have my approval in this matter."

Genma gave another grim nod, but it almost was sort of
relieved as well, as if a heavy burden had been lifted from
his shoulders.  "Then, though I'm saddened to see it go, I
can leave this life with honor, knowing that my son will be
cared for."

Nodoka suddenly looked up at those words.  "Wha-What
are you saying Genma?  You don't mean...?  You don't
mean to take your own life just because I don't love you any
more?"

"'... take your own life...'?" Genma said slowly, not quite
understanding her statement.

"Yes.  Please, reconsider.  I realize that all of this must be
devastating for you, but there is so much to live for.  I may
no longer be your wife, but I still care what happens to you. 
Don't do this."

She was trying convince him to live?  Why?  By every right
she should be demanding his death.  The fact that she was
no longer his wife did not make his promise to her any less
valid.   He had sworn to her to uphold that promise on the
day that he left with Ranma, and he would honor it.  Not
that it would take much to convince him right now to let her
take his life, he didn't seem to have much left to live for. 
Why?  It didn't make sense... unless...

"You don't remember, do you."  It was a statement rather
than a question.

"Remember what, Genma?" she said softly.

Her only reply was a laugh from him.  It was not a pleasant
laugh.  The mirth was tainted with bitterness and there was
a hint of mania behind it.  Everyone at the table backed
away from the large man, Ranma, Akane and Soun
unconsciously tensing, not knowing what might come, but
on guard should he decide to do anything.

"H-Hey quit it Pop.  You're freaking me out."

After another few seconds Genma's laughing subsided and
his expression turned dour as he studied his hands.  "The
Kami must think me a wonderful toy to play with, pulling
me first in one direction, then the next.  Here I am,
preparing myself for death, and you tell me that I should
live."  He looked up to Nodoka's still cautious face, "I did
not mean that I would take my own life... I was offering it
to you."

He seemed to be sane now, though for a moment she had
thought that this whole ordeal had pushed him over the
edge, but Nodoka still could not comprehend what was
going through his mind.  "I-I don't understand what you
mean, Genma.  What reason...?"

His patience was at an end.  If she wanted to play ignorant,
fine!  With a sound that was half sigh, half snarl, he stood
and grabbed Ranma by the front of his shirt.  There was an
indignant "Hey!" on Ranma's part, but Genma ignored it. 
"_This_ is the reason!" he said, and with one quick toss,
threw his son out into the back yard and into the koi pond.

As Ranma broke the surface of the water, shaking droplets
from her hair, _red_ hair, the feminine curves were
unmistakable, especially in how the wet silk shirt clung to
her skin.

"Wa'd you do that for you big jerk?!?"

Soun, Nabiki, Akane and Kasumi had all seen the
transformation earlier, but it was still no less confusing now
than it had been then.  Nuriko merely stared in wonderment
as only a young child can at such an unusual occurrence. 
Nodoka, on the other hand, could only watch in shock.  The
girl from earlier, the one she first met upon returning home,
was back.  But this was Ranma, her son, the boy who had
sat across the table from her not moments ago.  Earlier, she
had somehow known, _felt_, that these two people were
one in the same, but the actual sight of it threatened to shut
down her mind.

"It is a curse," Genma said in a manner-of-fact tone.

Nodoka looked up at his voice as cognizance began filtering
once again into her brain.
"A what?"

"A curse.  Much like the one I now bear.  When we were in
China, we fell into magic springs.  Now, whenever we are
touched with cold water, our bodies transform.  I turn into
the panda that you saw, and Ranma turns into a girl."

Nodoka's eyes widened as everything came in to focus for
her.  What Genma had meant earlier by him being there
since before she had arrived, and why the large animal had
attacked Soun in a frenzy now made sense.

"The curses are only physical as far as I have been able to
tell and will reverse themselves with hot water, but it does
not change what has been done.  Because our son is also
our daughter, I have failed to make Ranma a 'man among
men', and in so doing, failed in the promise I made to you
on the day I left over ten years ago."

