A fan fiction based on the works of Rumiko Takahashi,  
     creator of Ranma 1/2, and, Masaki Kajishima, who I've been
     told is the creator of Tenchi Muyo. Hitoshi Okuda, is the artist     
     and creator of the Tenchi Manga, which continues the original
     Tenchi series, more or less.^_^
 
     I have no rights to these characters.  Which should come as
     no surprise to anyone.

  Previous chapters can be found at these fine locations.
  All of these sites have many other good stories, check them
  out, even if you have all my previous chapters.
  <http://www.anime.usacomputers.net/~dragon/>
  <http://members.xoom.com/gensao/>
  <http://www.fortunecity.com/marina/thunder/181/ccc.html>

  T.H. Tiger
  schell@interlog.com


Tenchi and Ranma, Together Forever!?
  Chapter Eight
  Clothes make the Girl?
  
  
  This is an alternative universe story in which Ranma was
trapped as a girl from day one, due to a foggy encounter with the
Musk Dynasty.
  Unable to engage his now permanently female son to one of
Soun Tendo's daughters, Genma was deeply depressed. Until he
came across an old agreement between himself and Nobuyuki
Masaki, agreeing that if he should ever have a daughter, she would
marry Nobuyuki's son, Tenchi. Well, as noted, Genma has recently
acquired a daughter. ^_^ 
  
  
  Tenchi Masaki was in hell!  
  This fact would have come as a large surprise to his father, or
any other male observer of his current situation, and some females
as well.  From all appearances, the direct opposite should have been
the case.  After all, how many seventeen-year-old boys wake up in
bed to find two gorgeous girls cuddling up to him on either side? 
  Of course, Tenchi was privy to some facts regarding those girls
that the casual observer might not be aware of.  For instance, the
tall, well-built, cyan-haired lady on his right was known as Ryouko,
a former class 'A' galactic criminal, aka, the demon of destruction.
At least according to Princess Ayeka, but then she seemed to be
biased on the subject.  
  Tenchi had seen Ryouko shatter the foot-thick reinforced
concrete roof of his late school with one casual gesture.  The school
was late because besides shattering the roof, Ryouko had also
caused, and walked through, a massive gas explosion that had
reduced it to rubble.  She had done all this while doing her level
best to reduce Tenchi to a smear of grease.  Of course, she now
claimed that she had only been playing.  Tenchi had doubts, big
doubts.
  The girl on Tenchi's left had the advantage of being human, or
at least no more inhuman than Tenchi himself.  Unlike Ryouko she
was short, less than five feet in height. Where Ryouko's hair was a
wild uncontrolled mane, her crimson hair was pulled back in a
heavy French braid, that at the moment coiled around her shoulder
and lay across Tenchi's stomach.  
  Though both girls' eyes were closed in sleep, they too were
different. Ryouko possessed slitted yellow eyes, which tended to
shift color when she was aroused, in one fashion or another. The
red-haired girl's eyes were a deep maroon, very much like those of
her aunt, Ayeka, and Tenchi's grandfather.  
  They also differed slightly in behavior, if not quite as much as
they did in appearance. The redhead, for instance, did not make a
habit of tossing around energy bolts, flying, or walking through
walls.  Instead, she had a tendency toward going insane while in the
presence of cats, and of coping by becoming a cat herself, in mind if
not in body.  Tenchi had seen her reduce the lower story of his
home to so much sawdust the evening before.  Only the quick action
of Princess Ayeka and her guardians had kept the upper story
supported and in one piece long enough to lower it to the ground. 
  None of that was obvious at the moment. Ranma looked cute
as a kitten curled up beside him, her head on his chest and one arm
curled up so her fist was tucked under her chin. In the crook of her
other arm was what looked like a small stuffed animal, but was, in
fact, according to Ryouko, a living creature who would one day
grow up to become a spaceship.
  Oh, and one final thing about the redhead.  Despite a body that
screamed out its female nature, she insisted that she was, in fact, a
boy, and she tended to take serious exception to anyone trying to
treat her as a girl.  This put Tenchi in a bit of a difficulty due to her
rather casual way with clothes, the lack of them that is.  Her typical
attitude of, "Hey! We're all boys here right?" tended to force home
the fact that despite her claim to former boyhood, her body was
one-hundred, and then some, percent female.
  To tell the truth, after the initial panic of waking up to find
himself bracketed by two sleeping wildcats, possibly literally true in
the case of Ranma, he'd started to enjoy the sensation of the two of
them pressed against him.  He was a healthy male teenager, after all.
They were, despite Ranma's claim to the contrary, very female, no
matter what other characteristics they had.  But then, he had spotted
it, the final element that turned the current situation into a hell of
anticipation.  A thing that currently terminated inches below
Ranma's face, a sunbeam.

