-= PROLOGUE =-
"It was soooooo cute," said Akane, as the family sat around the dinner table one Monday evening. The late afternoon sun was streaming through the window, filling the dining area with a warm cozy mood that was all too rare in the Tendo household. Akane had baby-sat a neighbor's children that weekend, and was telling her family about it. "His sister was explaining how their elementary school gives out 'self-management' awards to anyone who can go ten days without having to be corrected by a teacher."
"Now that you had coming," said Nabiki, as Akane stomped back into the house.
Ranma was slowly climbing out of the small carp pond in the Tendo's back yard, as the sun was beginning to drop past the horizon. "What for?" she asked, "All I did was tell the truth! Why'd she have to go 'n get all mad about it for?"
"Because," replied Nabiki, "you told her she was less mature than a seven year old."
"No I didn't," said Ranma, adjusting her now soaked and clinging clothing to better fit her small form. "I just said she oughta try takin' lessons from that smart kid some time. And then she hits me! Man, she don't know the first thing about bein' nice!"
"And you do?"
"I don't go around hittin' people!"
"Not anymore," said Nabiki, "now you just insult them."
"Well, all she did was prove I was right."
Nabiki shook her head and turned to go into the house, dismissing Ranma with a wave of her hand. "It seems to me YOU'D be better off fol-"
She froze.
Ranma had begun to follow Nabiki in. When Nabiki stopped, Ranma halted also. "What is it?" Ranma asked.
When Nabiki did not immediately reply, Ranma walked past her, intending to head straight for the bath. All she wanted at the moment was a change of clothing and bodies.
"Ranma," asked Nabiki before Ranma could make it inside, "could you do me a favor?" She asked the question simply, without the slightest hint of sarcasm or irony.
Obviously, this meant trouble. "Yeah, right!" said Ranma.
"No, really," said Nabiki. "I need your help with something."
Big trouble. Ranma braced herself, not knowing what to expect, but expecting it to hurt. "What?"
"Could you teach me something, please?"
Please? Huge trouble! "I don't think ..." began Ranma.
"But Ranma, it's important!"
Nabiki was acting so peculiar that Ranma did not know how to respond. In the end, as usual, habit and upbringing won out over discretion. She just would not feel like a man if she did not at least try to help out a girl who needed it. "Okay, whadaya want me to teach you?"
"A certain martial arts technique that I happen to know you're familiar with."
"Martial arts? You?"
"It's reeeaally important!" She seemed so totally sincere ...
... that Ranma fell for it. "Okay, I'll try," conceded Ranma. "Which technique do you wanna learn?"
"The Breaking Point Technique," said Nabiki.
Ranma looked closely, but could not see the slightest trace of humor on Nabiki's face. "Nabiki, you know I can't teach you that."
"Oh? Why not?"
"'Cause I can't do it myself! That's Ryoga's technique. Ask him to teach you if you wanna learn it so bad."
In an award-worthy performance, Nabiki asked with total innocence, "You mean to say that you can't teach something you haven't mastered yourself?"
Set, and ...
"Well, duh Nabiki!" snapped Ranma.
... spike!
The evil grin returned. Ranma stared at the other girl. Now this was the Nabiki she knew. Of course, that simply meant it was too late.
"Then why don't you try that brilliant plan out for yourself, before you go telling other people what they should be doing?"
And with that, Nabiki Tendo walked into the house, pleased at having scored yet another point on her future brother-in-law and blissfully unaware of what she had just started.
Ranma sat on top of the house; her clothes almost dry. She had not changed. Instead, she had gone up to think about what Nabiki had said. Well, no point in waitin' any longer, she thought, moving to the edge of the roof and leaning over. Might as well get it over with.
Akane was sitting at her desk, wearing her pajamas. Dinner had ended poorly, and afterward she had gotten into a fight with Ranma. She had only just gotten over her temper tantrum, and was now ready for bed, when a familiar upside-down face appeared in her window.
"What do you want now, Ranma?"
"Umm ..." said Ranma, at a loss for how to begin. "I guess I was just wonderin' if there was ... well, I dunno ... anything I can do for you?"
Akane blinked. What in the world? she thought. "Ranma," she said, "it's late. Stop peeking into my bedroom, and go to sleep!" Reaching up, she slid the window closed and drew the curtains. That pervert is so stupid, she thought, as she climbed into bed.
Ranma climbed in her own window and sat down on the floor of her room, crossing her arms. Well, that's about what I expected, she thought.
-= DAY 00 =-
"Ranma, you're even sloppier than usual! Concentrate on what you're doing!"
Because Genma had let him go in early, Ranma had been able to take his time bathing, changing and joining the family for breakfast. Everyone was there, and all seemed perfectly normal, except that Genma was managing to steal an unusually large amount of food from Ranma's plate and Ranma seemed too lost in thought to steal much back from him.
With the meal finished, Genma and Soun settled down at the shogi board for a game, while the three youngest ones present grabbed their belongings and prepared to leave for High School.
"Yo, Akane ... you, uh, want me to carry your books for ya?"
Everyone stopped what they were doing, as all eyes in the house turned to observe this inexplicable phenomenon.
Akane, all too uncomfortably aware of the sudden scrutiny she was under, blurted out, "N-no, why should I?"
"Oh, I dunno," said Ranma, scratching the back of his head nervously and looking away. "Just thought I'd ask."
"Well don't," responded Akane quickly, walking out the door. "I can do it myself."
"Fine then," replied Ranma, following her. "I'm sorry I even bothered!" Their voices faded as they walked off down the street.
Nabiki turned from where she was standing near the door and looked at her family and Genma. "Any of you know what that was about?" she asked.
Kasumi shook her head and said, "No, but it was sweet." The two men shook their heads and turned back to begin their first game of the morning.
Whatever... thought Nabiki as she left the house to follow the other two to school. "I'm off."
"Ranma, stop following me!"
The couple was walking home together after school. Instead of his usual balancing act though, Ranma was walking beside, or rather, slightly behind Akane.
"What're you bein' so obnoxious for, Akane? I'm just tryin' to be nice."
"Well, cut it out already! I don't need you hovering over me all the time!"
"You know, you could try bein' a lot nicer yourself!"
"What's wrong with you, Ranma? Why are you worrying so much about me all of a sudden? What is it that you think's wrong with me, anyway?"
"I don't think nothin's wrong with you. Well, no more'n usual."
"Then, why do you keep trying to do things for me? 'Can I bring you lunch Akane? Can I get you anything Akane? Do you want me to carry your books home for you Akane?' It's creepy coming from you. I'm not some weak little thing that needs you to do everything for me all the time. I can take care of myself!"
"Man, I don't get it. You're always tellin' me I'm an idiot 'n a jerk, so I try 'n be nice, 'n all ya do is yell at me more. What's your problem?"
"All my girlfriends were asking me what happened. It was so humiliating."
"Whadaya mean, 'What happened?' I told ya, I'm bein' nice. What's wrong with that?"
"Ranma, you are such an idiot! They were asking, ..." she held up her pinky finger so Ranma could see it, "... what 'happened,' okay? Do you get it now?"
Ranma looked at his own pinky, blushing as he realized what she meant. To cover his embarrassment, he raised his hands back behind his head, interlaced his fingers, looked up at the sky and said the first thing that came to mind. Naturally, it was the wrong thing. "You gotta be kiddin'. With an uncute tomboy like you? I think you're just wishin'."
Akane stopped dead in her tracks. Ranma knew what the next few seconds would bring. It was a shame, really. He had tried so hard. But at least he was now back in familiar territory. In a way, it was a relief.
"WHY DON'T YOU JUST GO DIE!?"
Akane's punch was stronger than usual. Ranma set a new personal best for hang time. After touchdown, he lay on the ground in a heap. Boy, he thought, she must really be weirded out. That hurt a lot more than usual!
It took him a few minutes to recover sufficiently to stand. He oriented himself and limped off in the direction of the Tendo home, turning a corner where-
SPLASH!
-the little old woman finished watering her walkway and turned to go back inside. Ranma stood fuming; her fists clenched by her sides, her eyes shut tight, strange sounds issuing forth from between clenched teeth. "Can't she ever even say that she's sorry!?"
Ranma burst into Nabiki's room without knocking. She was still soaked and breathing heavily, partially from the run home and partially from sheer anger.
"Well, aren't you a sight? And yes, you may come in."
"I tried, Nabiki! I gave it all day! I did my best! Your stupid idea only made Akane more violent than usual! Next time, keep your dumb ideas to yourself, 'cause I don't wanna hear 'em!" And with that, Ranma turned to go.
"Hold it just a minute Ranma, 'Dear'! I don't know what you're upset at, or why you're blaming it on me, but if you think you can just barge in here, shout at me and leave, then we'd better get a few things straight right now!"
Ranma turned to face her. "You're the one who told me to try that stupid plan out for myself. You said that I was the one who didn't know how to be nice, but you don't seem to think there's anything wrong with how Akane acts all the time. It's all your fault!"
"Plan? What plan?" Then it dawned. "You mean, you tried to be nice to Akane?"
"Darned right I tried! Last night 'n all day. All it's gotten me is yelled at, beat up 'n splashed again! So thanks a lot!"
"Hold it! Wait a minute, Ranma. I need to catch up. This is too much." Ranma stood staring as Nabiki thought about what she had just heard. This was really interesting. More importantly, it sounded like fun. Things had been boringly quiet in her life recently. Some fun right now would be welcome. She needed more information.