Realization dawned on Nodoka and her eyes widened
further. <He doesn't mean...?>

"Who you calling a 'daughter', you jerk?!  I'm a guy,
dammit," Ranma said stepping onto the porch as she rung
water from her pigtail.  "And what stupid promise have you
made this time?  You gone and got me engaged again or
somethin'?"

Genma gave a slight grimace at that statement, but it faded 
just as quickly as had come as he looked to the boy turned 
girl, "I promised that if I failed to make you a man, that we 
would both commit seppuku."

He never saw it coming.

"WHAT!?!?!  What did you go and make a crazy promise
like that for, huh?!?" Ranma yelled down at the prone figure
of her father.  "Why's it I gotta die just because of this
stupid curse?!?"

"It doesn't matter," Genma said as he peeled his face from
out of the floor.

"Wha'd ya mean it doesn't matter?!?  Of course it matters! 
Maybe you don't care about living or not, but I do."

Genma reared up.  "Don't you get it, boy?  You're safe! 
Why do you think I forced the whole issue of marriage and
got your mother to approve?  She has promised to see you
happily wed to one of the Tendo girls.  As long as that
engagement stands, you are safe from having to commit
seppuku.  I alone will die to atone our family's honor."

Ranma was shocked.  Was this really her father; the
inconsiderate, lazy, greedy, selfish bastard that she'd been
traveling with for the past ten years?   "P-pop?"

Genma clapped his hands on his son's small shoulders,
"You're going to have to carry on the school without me,
Boy, but I know you'll make me proud."  With that said he
turned once again to Nodoka, "Will you serve as my
Second?  You already have the blade here."

"Hey, wait a sec, Pop," Ranma said, grabbing on to Genma's
arm, "This is stupid.  There's gotta be some other way-"

Genma shook his arm free of Ranma's grip.  "What is your
answer Nodoka?  Will you be my Second?"

"No."  Was the quiet response.

What little respect Genma had for his ex-wife was
diminishing rapidly. "You would have another do the job
that is yours?"  He gave a derisive snort.  "I guess I
shouldn't be surprised that you would not honor me in this."

"Genma.  Please listen to me.  There's no need-"

"How about you, Tendo?  Will you stand in for her, taking
my life like you took everything else from me?"

Soun growled.  "Now see here Genma-"

"Shut Up!  Both of you just shut up and sit down!"  Nodoka
shouted at she just sprung to her feet.  There was a fire in
her eyes that both men knew well, the sign that she was at
the end of her patience.  Grudgingly, both men held their
tongues, but still fumed at the insult done by the other as
they returned to their positions at the table.  When they
were all seated and she was sure that they were listening,
she continued.

"I will not be your Second," Genma opened his mouth to
say something but she cut him off, "Please just listen to me,
Genma.  I will not be your Second, nor will anyone else. 
You don't owe me your life, you or Ranma."  She shook her
head sadly.

Genma looked at her in confusion.  She wasn't going to
force him to commit seppuku?  "Does this mean that you
consider Ranma to be a 'man among men'?"

Nodoka looked at her son... her... child.  She had seen her
son change and heard Genma's brief explanation, so she
knew that this person was still her boy, but it was still hard
to think of him as being a man of any kind... "I don't know if
he is or not," she said.  "I've only just seen him again for the
first time in over ten years, and for far too short a time to
make a judgement such as that."

"But... but what about the boy's curse?"

"It is a horrible thing to have happened to him, or to you for
that matter, but you said it changed your bodies.  It doesn't
change your minds, does it?"  Genma shook his head. 
"Then what of it?  It shouldn't change who he is.  He is my
son, and there is not a single reason in the world that would
make me want to see him die.  I'm surprised that you would
think I would make you or him do such a thing."

Genma was more confused than ever.  "But what of the
promise then?  Why did you agree to it if you never
intended for us to go through with such an act?"