  He had been laying there, still drowsy, enjoying the warmth of
his bed and the unusual sensation of being trapped between two
girls when he'd first noticed it. He had initially attached no
significance to it. It had appeared on the wall, and in the manner of
sunbeams, it had moved as the sun rose, first down the wall to the
floor and then across that. 
  It was half way across the room before his mind really started
to take note of it and where it was headed.  Its path was undeviating
and, therefore, easy to predict. In just a little while, it was going to
end its journey by shining directly into Ranma's face.
  Ever since he had taken note of that fact, Tenchi's imagination
had been supplying him with a vivid series of the likely
consequences of Ranma waking to find herself in her present
situation.  This, of course, was in between episodes of his life
flashing before his eyes.  One: she would still be in cat mode, and
he was smack dab between her and her favorite cat toy. Two: she
would be normal, more or less, and if that were the case, he had a
feeling she was not going to react well to her current situation. In
either case, Tenchi was looking at a world of hurt.
  For a brief moment he had entertained thoughts of waking
Princess Ayeka, the one person Ranma seemed to pay any heed to. 
The princess and her sister were currently sleeping a few feet away,
the damage done to the house having left little remaining of their
and Ranma's bedroom.
  He had given up the idea after a few casual whispers had done
nothing other than to cause Ranma to mumble something about
letting her sleep a few more minutes Pop. After his heart had
stopped racing, he had concentrated on being as quiet as he could. 
  Since then, he had come to the inescapable conclusion that
there was no escape from this fate. Any action he took toward
freeing himself would only awaken one or both of the girls, and
merely hasten the inevitable result. 
  Slowly the spot of light on the floor had moved nearer and
nearer to its goal.  It reached Ranma's torso and crept up and over
the arm she was holding Ryo-oh-ki with.  The little cabbit had
shifted slightly as the warmth penetrated her fur, but had not
wakened.  She'd merely snuggled deeper into the crook of Ranma's
arm and settled down with a small contented mewl, which drew a
twitch from Ranma but, fortunately, did not waken her.  The
sunbeam left Ryo-oh-ki and moved across Tenchi's chest, the
warmth a distinct contrast to the chill Tenchi felt as the bright blot
finally reached the destination he had been anticipating; Ranma's
face. 
  Ranma's features screwed up slightly as the bright light fell
across her closed eyes.  Tenchi's mind started to chant a liturgy, 
"I'm going to die.  I'm going to die." Despite that, the part of his
mind that was not focused on his soon-to-be demise could not help
noticing how cute Ranma's scrunched up face was. Tenchi was a
teenage boy. The insignificant prospect of his impending death
could not keep him from appreciating certain things.

  Ranma's eyes opened, and then shut immediately against the
glare of the sun.  The hand not currently involved in holding Ryo-
oh-ki slid out from between her head and Tenchi's chest and was
used as a screen to protect her vision from the brilliance of the early
morning sun.  For a second, she lay there, a blank look on her face,
but then a look of horror settled on her features, and Tenchi felt his
stomach lurch with dread.
  "Shit!" Ranma yelled, jumping to her feet.  "What the heck is
the time?" She dashed across the room to where Tenchi's bedroom
clock lay, ignoring the chaos of the room. "Shit, shit, shit!" Ranma
cursed when she saw the face of the clock.  "Damn, I'm late!" 
  Sasami, who had been in that pleasurable daze between sleep
and waking, was pushed into full awareness by Ranma's activity. 
She sat up with a wide yawn and sat there blinking before asking,
"Ranma-oneechan, what's wrong?" Ayeka snorted softly and
blinked her eyes blearily as she woke to greet the new day. Ayeka
was not a morning person.
  "No time! Here! Look after the squirt! Got to go! Late for
training!" Ranma blurted out. She thrust a still drowsy Ryo-oh-ki
into a befuddled Sasami's hands and then literally dove out the
window.  A second later, an impact was heard, followed by an
expression of pain from Ranma. A few choice curse words
followed. Tenchi jumped out of bed and rushed to the window,
leaving Ryouko's head hanging in the air for a second before it
thumped down on the futon. 
  Reaching the window, Tenchi looked out to see Ranma
rubbing her backside and staring at the house with an expression of
puzzlement. The fact that the second story window was now at
ground level had taken her by surprise, Tenchi surmised. However,
Ranma had no time for mysteries this morning, she was already late,
and she had a lot to learn, and a short time to do it in. She took off.
  Tenchi watched Ranma go with a dazed expression.  Then a
happy smile crossed his face.  He had lucked out.  He was still alive. 
He'd dodged the bullet. What a great start to a beautiful day.  Then,
a pair of velvet-covered cables snaked around his neck and a
breathy voice whispered in his ear.  
  "Mmmmm, morning Tenchi." Tenchi flinched as he felt
Ryouko start nibbling on his ear. "You know, Tenchi," Ryouko
whispered around her morning snack.  "They say that the morning is
the best time for romance, ne? And the bed is so cold when you're
alone. Why don't you come back to bed and keep me warm?"
  "You hussy!  Release Tenchi-sama this instant!  He is
promised to Ranma-sama!"
  Sasami yawned widely and exited the room as mayhem
erupted behind her.  "Let's see if we can find something to make
breakfast out of, Ryo-oh-ki," she said.  Ryo-oh-ki mewled
enthusiastically at the idea of food.  She hopped out of Sasami's
arms and began a thorough search of the remains of the lower story
of the house.  She was sure there had been a bushel basket of carrots
around here somewhere.  Sasami giggled and joined her search,
looking for the remains of the kitchen and any foodstuffs that might
have survived the events of the night before.