"Ranma, come in and sit down. I'll get you a towel, and you can tell me all about it. Just stay here, and I'll be right back." She gestured Ranma to her chair and left the room. When she returned, Nabiki handed Ranma the towel and said, "I looked into the bathroom to make sure it was ready for you. As soon as we're done here, you can go change back, okay?"
Ranma took the towel and tried not to look too surprised at this sudden thoughtfulness from Nabiki. "Uhh, ... thanks, ... I guess."
"You're welcome, 'I guess,'" she said, sitting down on the bed. "Now tell me about this plan."
Nabiki finally could not contain herself any longer and burst out laughing. Ranma stood to leave. "Fine! Thanks a lot Nabiki. You're a big help!"
"No Ranma, wait! Please! Really, I'm sorry. It's just that it's so funny!"
"You wouldn't think it was funny if it happened to you!"
"No, of course not," said Nabiki, her laugh subsiding into a simple smile, "but that's just it. It wouldn't happen to me. Ever." She straightened up and tried to assume a more serious demeanor. "Sit down Ranma. Don't go. I can help you."
"No thanks! Your help just ruined my day! I don't need any more help from you."
"Just listen to me. I'll tell you what you did wrong. If you disagree, you can ignore me." She watched as Ranma thought it over. "What have you got to lose? Don't you at least want to know what I have to say?"
Ranma was not at all sure she wanted to hear what Nabiki had to say. But she knew she really could just ignore it if it seemed like it would only cause more trouble. "Okay," she said, returning to her seat. "Let's hear it."
"Ranma, your problem is that you just don't have the first clue how to be nice. You think it means doing a bunch of stuff for Akane that she can do just fine for herself."
"But I thought that girls liked it when guys did all that kind'a stuff for 'em."
"Me, yes. Akane, no. Look, if a boyfriend ever wanted to carry my books for me, I'd let him. If he wanted to bring me lunch or hold the door for me or take me to a movie or out to eat snacks or something, that'd be great! I love that stuff. But not Akane." She paused, for a moment, considering. "Well okay, inside she probably does, too. But, she also wants to be respected as a martial artist. She wants to prove she's tougher and better than anyone else around. And until you came along, she was. She took on half the boys in school all at once and beat them every time. Now she's forced into an engagement with the one boy who can put her down and get away with it. You make her feel weak and inferior. And then you go and make it worse by telling her that even when you do fight with her you hold back because she's a girl. And you still beat her. How's that supposed to make her feel?" She looked at Ranma expectantly before continuing. "Of course she's going to misunderstand you. And she looks for any way that you might be making fun of her, because you DO make fun of her!"
"I didn't today."
"One day isn't enough! Besides, you're acting really weird AND treating her like a weak girl. Kasumi or I wouldn't see it that way, but Akane does."
"But, what do I do then? I'm supposed to be nice, but you're sayin' that'll only make it worse!"
"That's a pretty good question. I'm not sure. Let me think about it for a second."
"Think all ya want," said Ranma. "I'm gonna go take a bath."
Nabiki opened the bathroom door and walked in saying, "Ranma, I've got it figured out!"
"Yeeooowwww!!!" yelled Ranma, jumping to the side of the tub where he could use it to give himself some cover. "Nabiki, I'm naked!"
"Whatever," said Nabiki, sitting down on one of the stools. "I know what you need to do."
"But ... but ..."
"Look Ranma, do you want to hear the answer or not?"
Ranma could only nod.
"Okay. The problem is that you only did one little part of the plan, and you started with the hardest part of the three, 'Be Nice' But not everyone agrees on what that means. Akane just thought you were being weird."
Again, Ranma nodded.
"So, what we're going to do is switch it around. We're going to start you off with the easiest one and work our way up to the harder stuff as you master each technique, just like in martial arts."
Ranma gave Nabiki a disgusted look. "'We?'"
"Sure! Starting today, I'm your new coach."
"I don't think so."
"Who else are you going to get to help you? Ukyo? Face it Ranma 'Dear,' I'm the only coach you've got because I'm the only one who cares if your relationship with Akane improves or not."
Ouch. That almost made sense. Ranma considered it. "Okay, I'll listen. But I'm not sayin' that I'm actually gonna do anything you tell me."
"Fine. First-"
"FIRST YOU'RE GONNA GET OUTTA HERE SO *I* CAN GET OUTTA HERE!"
Akane was walking by as Nabiki left the bathroom. Seeing that Nabiki's hair was dry and she was wearing her normal clothes, Akane asked, "Is something wrong with the bath?"
"Everything's fine. I'm just having an interesting day. I hear you had an interesting day, too."
"Oh, Ranma just decided to act all dumb and humiliate me in front of my friends. Actually, it was pretty normal."
"Really? Well, that may be changing soon."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"You'll see ..." she said, as she walked off down the hall.
Akane stood there trying to figure out what Nabiki could have meant. She was not totally sure she wanted to know. One could never be sure with Nabiki. Sometimes it was just safer to be somewhere else.
Unfortunately, she waited a bit too long to actually BE somewhere else. The door to the bathroom opened and a wet-haired Ranma stepped out wearing only a pair of workout shorts and a towel draped around his neck.
The two stared at each other in shock.
A moment ago she had not been sure. Now she was. "I don't EVEN want to know," she said, raising her hands in front of herself. Then she turned and walked stiffly away.
"You did exactly right, Ranma," said Nabiki. "I'm proud of you."
"But all I did was stand there like an idiot. I couldn't think of a single thing to say."
"Exactly! You Shut Up. That's the first technique of the Nabiki Tendo Anything Goes School Of Social Skills For Seven Year Olds."
Ranma face faulted. "You have got to be kiddin'."
"I'm serious. And you're my first student. Aren't you the lucky one? I'm not even going to charge you. I'm just going to use you as the guinea pig to perfect the techniques."
"I think I just changed my mind."
"But you've gotten off to such a great start! You've already begun to practice the first and most important technique; the one upon which all the others will depend. You just learned to Shut Up. Now you only have to keep doing it."
"Nabiki, that's stupid. I can't just shut up all the time. How am I supposed to be nice to Akane if I can't even talk to her?"
"Keep your mind on the lesson, please. You're not trying to Be Nice. You're trying to Shut Up."
"But ..."
"Ranma, look ... if you were teaching a brand new student how to punch and he started telling you it was stupid because in a real fight he's going to have to do a lot more than just punch, what would you tell him?"
"I'd tell him that he was gonna have to learn the right way to throw a punch first before he could learn the harder ..." Ranma stopped.
"Get it?"
"Uh, yeah. I think so. I'm not gonna have to shut up forever; just for a while."
"Very close. You're going to have to Shut Up until you've gotten the hang of it. That doesn't mean all the time, just most of it. More than you probably think. And it's going to be harder than you probably think, too. But if you are not absolutely certain that what you are about to say is the right thing, then you are just not going to say it. In fact, if you're not absolutely certain that you know the right thing to say, then you're not going to say anything at all! Got it?"
"Yeah."
"If you don't know what to say, don't say it."
"I said I got it!"
"And then, when I feel you've mastered that one, I'll tell you what to do next. We'll work on combining techniques until you've mastered two of them together. Then we'll move on to the third. There will probably be more to it than that, but we'll figure it out as we go."
"Right."
"But you'd better realize that you don't get to stop Shutting Up until that you've mastered all three techniques, understand? Just because you move on to the second one doesn't mean that you quit doing the first. You're going to be Shutting Up for a long time to come! If you don't think you can do it, then quit now, so you don't waste my time!"
"Don't worry, Teacher. I can take anything you dish out!"
Nabiki blinked audibly. "Teacher?"
"Yes. Teacher." Ranma was clearly excited. "Thanks, Nabiki. I'll see ya later." And he turned to leave her room.
Nabiki was confused by Ranma's reaction, until she realized that this was exactly how he was used to being treated. He had lived his entire life with people speaking harshly to him, challenging him, daring him. Mostly his Father. She thought hard and fast! What was it his Father was always saying to him?
"Ranma!"
Ranma turned and looked back at her, surprised by the intensity in her voice.
"I won't go easy on you."
Ranma smiled. Really SMILED! "Fine. That's just the way I like it."
-= DAY 01 =-
That's better, thought Akane at breakfast. Ranma had not said anything all morning. The meal proceeded along its usual course, and broke up when it was time for the three high-schoolers to leave.
"Come in," said Nabiki in answer to the knock at her door. She was laying on her bed, reading a comic. As Ranma entered, she put it down and said, "So, how's it going?"
Ranma sat down on the floor by the bed and said, "I don't know. I guess I don't understand the point. What'm I tryin' to do, anyway?"
"It's not going too well, huh?"
"It sure don't seem like it."
"You're trying to learn a new technique. Nothing more; nothing less. Learning to apply it comes later."
"But how do I know it's even gonna help?"
"I don't know. You're the one who decided to do this plan. Are you wanting to back out already? Is it too much for you?"
"Hey!" snapped Ranma. "I ain't backin' out. I just don't get what I'm tryin' to do, that's all. You talk about this like it's martial arts, but it ain't. In martial arts, the goal is to beat your opponent. In sports, there's always a goal, too. But there doesn't seem to be a goal here. What is Shuttin' Up supposed to get me?"
"Ranma ... " Nabiki paused and looked a little closer at him. He really seemed confused. "Ranma, I'm not sure I can tell you. But, when you're finished, and you've mastered these techniques, I think you'll be glad you did. I think you'll find all sorts of ways to use them."
Ranma looked doubtful.
Something clicked in Nabiki's mind then, and she continued more strongly, "Yeah! That's it! Ranma, the mistake you're making is thinking that this technique is supposed to be GETTING you something. It's not. Not yet, anyway. It's just one technique. By itself it's not very useful, but, when you combine it with the other two, it will become very powerful. You've just got to stick it out long enough to master all three."