"Because..." she gave a heavy sigh, "because it was
important to _you_.  You used to take Ranma with you on
training missions when he was still in diapers, carrying him
on your back.  After he learned to stand and walk for
himself, you were there trying to teach him martial arts. 
You first proposed to take him away when he was only
three years old.  I refused to let you, of course, he was far
too young, but it didn't stop you from trying again.  You
asked, pleaded, threatened and begged on many occasions
for the next two years, but was only when you showed me
the contract that I knew how serious you were.

"It was that last time that I knew it didn't matter what I said,
that you would take him with you whether I gave my
approval or not.  I agreed to let you take Ranma because I
knew then that you and he would return.  If I hadn't... if I
hadn't, I think that you may have come to see me as an
obstacle to your dream of training Ranma to become the
greatest martial artist alive, and then you might never have
come back to me.

"You were the one who proposed the notion of seppuku in
that contract, not me.  You were always so head strong,
Genma, pushing ahead sometimes without thought of the
consequences.  It was one of the things I came to love about
you when we first met, that you never gave up, even if it
made you look foolish or that I might say 'no', but I also
know that it caused you to get into all sorts of trouble.  I
didn't like the idea, but I also knew that if 'the prospect of
death hung over your head', it might temper that impulse so
that you and Ranma would keep yourselves safe, and that
you would raise our son right."

Genma's first thought was that he was alive.  After psyching
himself up to go through with the event, it was almost
anti-climatic to know that it would not be necessary.  His
second thought stemmed from the first.  The reason he had
escaped death was because his wife had never intended to
go through with the contract.  The only reason she had
agreed to it was because she had thought he would have left
regardless, and that it would keep him on his best behavior.

The accusations stung both hard and painfully.  He wanted
to yell at her, stand over her and tell her how wrong she
was... but he couldn't.  The reason her statements had been
so painful was because how close they came to the truth. 
He _had_ considered taking Ranma away despite what she
might have said.  It would have only been for a year or two,
or at least, that's what he had told himself at the time, but to
have left her permanently, he wouldn't have done that...
would he?  

He wasn't so sure now.

Maybe it was the fact that he had come so close to dying, at
least in his own mind, but as he looked back, he considered
many of his decisions of past years and realized how foolish
he had been.  The Neko-ken... the engagements...
Jusenkyo...  The list was long.  Still...

"I pleases me to know how much faith you had in me raising
our boy," he grumbled.

"And it pleases me to know that you thought I could make
such a superficial decision about my son and would order
my family to kill themselves," was her reply.

"Touçhe," Genma said after a moment, standing from the
table.  "I don't suppose there's anything left to say on the
matter then.  Come along, Boy.  It seems like we've worn
out our welcome."

"Uhhh... Sure, Pop," Ranma said, clambering up and
reaching for his pack.  The whole situation left a sour
feeling in the pit of his stomach.  It felt sort of like running
away again from the problem, but in the same instance, he
wasn't sure if he wanted to stay, or if it would accomplish
anything.  His father wasn't wholly in the right, nor was his
mother wholly in the wrong.  Before he was even aware of
making a decision, he had his pack on and was ready to
follow his father out the door, and out of his mother's life
again.

"We'll be back in a week's time to finalize the marriage
agreement," Genma said before turning to head down the
hall and out the door, Ranma a step behind.

"Genma, wait."

He halted at the insistent sound in Soun's voice, but his
impatience was clearly evident.  "What now?"

"Before, you said that the only reason you pushed the
engagement so hard was to protect Ranma from the
seppuku promise you made.  It seems to me that since that
promise is no longer valid, then there is no reason to force
our children into marriage.  Will you now consider annulling
that agreement and allow them to decide their lives for
themselves?"

"No." was the flat reply.

Soun sputtered, "B-but you said-"

"I never said it was the _only_ reason, Tendo, but it was the
strongest.  Call me petty or spiteful if you want, but the
agreement we made was an honorable one and I will see it
fulfilled."  He once again began to make his way down the
hall.

"Do you need to leave too, Ranma?"

The two men paused again, or rather, one man and one girl,
at the soft question.  Ranma turned around to regard his
mother.