  Tenchi flinched as Ayeka administered both medical aid and a
lecture.  "Really, Tenchi-sama," she chided as she stuck a bandage
on his forehead. (with a little more force than was strictly necessary,
in his opinion).  "You should not encourage that hussy. Poor
Ranma-sama has enough problems without you making her wonder
about your feelings for her."
  Tenchi felt rather hard done by. He had hardly had time to
encourage Ryouko, either in a positive or negative way, what with
Ayeka starting a fight with the demon girl before he even had time
to react to her hug.

  They were currently sitting outside the house, on one of the
surviving tatami mats from the lower story.  Sasami had started a
small fire and laid the kitchen grill over it.  She was currently taking
an inventory of all the food she had managed to salvage before
starting breakfast.  Ryouko hovered nearby, a hungry look in her
eyes, only occasionally directing sardonic glances Ayeka's way, and
glances at Tenchi that were almost as hungry as the ones she was
directing at Sasami's efforts.  Ryo-oh-ki was slightly off to the side,
happily gnawing on a large carrot Sasami had salvaged from the
remains of the storage shed.   
  Tenchi was not paying any attention to this.  Instead, Ayeka's
comment on his feelings for Ranma had started him thinking on a
subject that had been much on his mind recently.  
  What were his feelings toward the little redhead?  She was
violent and crude, so much so that she made Ryouko look feminine
at times.  She was about as far from Tenchi's idea of a normal girl
as you could get. Yet, there was something there. Something about
her that made him smile just from being in her presence. 
  Joy, that was it, Tenchi thought with a small smile. Ranma had
a joy for life that burned clear for everyone around her to see.  She
smiled more often than frowned.  Laughed more often than cried.  If
her story of once being a boy was true, then Tenchi was in awe of
her. In her position he would have been depressed and withdrawn. 
He was not sure if he'd have been able to walk down the street if it
had happened to him.  Ranma on the other hand, despite the
occasional grumble, which often seemed more out of reflex than
any serious emotion, just got on with her life.  Why, right now, she
was up on the hill, eager for a lesson from his grandfather,
something that Tenchi tended to regard as a chore rather than as
something pleasurable.  That was one reason why he was sitting
here, letting Ayeka tend to him, rather than going up the hill for his
own training. 
  Tenchi was suddenly consumed with a desire to watch Ranma
practice.  He was sure that she took as much joy in that as she did in
everything else. He could easily picture her in his mind, laughing
and joking, his old shirt clinging to her sweaty body as she twisted
through a complicated kata. The morning sun highlighting all the
many curves of her body . . .  Tenchi wrenched his thoughts away
from the direction they had been traveling.
  Ranma was a boy! He had to remember that! She had said so
on numerous occasions. Her father's curse was proof that it was
possible. Even if she was delusional like her father claimed, she had
made it clear that she had no interest in him, or in any other boys in
that way. Even his grandfather had warned him that Ranma needed
a friend, not a boyfriend. So even if she had never been a boy, he
still had no business thinking such thoughts about her. If he didn't
stop, he might turn into his father. Tenchi shuddered at the thought.
  Besides, in all ways possible, she and he were an unlikely
couple. 'So why,' he asked himself, 'when you have a beautiful girl
like Ryouko constantly showing her willingness to be with you, do
your thoughts keep turning to a girl you do not have the least chance
of knowing romantically?  One who has not the slightest interest in
you, and who, in fact, would likely clean your clock if you even
suggested anything of a romantic nature to her?' 
  Tenchi sighed to himself. He would just have to try and think
of Ranma the same way he thought of his friends at school. A vision
of one such friend appeared in his mind's eye; fat, pimply and male.
A vision of Ranma floated up beside him; clear complexion, sleek,
well shaped body. Tenchi snorted in derision. Yeah right, he
thought to himself with a mental sigh. Just treat her like one of the
boys. No problem.

  "Ouch," Tenchi exclaimed, as a particulary vigorous
application of some stinging salve by Ayeka brought him out of his
reverie. Ayeka was unrepentant as she finished the last of her
nursing. Her expression clearly showed she thought Tenchi was
only getting what he deserved. Looking away from her frown,
Tenchi sighed again, this time in anticipatory resignation. His
glance had taken in the scattered remains of the lower story of the
house. His thoughts regarding Ranma had made him forget, briefly,
the condition of his home. "I guess I'll have to start cleaning this
up," he said in a depressed tone. "I don't know where I'm going to
start though."