"I guess," said Ranma. "But even just a simple punch accomplishes SOMETHIN'. This ain't like martial arts at all."
"No," said Nabiki, "this is harder."
At dinner that evening, everything seemed normal. Ranma and Akane were ignoring each other, and everyone else was discussing the day's events. At one point though, Nabiki asked Genma, "Uncle Saotome, what's the first thing a new student needs to learn when he starts to study martial arts?"
Nabiki had never asked a question like that before, and certainly not of Genma, so everyone was a little surprised. But it was a simple enough question, and Genma loved being asked. He pushed his glasses further up onto the bridge of his nose, crossed his arms and closed his eyes as if concentrating greatly. "Hmm ... The first thing any true student of The Art must learn is to fall."*
Ranma froze with his chopsticks halfway to his mouth. Akane stared at him. What's he so surprised at? she thought. He should know that.
"Why?" asked Nabiki. "Why not something like a punch first?"
"In order to master any art, the artist must first master himself. If he allows his passions to guide him, he will surely fail. A martial artist must learn to receive blows and not flinch, to be thrown and not be hurt, to weather attacks without being damaged. Only then can he find the freedom to choose his response. Otherwise, his responses will be chosen for him by his opponents, and he will lose."
Ranma laid his chopsticks down across his plate and stared at Nabiki as if seeing her for the first time in his life. She met his gaze and smiled. Then she looked at Genma again and said, "Thanks."
"Yeah. Thanks," said Ranma, looking down at his plate.
"What's wrong, Ranma?" asked Akane.
Ranma looked at her. Then at Genma. Then Nabiki.
"Ranma?" asked Akane again.
"Excuse me," said Ranma to no one in particular. Then he stood and turned to go.
"But Ranma, you haven't eaten hardly anything at all," said Kasumi.
"That's okay, Kasumi," said Ranma. "It was great. I'm ... I just had enough, that's all." And with that, he left the room and went out into the back yard.
"All right," said Akane, turning to Nabiki, "what's going on? What's the deal with Ranma?"
Nabiki gave Akane her patented 'Are You Talking To Me?' look and said nothing.
"I know something's up. Now tell me what it is!"
In answer, Nabiki simply continued eating. Slowly.
Akane stared at her sister in anger, then returned her attention to her meal. She did not last more than a few minutes though, before excusing herself from the table.
"Ranma, are you up there?" Akane had gone into the back yard to find Ranma, and since he was not there, she figured he must be on the roof. "Ranma?" she called again.
When she got no answer, she went back into the house and up to her room, opened the window and climbed out. Sure enough, Ranma was sitting on top of the house, just above his own bedroom window.
"I don't believe you," complained Akane as she moved over to sit beside him. "Didn't you hear me calling you?"
"Oh, hi Akane," said Ranma absent-mindedly.
"I said, 'I was calling you.'"
"Sorry. I was just thinkin'."
"Ranma, is something wrong?"
Ranma turned to look at Akane for a moment. "Yeah," he said, looking away, "I guess somethin' really is wrong."
"Well, what is it? Tell me."
He looked at her again. This time, though, he KEPT looking at her. "What?" she said defensively. "What are you looking at?"
A million thoughts ran through his head. A million things to say. A million things not to say. He looked down at the roof beneath him. "Akane, I know I'm bein' weird 'n all, but it's somethin' I gotta do right now. It won't last forever, okay?"
"Can't you tell me what it is?"
And again, he looked at her. It had been a long time since he had really LOOKED at her like this. She wished she knew what it meant. It made her feel so ... so ...
As Ranma was looking at Akane, Nabiki's voice from the day before came again to his mind. "If you're not absolutely certain that you know the right thing to say, then you're not going to say anything at all!" He wanted to tell Akane how scared he was to say the wrong thing. But if he said even that much, she might think he was accusing her of having a bad temper. And then she'd blow up at him. He didn't dare say a word. Lost in confusion, he looked back down at the roof. It felt all wrong. Surely he should say something! This couldn't be right! But he had to learn to do it. He had to learn to fall. He had to learn to Shut Up. He had to!
When Ranma did not answer, Akane turned away. The ... whatever it was ... that she had been feeling mere seconds ago turned to ash. I can't believe he's shutting me out like this, she thought. Although she did not want to admit it, it hurt. To cover that hurt, she did what she always did. She got angry. "Fine Ranma! Do whatever you want. See if I care!" And with that, she left the way she had come.
Ranma pulled his knees up to his chest. Then he laid his head down on them and covered it with both arms as if to shield it from unseen blows. This can't be right! he thought.
Nabiki was startled by the rapping on her window. She cautiously moved to open her curtains and saw Ranma hanging upside down just outside.
What on Earth? She opened the window and said, "Come on in Ranma, and next time use the door, okay?"
Ranma didn't move. "Uh, actually Teacher, I'm not stayin'. I think I need to go say somethin' to Akane, but if I'm supposed to be Shuttin' Up then I don't know how I'm gonna do that. I thought I'd come ask you first."
Just then, Akane slid the door open and walked in. Seeing the two of them at the window, she froze in mid-motion, a look of shock on her face.
Ranma knew what his assigned task was. He Shut Up.
Nabiki said, "Oops."
Akane stared at the two of them for a moment. Gradually, the shock was replaced by anger, but not before the two saw just a second of hurt. "So!" Akane began, "You can't talk to me, but you can talk to my sister, huh? Is that how it is?"
"Akane," began Nabiki, "it's not what you think. It's ... it's ..." She turned to Ranma. "Ranma, say something!"
Ranma hung there silently.
"FINE!" shouted Akane, and slammed the door as she left.
Nabiki whirled on Ranma. "Why didn't you say anything, Ranma?"
Ranma stared at Nabiki. In his mind, he repeated his instructions like a mantra. "If ya don't know what to say, don't say it. If ya don't know what to say, don't say it." He didn't know what to say to Nabiki, so he didn't.
It took a moment for the truth to dawn on Nabiki. The betrayal she felt was obvious on her face. It was clear she had never expected Ranma to use the technique on her. Nabiki rarely showed her true feelings. This was an exception. With genuine anger on her face and in her voice, she said, "Okay Ranma, if that's the way you want to play this, then I'll just leave you to it." And she reached up to close the window.
"Teacher," said Ranma, "I still need to ask you about Akane."
Nabiki was so shocked to hear him address her again in that way that she froze with the window only partially closed. Ranma was never polite. Well, not with her, anyway. Ranma didn't give respect away, you had to earn it from him. She stood there, not moving, not knowing how to respond.
"Sis," said Ranma a little less formally, "I already needed to talk to you. This only makes it worse. I really liked what you asked my Pop. I need your advice. You said you'd be my coach."
Nabiki stood still a moment longer, seemingly staring at the wall. Finally, she opened the window fully and stepped aside, saying gruffly, "Then come inside where we can talk like normal people. It's stupid to hang off roofs."
"Okay, so we agree that it's Stupid to ignore Akane when she asks you a question, right?"
"Right."
"And we agree that it's Stupid to call her 'tomboy,' or 'macho,' or 'violent,' or 'uncute,' right?"
"Right."
"AND we agree that it's Stupid to try Being Nice yet, right?"
"Right."
"So, you will answer her questions, not insult her, and not do things for her, right?"
"Right."
"Good!" said Nabiki. She had decided that telling Ranma simply to Shut Up had been a mistake. Although she had misgivings about it, she felt that if she did not promote him to the second technique, all he would do is mess things up even more.
"But what if I don't know what to say?"
"What do you mean?"
"What if she asks me a question, and I don't know what the right answer is? Or if I think the answer's just gonna make her mad again?"
Nabiki hesitated. "I don't think you're going to like the answer, Ranma."
Uh-oh. "What is it?"
"In that case, you're going to go right back to the basics."
Ranma looked at her. "You mean ..." he began.
They both finished the sentence together, "... Shut Up."
At first, Akane just ignored the knocking at her door. She knew her sister would be worried about her, but she did not want to speak to anyone right now. But the knocking came again, and after some waiting, a third time. "I'm coming," she finally said.
"Nabiki," she said, opening the door, "I'm not in the mood to-"
"Hi," said Ranma. "Actually, it's me."
She looked at him with surprise rather than the anger he had expected. "Ranma ... I thought it'd be ... what are ... I guess I expected you to come to the window."
"Yeah, well, uh, Nabiki told me that was Stupid."
The moment the words were out of his mouth, he knew he had blown his chance and wondered if he would get another. He knew Akane and how she would misconstrue what he had said.
The surprise on Akane's face was replaced by disgust. "Nabiki, huh? Yeah, I noticed you and she have been getting real CLOSE recently! How nice for you! Are you going for a fifth one now?"
Ouch. She's really upset, thought Ranma. Better be extra careful what I say next. So he began. "She's been ..." Then he stopped to reconsider. He was not sure whether Akane would feel ganged up on if he told her about Nabiki helping him with The Plan, so he decided to try something else. "She just said that it was stupid for me to try to talk to her at her window, that's all."
"Oh, but the two of you looked so natural that way! I guess you must do that often, huh?" Ranma tried to slip in a denial at this point, but Akane was too fast for him. "Look Ranma, I already tried talking to you once tonight, but you didn't want to! So I think it's a little too late now, don't you?"
"No."
The answer was so simple and came so quick that, for a moment, Akane was not sure she had heard it at all. Caught off guard, she fumbled with her words before continuing. "W-well ... well I do! Good night!" And with that she pushed the door shut with a bang.