"I know this isn't the homecoming you were expecting or I
had hoped to give you, but I haven't seen you in a decade.  I
had hoped that you might stay so that I might get to know
you again."

Ranma wavered.  He had been ready to follow his father out
the door, to distance himself somewhat from this chaotic
and emotional encounter until he could think about it more
clearly.  But now he found himself wanting to stay, to see
his mother again.  He had been so happy when she had first
come in, but it all went downhill so quickly.  He didn't know
what to do.

"Stay with her, Boy."

Ranma wheeled around to his father.  "What did you say,
Pop?"

"I said to stay here.  I have... monopolized," the word came
out sour, "much of your life.  It's only... fair, that your
mother have a chance to see you as well.  It will also give
you a chance to get to know your fiancees better."

"Hey, Pop.  I still think this whole marriage plan of yours
sucks-" He stopped when Genma placed a large hand on his
small shoulder.

"Ranma..."  Genma's expression was solemn, almost sad in a
way.  Ranma couldn't ever remember seeing his father sad
before.  The older man gave a small sigh before speaking in
a quiet voice so that only he could hear.  "Ranma, I know
that you dislike the situation I've put you in.  This morning...
this morning I didn't care how you felt.  This was to be the
completion of a twenty year dream between friends.  You
don't know how eager I was for this day to come, there
were times that I could almost taste it, but now that it has
come, it only tastes like ashes.  Today has changed me, for
the better and the worse I fear.  I may not have cared to
hear your complaints this morning, but I hear them now."

"So why don't you call this whole thing off, Pop?"

"Honor, son."  Ranma gave a small snort, and after a
moment Genma returned it with a small half smile.   "I
suppose I deserve that.  My actions over the years have not
exactly been those of an honorable man, I can see that now. 
I only wish that I hadn't lost so much in order to come to
this realization.  You've always done so much better than I
in that respect, 'do as I say, not as I do'.  Honor should have
been a larger part of my life, and I see now that I have so
little of it that I must hold onto whatever small part is left. 
This marriage agreement is one of them.  If there was a way
to break this off without losing more face than I already
have today, I would, but I can't see how.  I have no wish for
you to marry a daughter of that backstabber, but honor is
seldom about what one wishes, but what one must do. 
Until I can think of something else, please, do this for me,
for us, for our family honor."

The red-head gave a slow, hesitant nod. "I... I understand,
Pop.  I'll do it."

Genma's face split into a wide grin.  "That's my boy!  I
know you'll do your father proud," he bellowed, giving his
son a hearty pound on the back.   "I'll be back in a week to
continue your training, but I don't expect you to slack off
when I'm not here."

"Hai!"

Genma gave one last nod to his son, walked down the hall,
and out of the compound bound for who knew where.  It
was the first time he could remember ever being separated
from his father like this, and even though he had left only a
moment ago, Ranma was sure that he was going to miss the
big, dumb, lazy panda.

"Ranma?"

He turned around, remembering now the large group of
people waiting behind him.  He stuck an arm behind his
head a little nervously, "Errr... Sorry 'bout the
inconvenience..."

His mother only smiled.  "It's no inconvenience, Ranma. 
My home is your home and you are welcome here anytime,"
she said in a playful chiding tone.

Ranma gave a small smile in return, letting his backpack
slide to the floor.  "Tadaima?"

"Welcome home, my son."


*************************************

Whoooooo!!!  Done!  At long last!  I've been struggling to
finish this thing off for months now, but I finally got through
my pesky writer's block.  I knew how I wanted things to
progress, but I just couldn't get the words out in the right
way for the characters.  My fellow writers, I'm sure you
know what I'm talking about here. ^_^

I hope that everyone enjoyed the story, and as always, C&C
is appreciated.


Next Chapter
************
Who does Akane like, and which one of the Tendo girls will
be engaged to Ranma?  All will be revealed.  ^_^


A very special thanks to all my pre-readers:
D.B. Sommers
Eslington, "the nervous author"
Aaron Ziegler
Greg Rhoades
Lawrence Ang
Louis-Philippe Giroux, "Phoenix"
Eric Chou