  Kamidake, one of Ayeka's guardians, the one with the strange
script on his front in crimson, had been hovering nearby, waiting for
the princess to finish with Tenchi.  Now, as she finished her
nursing, he spoke up. "There is no need for that Tenchi-sama."
When both Ayeka and Tenchi turned inquiring looks his way, he
explained.  "I was waiting to inform you, princess.  Azaka has
managed to locate an undamaged pod of some of Ryuu-oh's self-
repair drones.  They cannot restore Ryuu-oh itself, unfortunately.
They were programmed for the maintenance of the living quarters
only, not the flight superstructure, but they can easily repair the
damage to Tenchi-sama's dwelling."  As he was talking, a small
disk-shaped object flew up behind him and blinked its round sensor
arrays at Tenchi.  The sensors gave it a droll expression, and Tenchi
found himself smiling at it.
   "That is good news," Ayeka said, but then she frowned, and
added, "but will their storage cells last?  We have no way to
recharge them. If I remember correctly, they are imported and are
not compatible with Ryuu-oh. I'm sure the auxiliary power modules
were destroyed in the crash."
  "There will be no need, princess. These are the new models
with the miniature fusion reactors.  No energy cells required. They
also have a self-replication ability, so with any luck we will soon
have more than adequate help." 
  "Excellent!" Ayeka exclaimed happily.  She turned to Tenchi. 
"You go and keep your iinazuke company.  I'm sure she will be
most happy to see you." Ayeka made shooing motions with her
hands, urging Tenchi toward the stairs leading up to the temple. 
"Go, go.  By the time you get back, Kamidake and Azaka, with the
aid of the drones, will be well on the way to restoring the house."
  "Well, if you're sure?" Tenchi said, as he backed toward the
shrine steps.  Then as Ayeka renewed her shooing motions, he
smiled and headed toward the shrine on the top of the hill, his vow
to treat Ranma as one of the boys already forgotten. 

  "Ayeka-san?" Ayeka turned to see Tenchi's father walking
toward her.  He had a brown paper parcel under one arm and a pair
of letters in his free hand.  He handed one of the letters to her and
held up the parcel for her to see.  "Here are the outfits you wanted
me to get," he said with a happy smile, and then he winked, and
went on. "And I got a little something special for her to impress
Tenchi with." Ayeka smiled in return, a bit weakly however, there
was something in the way Nobuyuki said . . . No, it was just her
imagination.  She looked at the envelope in her hand in curiosity.  
  "That's from Genma," Nobuyuki explained. "He's left to see
his wife and to try and reason with her.  He said he'd call me back if
he was successful, but he wanted us to make sure she did not find or
meet Ranma until he gives the all clear. If she shows up here
without word from him, we're supposed to tell her that he and
Ranma continued their training trip and are no longer here."

  Ayeka frowned. She had noticed Genma's absence, but had
merely counted it as a small blessing, expecting him to turn up at
any moment. And while it was welcome news that he had left, she
was annoyed at him for running off without telling Ranma goodbye.
He might be a waste of space shape-shifter, but he was the girl's
father and he owed her at least that much consideration. 
  Ayeka was also skeptical of Genma's warning in regards to
Ranma's mother. She found it hard to believe that any mother
would treat her child the way Genma insisted his wife had, or that
any mother could even consider killing her only child for not being
a boy when clearly she was a girl.  She did not know the woman,
but she did know Genma, and if he disapproved of her, that was a
ringing endorsement to Ayeka.
  She carefully ripped open the end of the envelope Nobuyuki
had handed her and extracted the rather rumpled and dirty contents.
Opening it, she perused the contents for several minutes, while
Sasami, who had left her cooking, stood nearby, her face alight with
curiosity.
  "What does it say, Oneechan?" She asked.
  Instead of replying, Ayeka turned the page around and began
looking at it again. After a minute, Ayeka looked up and waved the
document in front of Sasami and Nobuyuki. "I have no idea," she
said in frustration. "This, this is . . . this isn't writing, this is the
scratchings of an imbecile." 
  Ayeka was frustrated and embarrassed.  She felt she should
have been able to read Genma's missive. After all, handwritten
correspondences constituted most of her personal mail. No
aristocrat would ever be so crass as to send a machine-generated
letter to a member of the royal family.  
  Of course, what she did not consider was the large number of
scribes in the capital city who made a good living crafting works of
art for their customers to send to the various members of the ruling
family. For if the aristocrats of Jurai were not so crass as to send an
artificially produced letter, they were not so foolish as to send one
that the recipient might have difficulty in reading, or that would
reflect badly on their own abilities.  Genma's letter bore the same
relationship to those documents as a child's mud pie did to the
products of the finest French kitchens.  

  "If I may, princess?" Nobuyuki said, taking the letter from
Ayeka. He looked at it and frowned. Genma had obviously put a lot
of effort and thought into this to judge by the amount of crossed
out, smeared, and altered words. It was too bad he hadn't taken the
effort to place his final version on a clean sheet of paper, or to write
it when he was not eating in the first place.  Still, Nobuyuki had far
more experience than Ayeka in deciphering documents of this
nature. It was not out of the ordinary for a client to hand him
something like this, with the expectation that he would turn it into
the basis for their dream home. He worked his way through the
letter, reading it to himself while Ayeka and Sasami waited for his
translation with barely disguised impatience. 