Ranma waited a long time, wondering if knocking again would be Stupid. He thought about the window, and decided that WOULD be Stupid. He wanted to talk to Nabiki again, but decided that would DEFINITELY be Stupid right now! In the end, he went to bed. I guess it's time to Shut Up again, he thought.
-= DAY 02 =-
SPLASH!
Breakfast was tense. Really tense. That is, for half of the household. The other half was doing great. Kasumi was her standard cheerful self and the two Fathers were oblivious as ever. The youngest three were silent.
Until Nabiki asked Genma another question. "Uncle Saotome, what do you do when you think you've promoted a student too quickly?"
WHAM!
Before Genma could answer, Ranma slammed the table with his open palm and stood up, glaring down at Nabiki with even more anger than he had in the hallway just a few minutes earlier.
In the silence of the suddenly-too-small room, only Nabiki was unfazed enough to continue speaking. Looking up at Ranma, but continuing to direct the question toward Genma, she calmly went on, "I mean, what do you do when a student that you thought had learned a technique really well completely forgets it once you teach him a new one?"
Genma looked back and forth between his son and his best friend's daughter, not understanding in the least why Ranma should object to Nabiki expressing an interest in the family trade. "Well, (ahem!) I would drop them back to practicing only the first one again until they had truly mastered it. To allow them to advance too rapidly would only hinder-"
"I get it, okay!!?" yelled Ranma, throwing up his hands and stomping out of the room. Everyone flinched and looked around at each other. Everyone but Nabiki. "I'm outta here!!" they heard Ranma yell, as he left the house.
"I can not believe how you behaved this morning, Ranma! Honestly, you owe your Father and everyone else an apology as soon as you get home! I mean it!"
Akane was berating Ranma on the way home from school. He had risked invoking Miss Hinako's wrath by slipping into class with no more than a second to spare, and afterward had managed to slip away before Akane could reach him. She had sought him out at lunch, but he had been nowhere to be found. It was all perfectly clear what he was doing. He had successfully avoided her all day.
But she had finally caught up with him after school. "I'm not joking, Ranma! The minute we get home-"
"OKAY! FINE! I'LL DO IT! JUST STOP BUGGIN' ME ABOUT IT, OKAY?"
"No, it's not okay! They were all really offended by the way you stormed off. So was I. I don't know what your problem is sometimes, but-"
"LOOK! I SAID I WOULD DO IT!"
"STOP YELLING AT ME!!"
Ranma stopped and closed his eyes tightly, clenching his fists. Inside he began repeating to himself over and over and over again, "shut up shut up shut up shut up SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP ..."
Akane, to give her credit, waited while Ranma stood that way. She was very angry, and had more to say, but would wait until he opened his eyes.
Finally, Ranma began to calm down. He took a deeeeeep breath and let it out slowly. "Okay, Akane," he said softly, opening his eyes at last to look at her. "I'll apologize when we get home." To Akane's surprise, he sounded sincere. "I'll try to find somethin' to say that doesn't sound too Stupid."
"It doesn't matter what it sounds like," said Akane, turning from Ranma and continuing on toward home. "You just do it!"
Ranma stood, watching her go. After a moment, he followed slowly. "Right," he said to himself, very quietly.
"Come in," said Nabiki from her desk in reply to the knocking at her bedroom door. She turned around in her chair and watched Ranma open her door and step inside, closing it behind himself. "Well," said Nabiki, "and what do you want?"
Ranma stood still in front of her door, looking at the floor, then at his hands, and then ... finally ... at her. "I came up to say ... I'm sorry about that."
"'That?'"
"My yellin' this mornin'. I'm sorry about it."
"Ranma, I'm not the one you should be apologizing to."
"I know. I already said I was sorry to Pop 'n your dad 'n Kasumi. I just figured I probably ought'a say it to you too, that's all."
"You apologized to everyone?" The note in her voice was not quite shock. But almost.
"Yeah, well, it wasn't THEIR fault-" He stopped as he realized what he was saying.
"Oh. So it was my fault."
Ranma's mouth moved in protest, but no sounds came out. It WAS her fault as far as he could see, but he was sure that was the wrong thing to say. Not having the slightest clue what the right thing was, he Shut Up.
Nabiki laughed. "Ranma, you are just too cute! You should see yourself right now. You really do try hard don't you?" Ranma, having no idea what she meant, decided to keep his peace. Nabiki moved from her chair to her bed and plopped down on her back, looking up at her ceiling. "It's okay Ranma, you didn't insult me. I insulted you. You and Akane are just so stupid sometimes that I got mad. This 'Plan' was supposed to be fun. But no, you just had to go and make Akane angry. Which is fine with me, really, but I wish you'd leave me out of it. I don't like getting involved in your squabbles, and I don't like Akane being mad at me."
"But I'm tryin' to NOT make her mad! That's the thing! She gets so upset sometimes that nothin' I do will calm her down! And she never listens to me. That's why I need your help!"
"You need help all right," she said, turning her head to look at him. "That's for sure."
"Are ya gonna teach me, or just keep insultin' me?"
"Oh, don't worry. I'll help. But after this morning-" She sat up. "Honestly Ranma, what were you thinking? If I hadn't stopped you, you would have just started up again with Akane like you always do, and right after you and I had that talk last night about Not Doing Anything Stupid! I wonder if that kid really is more mature than you! At least he seems to be able to follow a plan!"
The anger was back, emanating from Ranma's eyes and face. That's the third time today, Nabiki thought, looking at him with surprise. He's really caught up in this whole thing.
Ranma was working to control himself. He had faced more vengeance-and-love crazed enemies, amazons, fiancees and psychos than any one person should have to deal with, and not had this much difficulty. He'd been attacked, drugged, enchanted, insulted, ridiculed and blamed for everything from flirting to sorcery, but he'd never felt the struggle going on inside himself now. He was one of the fastest martial artists he knew; one of the best martial artists in Japan! He did things every day of his life that not one person in a thousand could even conceive of doing! His whole life had been built on The Art. Everything to him was attack, defense or practice. Yet, staring at Nabiki in that moment, he felt a frustration more profound and paralyzing than any he could remember since coming to Nerima. How could something so simple be so hard?
He also felt something else, something more familiar. Determination. He was Ranma Saotome, heir to the Saotome School Of Anything Goes Martial Arts. He had endured the Cat-Fist training, mastered the Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire technique, learned to adapt Ryoga's ki blast for his own use, even faced Cologne herself and survived the Shark-Fist and more threats than he could count. There was no way he was going to allow himself to lose to a seven year old kid with big ideas!
Or to a snotty future sister-in-law! "Okay, so I'm stupid!" he said. "So, help me, already!"
"Okay," said Nabiki, gesturing to her chair. "Class is in session. Sit down. We're going to talk some more about all of those Stupid things you do."
Akane was sitting out on the patio. It was rare to hear Ranma apologize or admit to any faults, yet he had done it three times today in front of her. That must be some kind of record! Four, if she counted the first time. The time he had apologized to her! She had been so proud of him ...
I'm going to kill him! she thought.
"Hello Akane," said Kasumi, stopping for a moment as she walked by the patio. "I didn't see you there. What are you doing?"
"I'm WAITING for RANMA! I THOUGHT he was going up to APOLOGIZE to NABIKI, but he's been GONE so LONG that I'm BEGINNING to wonder if he's REALLY up to something ELSE!"
Kasumi looked at Akane thoughtfully. "Like what?"
Akane's eyes grew large, as the rest of her seemed to shrink away. The thought of actually admitting, of saying out loud the feelings she had been having -- and to Kasumi of all people -- was absurd. Of course Ranma wasn't really ... w-whatever it was she had been thinking. There was no way! No way, surely! "N-nothing Sis. I'm sure he's just got a lot to apologize for, that's all," she said, forcing the smile.
"Yes. He did seem to be worked up about something this morning. I'm glad he seems to be doing better now." And with that, Kasumi went on her way to wherever it was she went, leaving Akane to sit and wonder at the things she had been caught thinking.
No way. I mean, he's a pervert and all, but even he wouldn't sink so low as to hit on Nabiki. And even if he did, she'd never go for an idiot like Ranma, right? She leaned in the patio door and looked down the hall toward the stairs. He's been up there an awfully long time, though ...
"Later, Teacher," said Ranma, as he slid Nabiki's bedroom door open to leave ...
Akane was reaching for Nabiki's door when it suddenly opened on its own. For the second time that day, she and Ranma collided. Startled, Ranma threw his arms up and ...
"Ranma, you really are pathetic sometimes, do you know that?" said Nabiki, returning from downstairs with a damp washcloth and dropping it on Ranma's bruised face. "Why do you let her get away with that?"
Ranma was lying face up on Nabiki's bed. She had dropped him there after helping him up out of the corner where Akane had knocked him before storming off. "I don't 'let' her get angry," Ranma said through the moist cloth which now covered his face. "She just does."
"I'm not talking about her getting angry," said Nabiki. "I'm talking about how you let her beat on you all the time. You're way better than she is. Why do you let her do it?"
"Well, I dunno ... she just ... well, I just ..."
"You're amazing. You can defeat anybody I've ever seen, but you let my little sister treat you like this. I guess you really do like her, huh?"
"Whadaya mean, 'like her?'" said Ranma, sitting up and moving the washcloth, shifting it to cover only the bruised side of his face. "That uncute-"
"She's the only one you let hammer on you. You have one set of reactions for her and another for everyone else in the world. That means she's the special person in your life. It's really pretty sick, actually. Tell me I'm wrong."
"Well, I don't ... I mean, she don't ... I mean-"
"See? You can't argue with me, even if you want to."
"Well, she's still a macho tomboy," said Ranma sullenly, though without much force.
Nabiki was still for a minute, looking at Ranma silently. "Ranma," she began, moving to sit down on the bed next to him, "I really want you to hear what I'm about to say, okay? You may disagree with me, but I still want you to think about it for a while before you say anything back."
Ranma braced himself and nodded.
"It's Stupid to let anyone hit you."
Ranma looked at Nabiki, waiting for more. When she stayed silent, Ranma thought, That's it? That's the whole thing? "I don't get it," he said aloud. "I know that."
"Then why do you let her do it?" asked Nabiki.
Ranma's mind slipped a gear. Her? Who were they talkin' about? Akane. Hit him? Stupid? He let Akane hit him. Stupid. He "lets" Akane hit him!? No he didn't! She just ... well, hits him, that's all.
"You do realize that you could stop her, don't you?"
Ranma stared at Nabiki uncomprehendingly. He did not know how to answer.
"Are you Shutting Up again?"
"No, I'm just tryin' to figure out what to say."
"Oh. Uh, okay."
Ranma sat in utter confusion, stunned to think that he "let" anyone hit him. It didn't feel like he "let" Akane hit him. She just did.
"How's your face?"
"Huh? Oh, it's fine. I've had lots worse than this before."
"Yes, I know. You've had worse from Akane, and you keep letting her do it. What I don't understand is why."
"I don't fight girls," said Ranma, falling back on his old standby.
"Uh-uh. Doesn't hold up. You've fought Kodachi. You've fought Shampoo. You've fought Cologne. You've fought Miss Hinako. Shall I go on? Okay, so you don't like fighting girls. But, you still do fight them when they attack you, right? So, why not at least defend yourself from Akane? You don't have to actually hit her to keep her from hurting you, do you?"
After a moment's thought, Ranma finally said, "I dunno."
"Well, think about it, okay? Class is over. Now, go away before she comes back."
"Thanks Nabiki." There was not much emotion in his voice. He said it more for formality than anything else. Nabiki could tell his thoughts were very much on his inner confusion and not really in the room. Ranma went over to the door and verrrrrry carefully slid it open and peeked out. Then he left. Nabiki looked at her door for a while after he had gone. Then she shook her head slowly, as she went back to her desk.
Once in the hall, Ranma stopped. He did not know what to do next. Should he look for Akane and try to explain things to her? Yeah, right! Next idea ...
He had a lot to think about. Nabiki had talked more about Stupid Things before Akane had shown up. It didn't all make sense yet. Maybe he needed to go think about that stuff for a while ...
He headed toward the training hall.
"STUPID RANMA!" He heard the yell from the yard.
SMASH!! He heard the sound of bricks breaking. Large ones.
He turned around and tiptoed back the way he had come.
Okay, so maybe I'll just stay up here and think for awhile, thought Ranma as he entered his room and sat down in the middle of the floor.
He lasted almost a minute. Well, enough of that! he thought, standing and moving to the door. There he froze, fingers on the handle, ready to open it. Where am I goin'? he thought. I really shouldn't be around Akane right now. Maybe I'll go visit Ucchan. He moved to the window and opened it. There he froze again, his hand on the sill, ready to jump out. What am I doin'!? he thought. Am I really that stupid? That's the last place I need to be right now! Imagining the things Akane might do to him if she was still in this same mood and found out he had gone to visit Ukyo made him shiver. He closed the window and sat back down on the floor again. This is crazy! I can't go anywhere. I can't do anything. How do I get myself into these situations?
The pressure of trying to sit still and do nothing was too much for Ranma, and he moved to the window again. "I can at least get out of here so I can think better," he said to himself. He opened the window and stood looking out, motionless for one minute, then two.
For some reason, he didn't want to be alone. Maybe it was all the Shutting Up he'd been doing recently, but he really wanted to talk to someone right now. Not about The Plan, not about anything important ... he just wanted some company.
Closing the window, he turned and again walked to the bedroom door. Once more, he paused, hand on the door. Taking a breath and steeling himself for the worst, he said out loud, "I'll Shut Up. I won't do Anything Stupid. I'll try to stay away from Akane, and I'll go find Kasumi or Pop."
And he opened the door and went out.
"Oh, hello Ranma. Dinner will be ready in about an hour." Kasumi smiled at Ranma as he stood by the kitchen door, and then turned back to her preparations.
"A-actually, Sis, I was wonderin' if I could help you some."
"Why, thank you Ranma. I think I've got everything handled, though. Why don't you go find Akane?"
Kasumi went on about her work, as Ranma clamped his mouth shut on the retort he had almost allowed to slip out. He watched Kasumi for a moment, then sadly turned and left.
Once outside the kitchen, he stopped. Maybe I'll go for a walk, he thought, taking a step toward the front door.
"Kasumi," said Ranma, returning to the kitchen, "I ... really would rather stay here and help you if I could. I ..."
Kasumi stood looking at Ranma, waiting for him to finish his sentence. The look on his face was something no one could miss, especially someone as gentle with people as Kasumi. "That's fine, Ranma. It would help me out if you could go ahead and set the table. Would you mind doing that for me?"
Ranma looked up at Kasumi, his eyes wide, his face beaming. "Sure! I'd love to!" And off he went.
Kasumi stood thinking for a moment before turning back to her own tasks.
With Ranma's help, Kasumi was able to have everything ready for dinner with a bit of time to spare, which was how she had planned it. "Ranma, would you please go out to the training hall and tell Akane that we'll be ready for dinner any time she wants to come in?"
Kasumi was facing away from Ranma, so she could not actually see his reaction, but she could imagine the deer-in-the-headlights expression that must have been on his face right then.
"Uh, Kasumi, I don't think ..."
"Oh Ranma, I'm sorry," she said, turning toward him. "I didn't mean to ask you to do something you didn't want to do. I'm just a little tired and didn't want to walk all that way. Don't worry, I'll go do it."
Kasumi never complains, thought Ranma. About anything! If she's sayin' she's tired, she must be exhausted! Ranma quickly put on one of his best smiles and said, "Oh forget it, Sis. I'll be glad to go get her." And with that, he flew from the kitchen before Kasumi could take another step.
Kasumi went to the kitchen door and watched Ranma run down the hallway toward the back of the house and the training hall. With the slightest of smiles, she went off to find her Father and Mr. Saotome to let them know that dinner would be at the usual time.
Ranma went to the training hall with trepidation. It had been over an hour since he had heard Akane venting her anger. Surely by now, she would have gotten it all out of her system. He approached carefully and listened. Hearing nothing, he stepped up to the doorway and peeked in.
Akane had finished her workout and was cooling down with some stretches, when she saw Ranma stick his head in. "What is it, Ranma?"
"Uh, Kasumi sent me to tell you that dinner was ready."
"Already? Okay, I'll be right in," she said, returning her attention to what she was doing.
Seeing that Akane was not apparently in the mood to kill him right at that moment, Ranma suddenly felt much braver and decided to try talking to her. He straightened up and took a step into the practice area. "Akane, I-"
Akane looked up at Ranma angrily.
"-that is, if this is a bad time, it can wait 'til later."
Akane rolled her eyes and continued her stretching. "No, I'm just finishing. What do you want?"
Ranma opened his mouth and froze, staring at her. Akane always looked so ... well ... cute when wearing her gi, and so ... well ... GOOD when sweating. For a moment he couldn't think. Self-preservation kicked in quickly, though, and he remembered that he was supposed to be having a conversation. "Um, I'm, uh, sorry for, uh, that is ..." He took a breath and forced his distracted attention back to his purpose. "I didn't mean to ... bump into you. Really. I, uh, just, sorta, didn't, uh ..." He found himself trailing off to a halt as Akane started a new and rather interesting stretch. "A-anyways," he said quickly, trying to cover his embarrassment, "that's all I wanted to say. See ya inside! Bye!" and nearly fell over himself trying to escape.
Akane looked up, surprised at his sudden disappearance. Hmph! That's supposed to pass for an apology? she thought, obliviously. What a dork.
Ranma stood outside the training hall for a moment, trying to convince himself that the whole thing Just Hadn't Happened. It was almost a matter of principle to him that he not admit how attracted he was to Akane sometimes. He wouldn't know how to act if he ever did that, therefore it just wasn't allowed to be so. End of discussion. Thankful that a little awkwardness had been the worst he had had to endure, he returned to the house for dinner.
All through dinner, Ranma was trying to decide if Shutting Up was a Stupid Thing to be doing right now. He could not tell. Dinner seemed to be going okay, but it still was not back to normal. HE wasn't back to normal. Not knowing for sure, he chose silence, as he had been instructed.
For entirely different reasons, Akane had chosen the same course. She was not completely over her anger. She would wait and see how Ranma behaved tomorrow.
Nabiki, though she would not have admitted it, was a bit scared. Thanks to Ranma, she was now in hot water with her little sister and did not want to make it worse. She chatted with Kasumi and the others easily enough, being even better than most Japanese at keeping her public face detached from her inner feelings, but secretly, she wished her sister was not so temperamental.
Kasumi kept the room's mood and conversation light, engaging her Father and the others in talk of the day, but she had noticed that Ranma and Akane had come to dinner separately. And although they seemed to be civil enough, that was all they were. But that by itself was not so unusual. She would keep her eyes open and see how everything developed in the next day or so. These things usually blew over by then ...
Genma and Soun ... were Genma and Soun. They ate.
-= DAY 03 =-
Akane and Ranma were walking to school. Nabiki, as usual, had gone on ahead. Ranma was back up on the fence, and anyone looking at them would have seen nothing unusual about their behavior.