  *Girl! You listen to me. Don't mess with Ranma's training.
Let the old man teach her what little he can. If you try to change her
into a soft weak girl like yourself, you'll be signing her death
warrant. Ranma is a martial artist. She has sworn she will marry
Tenchi, and Tenchi's father has agreed he will honor our agreement.
That is all that is needed. Ranma is a martial artist. She doesn't need
your frippery and fancy ideas. She will do what she has promised.
No more is needed. Leave her alone! Let the old man handle her. If
you don't, her death will be on your hands!*

  Nobuyuki frowned and shook his head. This would never do.
While Ranma was a real cutey, she had a lot of rough edges. He
wanted her to be a good wife to his son. After all, they had to spend
sometime out of the bedroom, and Tenchi deserved a partner as
wonderful as his mother had been to him. He looked up at Ayeka,
who was frowning with impatience. 
  Ayeka stifled her annoyance and politely asked, "Can you read
it, Masaki-sama?"
  "Yes, it's nothing complicated. About what you would
expect," Nobuyuki said, as he crumpled the letter behind his back.
"Genma asked if you would please teach Ranma to be a real lady, as
he has done so poorly at it."
  Ayeka blinked in surprise. That was unexpected. Who would
have thought that the man had that much sense? To Nobuyuki she
said, "Of course, I'd be honored to do so. It is my duty, after all.
Ranma is family." She looked at the parcel in Nobuyuki's hands.
"Those will be a good start. After all, Ranma can hardly feel like a
princess when she has to dress like a beggar." Then in curiosity, she
asked. "Who is the other letter for? Is that from Ranma's father as
well?"
  "Yes. It's for father." 
  "May I take it to him?" Ayeka asked, while thinking to herself
that the sooner she got started on Ranma, the sooner the girl would
begin to act as befitting her true status as a princess of Jurai. Ayeka
found herself looking forward to the challenge. Before she could
start for the shrine stairs, however, Sasami called out to her.
  "Oneechan, if you are going up to see Tenchi-niichan, could
you tell him and Ranma-oneechan and grandfather that breakfast
will be ready in an hour?" Ayeka nodded and started toward the
stairs, at a much more decorous pace than Tenchi's earlier dash. In
her hand she carried the letter from Genma.

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

  Tenchi oofed and fell back out of the sparring circle for the
fifth time in ten minutes. Still inside the ring of dirt, Ranma
watched him with narrowed eyes. She had a bokken clutched in her
hands and was currently frozen in the position she had taken during
her last strike at Tenchi. 
  Instead of looking happy at her most recent victory, she was
scowling, and the expression showing in her eyes was far from
pleased. She stepped back, falling out of the stance she had taken,
and waited for Tenchi to re-enter the ring. When he did so and took
a ready position, she failed to emulate him. Instead, she ran a finger
speculatively up and down the side of the bokken that corresponded
to the edge on a sword. In an almost casual way, she directed a
question at Tenchi.  "Say, you do wear a cup, don't you?"
  Tenchi blinked, but before he could even begin to reply to this
sudden, out-of-the-blue comment, Ranma moved. She came in low,
swinging her weapon so that the tip of the bokken brushed the
ground, moving in an arc that would bring it up with tremendous
force. 
  Tenchi had time to blanch as realization hit home, but only
just. Ranma's speed was far in excess of what she had been using
thus far in their sparring. Before, she had been working her way
through the various styles that his grandfather had been showing her
when Tenchi had arrived. There was none of those present in this
attack. Ranma was holding the weapon as if it were a club, and
there was no finesse at all in her attack.
  There was no time to think, no time to calculate, only time to
react. The bokken in his hands seemed to move on its own, just as
the Tenchi-ken had during the fight with Ryouko the day before.
Only this time, it was Tenchi's own skill that directed it, a skill
unencumbered by his mind, which had interfered seriously with his
sparring up till now. He just couldn't bring himself to fight against
the cute girl across from him. There was nothing cute about the
murderous expression on her face now, however.
  Tenchi's bokken swept down and to the side, brushing
Ranma's weapon out of alignment with its intended targets. One of
Tenchi's hands released its hold on the hilt of his bokken, while his
other hand loosened its grip, allowing the bokken to pivot. The
weapon slid alongside Ranma's, using its force to swing itself
around until the point was to Tenchi's rear. Bringing his hand
forward, Tenchi rammed the butt of his weapon directly into
Ranma's diaphragm. With a sudden gasp of expelled air, Ranma
folded over Tenchi's arm. Less then a second had elapsed since
Ranma started her attack. 

  Tenchi felt horror well up in him as the adrenaline rush left
him. Ranma's slight body lay cradled over his arm, the hilt of his
bokken still pressed into her body. He hastily dropped his weapon
and using both arms eased the wheezing girl over on her back,
suddenly aware once again of how small she really was, a fact that
was generally hidden by her vitality of spirit. 
  'How could he have let himself lose control that badly?'
Feelings of self-loathing cascaded through him as he looked down
into Ranma's flushed face. To his amazement, she looked back up
at him with a pleased smile on her face.
  Gasping between the words, she said, "Now that's more like it.
What the heck was you thinking, holding back before? I'd have got
more practice sparring with a wooden dummy.  Keep this up and
you might even get to keep your balls." 

  "Here you go, Ryo-oh-ki," Sasami said, handing the small
cabbit a large carrot. Ryo-oh-ki gave a happy mewl and dragged it
over to a nice sunny patch of grass, where she happily set to work
demolishing it. Meanwhile, Sasami handed an eager Ryouko a bowl
of rice and a fried fish. 

  
  Ranma stopped talking and started concentrating on recovering
her breath. As she did so, she became aware of a strange, but
comfortable feeling permeating her body. Tenchi's body felt warm
against her's, and his arms seemed to fit around her just right. She
found herself thinking that this was a heck of a lot better then the
way her Pop rattled her around whenever he managed to get a lucky
blow in. 
  Ranma closed her eyes for a second and savored the feeling.
Then, her whole body jerked, and her eyes flew wide open as she
pulled herself out of Tenchi's grasp. Regaining her feet quickly, she
looked at the perplexed Tenchi with wide eyes. Her heart beat
madly in her chest, and a cold sweat broke out on her forehead.
What the heck was she doing? She was a guy. Guy's don't snuggle
up to other guys.
  Ranma felt heat in her cheeks and realized, to her shame, that
she was blushing. In an effort to regain her equilibrium, she spoke
harshly to Tenchi. "I hope you learned good, Tenchi, cuz if you
keep that bullshit, wimp-ass fighting up, I'll be taking that fancy
sword from you. It ought to belong to a real man, not some wuss
who backs off just cuz the person he's fighting's got a pair of tits."

  "Ranma-sama, that is no way for a lady to talk! Especially to
her fiancee!" a fierce voice said, breaking into Ranma's heated
speech. Both Tenchi and Ranma turned around to see a flushed
Ayeka standing at the top of the stairs, breathing slightly harder than
normal after the effort of climbing up the stairs to the shrine.
  After taking a moment to catch her breath, Ayeka continued
her speech. "It is to Tenchi-sama's credit that he treated you like a
lady. It is most unfair of you to chide him for proper behavior. I can
see that your father coming to his senses has happened not a minute
too soon." Ayeka marched across the stone courtyard of the shrine
to where Tenchi and Ranma were frozen in place. 
  
  Ranma looked at Ayeka with an expression of shock on her
face. The princess giving her Pop credit for something! A
suspicious expression crossed her face. What had the old man done
now? She voiced this question to Ayeka. 
  "Your father has gone to see your mother. He has asked that
while he is away, I endeavor to teach you to behave in a manner
befitting your gender and status as a princess of Jurai. 
  "He what!" Ranma shouted in outrage, not sure which had her
more upset; her Pop leaving without her, or his deciding to have her
turned into a lady. After a minute she decided it was the lady thing.
She'd been expecting Pop to run off, even if his leaving without her
was a bit of a shock.
  The lady bit, however, that was a surprise. Despite his stupid
deal to marry her to Tenchi and the promise he'd extracted from her
to guarantee that she'd go through with it, he had never insisted that
she act like a girl. Indeed, he had constantly chided her whenever he
thought she was acting in an unmanly manner. This about face was
a complete shock. Ranma's face suddenly darkened in anger. Pop
was abandoning her. Running off was one thing, the old fart did that
all the time. Ranma would have put it down to his wanting to get
away from a job he hated and away from the danger zone that the
Masaki household had become.  Eventually, he would have come
crawling back when his belly was empty. 
  Asking Ayeka to turn her into a lady, however, that was a
different kettle of fish entirely. He might still come back, likely
would in fact. That wasn't the problem. Her Pop had made it clear
many times that he believed girls were good for only two things,
making a man comfortable and providing him with heirs. That was
their only duty and responsibility in his mind.  By asking Ayeka to
train her, he was showing clearly that he had given up on Ranma
being his heir. He was as good as saying that her only value to him
now was to provide the next generation. She no longer had any
value beyond that. 
  Ranma's rage at Genma was so great, she felt like she was
going to explode. If she had been paying them any attention, she
would have seen Ayeka and Tenchi stepping back as her battle aura
flared to unprecedented levels. Katsuhito watched this flare with an
quirk of his eyebrow. 
  Her anger finally expressed itself in words. "You can go to
hell, Pop!!!" she screamed in the general direction of the bus stop, a
mile and a half away. "I'm a guy, damn you to hell!! I'll see you fry
before I turn into some weak, useless, brain dead, uncoordinated,
soppy girl!!!!"
  Ranma stood panting, her initial anger somewhat diminished
by her outburst. Once again aware of her surroundings, she felt an
itching on the back of her neck. Filled suddenly with a strange sense
of dread, Ranma turned her head slowly around till she was looking
behind herself to where Ayeka was standing. She gulped in fear as
she took in the expression on Ayeka's face. "Ahhh, Ayeka-san, I
didn't . . . I mean I did, but I . . . I --" 
  Ranma got no further.  With a soft hum, several dozen small
duplicates of Ayeka's two guardians snapped into view around her.
There was a crackling of energy, and Ranma suddenly found herself
floating up into the air. "Hey . . ." Ranma started to protest, only to
choke off her words as Ayeka flashed her a look rife with promises
 of pain and suffering. 
  Satisfied that Ranma was well caged, Ayeka turned to Tenchi
and Katsuhito, her face undergoing a transformation as she did so.
She smiled politely at them and said, "I'm sorry to interrupt your
training, but as you can see, Ranma is in great need of some
lessons."
  "Hey, I don . . ."
  Once again, Ranma trailed off as Ayeka whipped her head
around, her expression once again fierce. Ranma found herself
quailing under that look. "Scary," she whimpered in a small voice.
  Ayeka once more turned a pleasant countenance toward
Tenchi and his grandfather. "Please, have a good day," she said to
them, then shouted, "Kamidake, Azaka."
  With a loud "Hai!" the two guardians appeared in a blur of
motion. Ayeka nodded toward the captured Ranma, and the two
upright logs took positions on either side of her. 
  "Are the repair drones done?" Ayeka asked. 
  "Yes, princess," Kamidake and Azaka confirmed.
  "In that case, you may transport Ranma-sama to the
bathroom," she told them. She looked at Ranma, and said, "You
may wash off the sweat of your training, and when I get there, we
will try on your new clothes. Is that all right with you?" Her eyes
bored into the redhead's like lasers, making it clear what answer she
expected from her captive.
  Whatever thoughts might have been going through Ranma's
head stayed there. She numbly nodded her head in assent and then
sent a beseeching glance toward Tenchi. Too late for him to do
anything however, as with a flash, she and the guardians were gone.
    Ayeka gave a polite nod of her head to Tenchi and Katsuhito
and started down the stairs at a slow dignified pace. 
  