"So how's it going today?"
"Okay I guess, but I'm goin' crazy!"
Nabiki had sought Ranma out at lunch. She had not heard any news spreading through the school, so she had figured her sister and Ranma could not have been having too bad a day. Still, she had wanted to be prepared, just in case it looked like she would be coming home to more trouble when school was over, so she had asked to talk to Ranma while they ate.
"What's making you crazy?" she asked him.
"I'm tryin' my best, but I know that sooner or later I'm gonna blow it. You know Akane. Sometimes, there's no way to tell what she's gonna think about anything. It's just a matter of time 'til she blows up again."
"So then, what's the problem?"
Ranma stared at her. "Whadaya mean, 'What's the problem?' I just told ya the problem!"
"You mean that part about how you know Akane's going to get mad at you again?"
"Yeah!"
"So, now that you know it, relax."
Ranma looked blankly at Nabiki. He was not following this conversation at all. "Okay Teacher, I give up," he said, smiling. If anyone had told him a few days ago that he would be so casually asking Nabiki to clear things up for him, and expecting her to actually do it, he would never have believed them. But now? "Explain it to me."
"Look Ranma, what do you think the odds are that sooner or later Ryoga is going to attack you again?"
"You kiddin'? You know he's gonna!"
"Just like Akane."
"Well ... yeah."
"And how much does that worry you. Ryoga, I mean."
"Aw, Ryoga don't worry me none. I can take him in my sleep."
Nabiki refrained from commenting on the obvious untruth of his bragging, and concentrated on her lesson instead. "So you know it's going to happen, but you know you're going to survive it, so you don't worry about it. Right?"
That made sense. "Uh ... okay. Yeah, sure."
"Same with Akane." Nabiki paused just a moment to let him get that before she went on to drive it home. "Look, I know my sister has a temper. I know sometimes she'd rather hit you than listen to you. And I even know that it's not always your fault, although I do think you could avoid most of the situations you get yourself into. Furthermore, we both know that you're not good enough at this Plan yet to keep her from getting angry at you, so we both know that sooner or later she's going to slug you again. Am I right so far?"
Ranma nodded. He honestly could not think how he could have avoided any of the insane things that had happened to him in his mixed up life, but he had learned enough about the Plan to know that it would be Stupid to argue over details right now. "Mostly," he replied.
"So we know a whole lot of things, but most of all we know that we're going to survive it all and keep moving forward."
Ranma blinked at her. "That was quite a speech," he joked, laughing.
"Yeah, I'm pretty proud of it, myself," Nabiki said, laughing just a little, as well. "The point really is this, Ranma. It's Stupid to keep worrying about the next time you screw up, or the next time Akane thinks you've screwed up. Sure, it's going to happen, but worrying will only make it happen sooner. It's smarter to just practice the techniques you're on and learn from your mistakes, okay?"
"So I should relax, huh?"
"Yep," she answered, smiling.
It sounded weird to Ranma, but Nabiki had been making a lot of sense recently. He had to admit, he couldn't find a flaw in her reasoning. He could not help but smile back.
Akane had been looking for Ranma since the beginning of lunch. He was not at any of his usual lunch time hangouts, and she was beginning to wonder if he had left the school grounds to go get lunch at the Cat Cafe. Then by accident, she caught a glimpse of him outside the building and across the school yard from where most of the students were gathered. As she started toward him, she saw who it was he apparently had chosen to spend his lunch with instead of her. Moving sideways to hide behind a tree, she positioned herself so that she could continue her scrutiny of the pair without being easily seen.
That was when they laughed. Akane was stunned! Ranma and Nabiki, sitting together, sharing lunch and laughing! Any one of these alone was unheard of, but happening together ...!? If only she was closer! She was dying to know what they were talking about! They seemed to be completely absorbed in their conversation. Watching them sitting together and smiling at each other, she felt like she could have been standing right between them and they would not even have noticed.
It was amazing to Ranma how much he could depend on this girl whom he wasn't sure he even liked or trusted. He wondered how someone so obnoxious could be so insightful. And why she cared enough to keep helping him. "Nabiki?"
"Yes?"
"Can I ask you a question?"
"Sure."
"Why are you doin' this for me? What's in it for you?"
Nabiki bowed her head for a moment, thinking about his question. When she answered, her voice was different; quieter. "I thought it would be fun," she said.
"Is it?"
"No. I'll be glad when it's over."
"Me too."
Nabiki looked up at him. She did not look pleased. At all.
"What?" he asked.
"You idiot!" she said, quietly but sternly. "Don't you get it!? It's never going to be over! Not for you! This is basic stuff! This is all stuff you should have learned a long time ago! You should have learned this when you were a kid!"
"Geez, Nabiki," he replied. "What'cha gettin' so upset at?" He had seen her angry before, but this was only the second time he had seen her so angry that she got quiet instead of loud. The other time had been two nights ago.
"I go out of my way to help you learn this stuff that you should already know ... I even make my sister mad at me, just because I'm trying to help you, and you talk about the day you can quit!?" She stopped for a moment, then leaned closer to Ranma, practically face to face. "Listen, Ranma!" she said, even quieter than before. So quiet she scared him! "You don't get to just do this for a little while and then drop it when everything gets better! You'd better learn this stuff and learn it well, because you're going to be doing it for a long time to come! You're going to be doing it for the rest of your life!!" And with that, she gathered her things, stood up and walked off, leaving Ranma to wonder yet again how it was he always managed to say the wrong thing.
Akane watched Nabiki say something to Ranma, then move her face close to his. For one terrible moment, she thought Nabiki was about to kiss him! Instead, she watched as Nabiki continued talking, her face mere inches from his! Then she collected her belongings and left Ranma sitting on the ground, while he stared after her until long after she was gone.
Stunned, Akane turned away. She still could not believe what she had seen. Her sister and fiancee sitting so close, talking so intensely. What was Ranma trying to pull this time? But it wasn't just Ranma. Nabiki had been the one to move closer to him. Could it be that Nabiki ...? And what about Ranma? The way he had watched Nabiki as she left him, staring after her for so long. What could it mean? Vividly, she remembered the last time he had looked at HER that way, only two nights before. What had it meant then? Lost in fear and doubts, she sat alone, hiding behind her tree, not even noticing as Ranma gathered his own stuff and left.
SLAM!
Kasumi heard rather than saw the front door shut and the footsteps run upstairs. Then she heard another door slam. Knowing that Nabiki would never do such a thing, she had no trouble figuring out what was going on. "Oh my, it sounds like things didn't get better after all."
Akane lay on her bed crying. She had run home from school in order to avoid Ranma or Nabiki. She did not want to see her Father either, he was no help in situations like this. Maybe she should go talk to-
Knock-knock!
Akane looked up! Oh no, she thought. If that was Ranma ... "Wh-who is it?" she asked.
"Akane?" asked Kasumi. "May I come in?"
Kasumi! Thank goodness! "Yes, of course," she answered aloud, wiping away her tears.
Kasumi opened the door and saw Akane lying on the bed, looking up at her. Closing the door, she went to Akane's side, sitting down beside her on the bed. "Akane? Is something bothering you?"
"I'm okay," lied Akane, sitting up and trying to act composed. "I-I just ... I just ..." Then she fell against Kasumi's breast and began crying again. I'm such a bad liar, she thought.
Kasumi knew she could not rush Akane. Nor did she want to. What Akane needed first was exactly what she was doing now. She's so honest, thought Kasumi.
After a few minutes, Akane's tears began to subside. As she pulled herself away from her sister, she said, "Thanks, Kasumi. I'm okay now."
"That's all right, Akane," said Kasumi. "Can you tell me about it now?"
"Yeah, ... I guess so."
Ranma walked along the fence, just a few feet behind Nabiki below him.
"You're not listening to me Ranma! I'm telling you, it's Stupid to talk to Ukyo right now!"
"She's my friend! I'm not gonna ignore her just 'cause Akane gets jealous!"
After school, Akane had been nowhere to be found. While Ranma had been waiting for her, Ukyo had shown up, inviting him over for a quick snack. Just as he had been about to accept, Nabiki had suddenly appeared and dragged him off. Now she was yelling at him again. It was getting to be a habit.
"Idiot! Fine, but I don't want to hear about it if Akane gets upset! I'm trying to help you, but I'm not going to waste my time if you're not even going to listen to me. You're supposed to be my student, you know?"
"Then help me figure out a way to keep Akane from gettin' all angry whenever she sees me with Ucchan. That's the real problem, anyway! She's the one who-"
Nabiki whirled to face Ranma. He was so startled, he almost slipped and fell. "You want to know how to keep Akane from getting upset over Ukyo, Ranma!?"
"Sure."
"Really!?" Her eyes were almost wild. "You really want to know!?"
"Well," said Ranma hesitantly, "y-yeah."
"Tell her you'll marry her!"
He slipped and fell. "W-wh-what!?" he cried, now flat on his back.
Ranma shuffled backward on his elbows away from Nabiki, as she stalked him, moving closer, glaring down at him, stressing each word as she spoke. "I said, 'If you want Akane to stop being jealous and upset over Ukyo, ...'"
Ranma had backed up against the fence and was trying to reach a standing position, the better to defend himself against this deranged woman who had once been Nabiki Tendo.
"'... then go up to her and tell her that you have accepted your Father's wish and agree to the engagement.'" Nabiki had closed in on Ranma and now had him backed against the fence. "But don't you even think about pretending that you're doing it out of honor or obedience or anything else. You look her in the eye and say to her, 'I WANT TO MARRY YOU! I *WANT* TO!!'"