  Tenchi stared after her, and as he did so, a vision of Ranma
floated up in his mind. Just before she had vanished, it had seemed
to him that she had turned a pleading look toward him, one that
begged for a rescue. He started to move toward the stairs, intending
to plead Ranma's case with Ayeka. He was not sure what, if
anything, he could accomplish, but he was unable to resist the
entreaty that had been present in those large liquid eyes.
  A whack across the head from his grandfather's bokken
stopped him in his tracks. "Ouch, grandfather!" He protested. 
  "Leave the girls to themselves, Tenchi. You can peak at
Ranma in the bath some other time. You lost five out of six matches
with an untrained girl. You obviously need a refresher. Let us start
with the basic kata. Begin!"
  Tenchi had no choice in the matter.  He didn't even bother
protesting his innocence. Instead, he assumed a ready position.  But
while he appeared outwardly calm, he found he could not help
worrying about Ranma. He had never seen the Princess acting so
fierce toward anyone except Ryouko, and Ranma was much more
fragile than the former space pirate. He hoped she was going to be
all right.
  
  Ayeka opened the door to the bathroom to hear Ranma
remonstrating with the two Guardians. Indeed, she had backed poor
Azaka halfway up the wall till his top was pressed firmly against the
ceiling, and looking like he would be delighted to keep going, if
only he could. "You perverts, how can you stand there and expect a
poor innocent girl to take a bath in front of you? Ain't you got no
respect? Ain't you gentlemen?"
  "You may leave now," Ayeka said, and Azaka did so, so fast
that Ranma's hair was pulled out straight by the slipstream.
Kamidake followed his partner, but at a more decorous pace. 
Ayeka caught the back of Ranma's shirt as she tried to leave as
well. "Where do you think you are going?"
  "Well, you said we could leave . . ." Ranma trailed off at the
look Ayeka gave her. "Okay, okay," she said in a weak voice and,
giving in to the inevitable, stripped her clothes off. She shuddered
as Ayeka dumped a bucket of cold water over her head and meekly
began to scrub down.
  Ayeka stood nearby, watching to make sure Ranma did not
skimp in any way. As she did so, she thought back to the situation
she had found when she had arrived at the shrine; Ranma cradled in
Tenchi's arms, her face giving every sign of contentment. And then
that expression had vanished as Ranma had pushed herself away
from Tenchi. It was not the first time Ayeka had seen signs that
Ranma was not indifferent to Tenchi.  There were the times she
pulled that hag, Ryouko away from him, for instance. Ayeka had
also seen the small girl reject those feelings before as well.
  It was clear to Ayeka that no matter how much Ranma
protested the fact, she was clearly smitten with Tenchi. It was only
the barbaric upbringing by her idiot of a father that kept her from
realizing her feelings. Those walls needed to be broken down. She
would never dream of forcing Ranma to do anything she truly felt
degrading, but this was a case of Ranma not understanding her own
heart. For that reason, Ayeka felt justified in taking some very
strong steps. 

  If Sasami had been there to see the look on her sisters face, she
would have recognized it. Every now and then Ayeka got a notion
in her head, and absolutely nothing would stand between herself
and realizing it. She had such a look when she decided she was
going to find her brother, a task that had eluded the entire Juraian
navy. If Sasami had been there in the bathroom, she would have
told Ranma to run, run and never look back. But she wasn't.