That was awfully weird, thought Ukyo, after Nabiki had dragged Ranma off. Usually, I can convince him to come over for something to eat, unless Akane's around. I wonder why Nabiki of all people wanted to see him so bad.
Naturally, she had followed them.
Staying a distance behind, she had seen Nabiki turn and start yelling at Ranma about something. Too far away to hear, she had watched him completely lose his balance and go sprawling at Nabiki's feet. Ranchan looks like he's in trouble now, she thought, laughing. She's probably blackmailing him over something silly again. How does he get himself into these situations?
Smiling at her beloved's antics, she watched him retreat in obvious fear from The Great And Terrible Nabiki Tendo, a girl he could break in two without trying. He could be so cute sometimes. From her position, she heard only the final words, as Nabiki raised her voice and shouted into Ranma's face, "I WANT TO MARRY YOU! I *WANT* TO!!"
"So, you're worried that perhaps Nabiki likes Ranma?"
"N-no, not really. I mean, I can't really believe she would. But, she might be pretending to."
Akane had told Kasumi all about the last four days: how Ranma had apparently tried one final time to make something work with her, and how she had done nothing but belittle him for it. Kasumi had listened patiently, as Akane had related how Ranma had since been ignoring her, and had been spending so much time with Nabiki instead. Akane admitted that all she could think was if she had just been nicer to Ranma the day he had tried so hard to be nice to her, that she might not have driven him away.
"Nabiki? Pretending to like Ranma? Why?"
"Well, she's done it before."
"Really? Why?"
Do I really want to tell her this? wondered Akane. It was dangerously close to making an admission she was not sure she was prepared to make. Still, Kasumi couldn't help her if she didn't give all the facts. "To make me jealous," she said.
"I see. Did it work?"
Akane looked sharply at Kasumi, but saw nothing apart from her normal open innocence. She was not accusing Akane of anything, she just wanted to know. "Yes," Akane admitted in a tiny voice. Then the crying started again, and she leaned into her sister once more.
"And it's working again?"
Akane stiffened and almost pulled away. She wasn't! But she knew better. She was. So she made the admission. "Yes."
"I see," said Kasumi, stroking Akane's hair with one hand, holding her with the other. "And Ranma, do you think he likes Nabiki?"
Akane stopped crying for a moment and considered this. It was hard to imagine, but then, he was always chasing after some new girl! He collected women the way other boys his age collected trading cards, the jerk! What was it about that indecisive fool that made him so darn popular? "I don't really think he likes her. I just don't understand why he spends more time with her than with me. He hardly even talks to me anymore! I'm his fiancee; she's the one who uses him and manipulates him and rents him out for dates to other girls and sells pictures of him to Kuno ..." She looked up at her older sister. "Do boys like that? Do they like mean girls better than nice ones? Ranma's always saying I treat him mean, but Nabiki treats him meaner! Shampoo and Ukyo treat him like he's some sort of a prince or something, throwing themselves at him ...! I don't know what to do. Sometimes I get so angry at him I just want to kill him. Other times ..."
When she did not continue, Kasumi prompted, "Other times?"
Akane smiled. "Other times he gets so protective. He fights over me and rescues me ..." She stopped, remembering so many things, so many times.
"And you like that?"
Akane's face darkened. "I can take care of myself! I don't need him butting in and-"
"But you LIKE it?"
Akane felt conflicted. She did not know how to answer, what she felt. "I don't know. Maybe. Sometimes."
Kasumi smiled and began to rock Akane in her lap. She had not done that in years, and Akane closed her eyes with nostalgia. This was not something that words could solve, Kasumi realized. Akane just needed someone to listen to her, and something to do to keep her mind active so she did not sink deeper into her own imaginings. Well, the first part had been solved, and she had a solution to the second also. "Akane?"
"Hmm?"
"How would you like to help me prepare dinner this evening?"
Nabiki had entered first. Ranma had stayed outside with instructions to count to a thousand before coming through the gate. Neither wanted to take any chances.
The moment Nabiki realized who was in the kitchen with Kasumi, she began making plans to go out. She went to her room and picked up the phone, trying to decide what she wanted to do for the evening and who to invite. And if she could get anyone else to pay for it. It did not really matter what she did, just as long as it got her away from home long enough.
From downstairs came the sound of the front door opening and closing. "I'm home," she heard Ranma call, followed quickly by Kasumi answering, "Ranma? Please come to the kitchen if you can."
Kasumi? That was odd. Nabiki put the handset back into its cradle and listened carefully. She knew Ranma had reached the kitchen when she heard Akane say, "Here Ranma, try this."
Nabiki put her head in her hands. It was too late! Akane was not going to wait for dinner! Nabiki felt the walls closing in, the mouth of the trap springing shut! It was all up to Ranma now, and she had no illusions about how likely that was to work out. The trouble was, after the past few days, she couldn't be sure that she would not get caught in the fallout. In Akane's mind right now, anything Ranma did was likely to be associated with her. So she waited, listening, because it was all she could do.
From downstairs, the words came.
"What's wrong, Ranma? Why aren't you eating it?" That would be Akane.
"Uh, shouldn't I wait 'til dinner? I-I mean, I shouldn't go spoilin' my appetite now, should I?" Ranma.
Nabiki cringed. Please Ranma, she thought to herself, just shut up and eat it. Then say something intelligent and leave! It was too much to hope for.
"EAT IT, RANMA!" Akane.
Silence.
More silence.
Nabiki looked up. What was happening? The curiosity was too much for her. She stood and walked to her door, placing her ear against it, straining to hear any sound at all from downstairs.
Time ceased.
The knock on her door scared her more than anything had in months. With a loud, "Eep!" she jumped back, completely startled. The knock had not been loud. In fact, it had been quite soft. But she had been listening for pins dropping, and by comparison, it had sounded like thunder!
Opening the door, she saw Ranma standing like a statue, a look of barely controlled panic on his face, sweat drops sliding down his face and off his hair. "Ranma?" she whispered, then pulled him quickly inside. He moved like a sleepwalker, unresponsive. Shutting the door, she turned to him and asked, "What's wrong? What happened? Are you okay?" Slowly his eyes focused on hers. They seemed to be filled with pleading. "What is it Ranma? What do you need? Speak to me!"
He was slowly becoming more animated. He looked around the room. Spying the wastebasket beside her desk, he became almost frantic! Springing from her grasp, he leapt across the room and emptied the contents of his mouth into the trash can.
"Oh, Ranma!" said Nabiki, disgusted. "That is so gross!!"
Having completed his purging, Ranma was kneeling on the floor like a man brought back to the surface after coming mere seconds away from drowning. Gasping for air, he cried, "You got no idea, Nabiki! I almost had to swallow that!!"
"Shhhhh!" she warned, coming over to his side. "You don't want Akane to hear you!"
He nodded, his gasps subsiding to more normal breathing. "Sorry. I didn't know what to do. Thanks."
"So what happened? Downstairs, I mean. I heard it right up until the last time she told you to eat. What happened after that?"
Ranma was becoming more coherent. Nodding his understanding of her question, he tried to stand back up. She helped him into her chair, then sat down on the bed facing him, waiting for him to explain.
Looking at the floor, he began to fill her in. "She gave me ... somethin' ... somethin' small, and said to eat it. It was white ... mostly. I-I-" He looked up at her. "Kasumi was smilin' at me, so I figured it couldn't be too bad, ya know? I mean, she's only REALLY dangerous when she's alone in there." Nabiki nodded. She understood. "So, I took it and put it in my mouth ..." He stopped talking and silently shuddered.
"Ranma, I know all this! What happened?"
"It was awful! Nabiki, I've got to get out of here! It's gonna be dinner soon, and she's gonna expect me to eat that stuff! Ya gotta help me, Nabiki!"
Nabiki needed more. "But, what did you do, Ranma? How did you react? From up here I couldn't hear a thing!"
Ranma's mouth worked, moving silently. Eventually, he found his voice. "I didn't know what to do. I wanted to spit it out, but I knew that would be Stupid. I wanted to run to the bathroom, but I knew that would be Stupid, too. I couldn't think of a single thing, so I just stood there, tryin' not to faint."
"But how did you get up here?"
His voice assumed a hazy, ethereal quality. His eyes seemed to focus on nothing at all, as he said, "I'm not sure. That's all I remember. I must have blacked out. The next thing I knew, I saw this ... trash can ... floatin' before me ..." He lapsed into silence for a moment before coming back to himself. "Nabiki, I'm serious. I can not eat that food again. I can't. Ya gotta help me. I'm beggin' you, Teacher!"
"Okay, okay! Be a man already! We still have a little time. I'll think of something."
Akane was in a rather good mood. Kasumi had been so helpful, teaching her the new recipe, then letting her do it on her own. At least someone in this household treated her like she was capable! She had followed the instructions mostly, only modifying it a little, and it seemed to have come out okay. Ranma had just sort of smiled and nodded to her after tasting it, quite an improvement over the way he usually carried on! He'd even gone on his way without so much as a single insult! Yes, she was in a rather good mood. Maybe I'll spice it up just a little more, she thought. That'll surprise him, since he thinks he already knows what it tastes like.
Then she heard Kasumi say, "Oh, hello again, Ranma. Can we help you?"
Akane turned to Ranma with a smile. "No more until dinner, Ranma. You'll just have to wait."
She saw the look of disappointment pass over his face just briefly. It was funny how disappointment and relief could look so similar sometimes, wasn't it? Then he smiled hesitantly at her and said, "Uh, Akane? I was actually wonderin' if you could do somethin' for me."
"Maybe. What?"
Ranma glanced over at Kasumi, who had turned away from them again, and was now concentrating rather intently on chopping something, obviously far too involved in what she was doing to be paying any attention to the two of them. Then he looked back at Akane. Now was the time. This was the moment of truth, the point of no return. He was about to do something he had never done in his life. If Nabiki was right, the good would balance the bad and he would survive the experience. "I was wonderin' if ... you could maybe make some of your curry for dinner."
THUNK! "Ouch!"
Kasumi's knife slipped in her hands, and she let out a small yelp. Turning to stare at Ranma with a startled expression he had seen her wear only a very few times before, she brought a hand to her mouth and began to suck on one of her fingers.
"Kasumi! Are you alright?" Ranma asked, rushing past Akane to see if the older girl needed any help.
"I'm fine, Ranma," she replied automatically, though in a voice which was quiet even for her. "Really, I just slipped. It's nothing. I'll go wash up and put a bandage on it."
"Are you sure? You're bleedin'."
Kasumi regained composure faster than most, and she was already returning to her normal good humor. "Don't worry, Ranma. As much as I work around a kitchen, I've cut myself before, you know. I'll be just fine. It's only a small cut." She looked over at Akane, who seemed to have turned to stone. Walking past her on the way to the door, Kasumi put her good hand on Akane's shoulder to bring her back from wherever she had gone, and said, "Akane, why don't you begin boiling the water for the rice. You know where the curry is, and I'll be back to help you as soon as I take care of my finger, okay?"
Kasumi's voice returned Akane to the present, and she broke into a large smile. "Sure, Kasumi! I'll get started right now!"
As Kasumi left, Akane turned and noticed that Ranma was still in the kitchen. She blushed as she smiled, looking down at the floor shyly and saying softly, "Th-that's the very first time you've ever asked me to cook anything for you, Ranma. I'll do my best. How was the tofu?"
So that's what it was, thought Ranma. Okay, gotta say this just right, exactly the way Nabiki made me practice it. He took a deep breath and said as gently as he could, "Actually, it wasn't as good as your curry, which is why I asked you to make some of it instead."
The smile left Akane's face. Ranma counted the seconds, tensely holding his breath, waiting for the storm to break ...
Akane continued to stare at him, trying to take it all in. It was just so strange. He didn't like her tofu, ... but ... he had requested her curry. And he had said it so ... nicely. She almost wanted to ask him who he was, and what he had done with Ranma. "Well, o-okay Ranma," she said quietly. "I'll make you some curry, then. S-sorry about the tofu."
"That's okay, really. Uh, well then, I'll let you get to work." It was almost over! He couldn't believe it! He was only seconds away from pulling it off! If he could just get out of the kitchen without Doing Anything Stupid, he might very well live through the evening!
As he reached the threshold, she spoke. "But don't you worry, Ranma! I've got an idea how to make the tofu better. You'll like it, you'll see!"
Ranma deflated like a balloon. Unable to keep the despair from showing on his face, he was simply thankful she couldn't see it with his back toward her. "Yeah," he said, "I knew you would."
"What?"
"I mean ..." He turned back to her, trying to recover. "I mean ..." What did he mean? "I mean ..." He stared at Akane, at the knife now in her hand. Why do you need a knife to boil water? he wondered.
"What DO you mean, Ranma?" she said evenly.
"I mean, I'll see ya at dinner," he blurted out, turning and sprinting from the kitchen before Akane could respond to this non-answer.
At the top of the stairs, Nabiki fell to the floor in relief.
In the bathroom, Kasumi sat alone, considering what she had just heard. Up until now, she had assumed she understood what was going on. Up until now, she had felt this was no more than just another episode in Akane's rather eventful engagement. Now she knew better. Making a mental note to talk to Nabiki as soon as possible, she stood up to go. She knew she had better get back to supervise Akane soon. There was no way to guess what creative cooking methods she would invent if she were left alone too long.
"Oh, man! Who knows what she did to that food before Kasumi got back? It's gonna be a disaster!"
"It's okay, Ranma! You'll still have her curry to eat. As bad as it can be sometimes, it's almost always edible."
"Yeah, at least I won't starve."
"And no comments like that are allowed, got it!?"
"Yeah, I got it."
"Good. Okay, let's not push our luck. Go to your room, and write down the sentences I told you. That way you'll remember them later. You're going to need them, and we won't see each other again until dinner is ready. Wait until you hear me talking to the others before you come down."
"Got it," said Ranma as he opened her door to leave. "Ya know Teacher, I really gotta hand it to you. She didn't get mad or nothin', even when I told her the tofu was bad."
"That's the point, Ranma. You didn't tell her it was bad. You told her the curry was better. It's not the same thing. Remember that!"
"Right!"
In a small dining establishment in another part of town, a certain chef was having a difficult time keeping her mind on her work. Her hands moved out of habit and with a skill born of years' training, preparing each new order and deftly tossing it across the restaurant to land perfectly at the proper table, but her mind was elsewhere, raging in crashing waves like those she had flung her fury against years ago!
Crash! Ranchan.
It was obvious he did not share Nabiki's feelings, obvious he had not known how to handle her declaration. But she couldn't count on that being any help. He had yet to show sufficient decisiveness to rid himself even of his male suitor, let alone any of his female ones. If having four women warring for his affections hadn't been sufficient to force him to make up his mind, having a fifth wasn't likely to make much of a difference.
Crash! Nabiki.
That was bad. That was very bad. She held the original Tendo claim on the heir to the Saotome School every bit as much as Akane. Soun wouldn't care, neither would Genma, just so long as one of the daughters married Ranchan. Plus, Nabiki had not played coy like her sister. No, she had come right out and expressed her desire as fully as any of the other rivals had. Nabiki wanted Ranchan bad, and she was as persistent as Shampoo, as devious as Kodachi and cuter than Akane. Perhaps as cute as Ukyo, herself. This was bad. This was very bad.
Crash! Akane.
Why hadn't Akane stopped this from happening? Did she even know? Ukyo would rather compete with Akane than Nabiki any day. Ranchan had openly declared that she, Ukyo was the cute fiancee! He openly called Akane the uncute one! She knew she could beat Akane, it was just a matter of time! But now, because Akane couldn't get along with Ranchan, her sister had stepped forward to claim the right to compete for his hand. Because she was a Tendo, Nabiki was actually worse than the other two. Oh, why couldn't Akane have stopped this from happening?
Crash! Genma.
CRASH!! GENMA!!
Somehow, some way, Ukyo just knew the old man was to blame for this. After months of conniving, he must finally have realized he had failed to make Ranchan and Akane fall for each other, and so had found some way to make Nabiki pursue Ranchan. Ukyo wondered what sort of deal he must have agreed to in order to get Nabiki's cooperation. Or could it be worse? Could Nabiki have actually meant it? What if Genma had found some way to actually make Nabiki LIKE Ranchan? One part of her wished she had killed him when she had first come to Nerima, when she had first defeated him. It wasn't too late ... She knew she did not really mean it. It would hurt Ranchan too much. But everyone needed a good fantasy now and then.
Akane?
Ukyo had no idea how Akane was taking the new situation. Did she know? If not, should she? She wasn't exactly a friend, but they had fought side-by-side when necessary, and they both wanted what was best for Ranchan, even if they didn't agree on what that was. Ukyo knew that as violent as Akane could be, she was still a person of honor, unlike Nabiki. So, she was ... almost a friend. Ukyo did not have many of those. If Akane didn't know about this unexpected complication, she needed to. If only to defend herself from her sister's machinations.
Ukyo needed to know how Akane was reacting. Well, she would see about that tomorrow ...
Dinner. Akane's cooking. What would you do?
Ranma was the last one to come to the table. Before they began, Kasumi announced, "We have a special treat tonight. Akane made two of our dishes, the tofu and the curry. Be sure to tell her how much you like them."
"Here, Ranma," began Akane, "try the tofu. I fixed it! I think you'll like it a lot more now." And she pushed the bowl with the questionable substance toward him.
Ranma had been steeling himself for this moment. Nabiki had been adamant that he had to eat at least one piece of it before he could move on to any of Kasumi's cooking, and she had been adamant that "eat" meant "swallow."
Ranma knew he should say something then, but the dread seemed to be closing his throat, so he just took the bowl from Akane and started to spoon a little -- a very little -- out onto his plate. He tried to avoid looking at it too much as he did so, but could not completely prevent himself from catching a glimpse.
It was no longer white. It was a peculiar blackish-brown color with sinister looking red flakes. He did not EVEN want to know what they were.
"Take more, Ranma. That's not enough," said Akane, obviously wanting him to die a horrible death ...
Stop that, Ranma told himself harshly! If you think stuff like that, sooner or later you're gonna end up accidentally sayin' it out loud! It was a new idea to him that Shutting Up meant not only what he was saying, but sometimes what he was thinking. He decided he would have to ask Nabiki about it later. For now, he quickly sorted through the things Nabiki had made him practice saying for the meal, and grabbed what he felt was the best one for the situation. "Um, could I have some of your curry also, Akane?"
Soun and Genma stopped what they were doing and looked at Ranma. Kasumi and Nabiki, prepared for anything now, merely began to pass around the other dishes. This had the effect of breaking the two men's attention away from the young couple.
Forgetting completely about the tofu, Akane broke into a huge smile as she reached for the new bowl and handed it to Ranma. "Sure! Here you go, Ranma. Have as much as you want!"
For the first time in his life, Ranma took Akane's offerings not with hesitation, but with gratitude. Quickly handing off the tofu to someone else -- anyone else -- he took the dish from Akane, not even having to force the smile. After