  Ayeka thought on what steps to take as Ranma continued to
wash off the sweat and grime of her training. Deep in thought, she
turned on the tap and began to fill the rinse bucket.  As she did she
asked in a very serious tone of voice, "Ranma, could I ask you a
question?"
  Ranma looked up, peering at her through soapy lather. "Sure,
Ayeka-san. What do you want to know?"
  "As I understand it, you swore on your honor that you would
marry Tenchi and have children to continue your family line. Is that
right?"
  Ranma grimaced.  "Yeah, the old man conned me pretty good.
Should know better than to believe anything Pop says or does."
  "You don't think much of your father?"
  "Why should I?" Ranma said in disgust. She looked at Ayeka
and added, "He's as crooked as a snake, and don't even know the
meaning of honor."
  "I see," Ayeka said thoughtfully, an idea firming in her mind
as she lifted the bucket up in preparation for rinsing Ranma off.
"And tell me. How long after you promised on your honor to marry
Tenchi did you start thinking of ways to get out of the agreement?" 
  
  "Close your mouth, dear. You'll get soap in it," Ayeka said, as
she dumped the bucket over Ranma's head.

  Ranma was still in a daze from Ayeka's question when they
arrived at their bedroom. Was she really no better than Pop? That
was the sort of thing he would do, skipping out on a vow of honor
seconds after making it. Ranma's preoccupation was so great, she
didn't really take in the clothes someone had laid out on her futon.
Several dresses and various other feminine garb, including panties
and bras, were neatly arranged in order of size.
  Ranma sometimes thought that to her Pop, honor was what
you did when someone was watching. That was how he acted,
anyway. How he talked was another matter entirely. To hear him
talk, honor was all a man had. If he didn't have honor, he had
nothing, was nothing. That was the attitude Ranma had been raised
with. And even when she had grown up and realized that Genma
talked the talk much better than he walked the walk, she had taken
pride in the fact that she, unlike him, took her honor with great
seriousness. 
  Or so she had thought. Now it looked like somewhere,
sometime, she had turned into her Pop. The idea was not a
comfortable one. She turned to Ayeka, a worried look on her face.
The princess, as far as Ranma could tell, was someone who truly
understood honor. "Ayeka-san, do you think I should marry Tenchi?
I'm not really a girl. Isn't it lying to him to go through with it?"
There was a hopeful tone in her voice, but her worried eyes
betrayed her fears of what the answer would be.
  
  This was the sort of question Ayeka had been hoping for. Both
because it showed Ranma had faith in her, and because it gave her a
chance to start repairing the damage Genma had done to Ranma.
She looked Ranma straight in the eye, and said, "We both know that
whatever you might once have been, you are now a girl. You can
have babies. I can think of no purer proof of what you are." Ranma
flinched visibly at that, but Ayeka bulled ahead. "That means you
can physically carry out your promise, and therefore, I think you
should fulfill your vow."

  Ranma had been halfway expecting the answer she got, but it
still sent a shock through her system. Her entire body seemed to
slump, and her already small form seemed to shrink in on itself. Her
head hung in dejection, but despite all that, she made no protest to
Ayeka's pronouncement.  She was not her Pop. Her honor meant
something to her, and she would keep it, no matter what the cost.

  To Ayeka, a member of a royal family, arranged marriages for
political reasons were the norm. She had loved her brother and had
looked forward to the marriage her parents had arranged between
the two of them, but even if that had not been the case, she would
have done her duty. 
  That did not mean she believed Ranma should marry someone
she disliked, or found disgusting. If Ayeka had not believed that
Ranma had genuine, if deeply suppressed, feelings for Tenchi, she
would never have answered her question the way she did. 
  That did not mean, however, that she thought Ranma was
ready to marry Tenchi here and now. Such a course would be a
disaster. Ranma was far from being the lady she needed to become
in order to properly fulfill her duties toward Tenchi. That was why,
after depressing Ranma with her first answer, she set out to ease her
mind.
  Ayeka reached over and lifted Ranma's chin, causing the
slumping girl to look at her. "Of course, it's out of the question that
you marry Tenchi-sama soon. You are still a child, after all." 

  Mixed emotions surged through Ranma; euphoria at the
prospect of putting off marrying Tenchi, and indignation at being
called a child. As that was the last thing Ayeka said, that was the
first thing she replied to. "I'm not a child!" she protested, and then
almost bit her tongue as she realized she was arguing for an early
wedding. 'Stupid, stupid, keep your mouth shut you baka,' she
thought to herself. She looked up at Ayeka with dread in her eyes,
convinced, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, that
Ayeka would suddenly turn into a wimp and back off on her
statement.
  
  Ayeka smiled at Ranma's protestation and asked a question,
seemingly out of the blue. "Ranma, how old are you?" 
  "Huu? I'm sixteen. I had my birthday about two weeks after I
was cursed."
  "Well, there. You see? On Jurai you would be far too young to
get married legally," Ayeka said with a smile, crossing her fingers
behind her back. 

  While it was true that sixteen was an unthinkable age to get
married on Jurai, it was because at that age the average Juraian girl
would not have even reached puberty. Ayeka saw no need to go into
that, however.  Instead, she pressed home her point with Ranma. 
  
  "As you are Juraian, you are much too young to even think of
marrying Tenchi-sama. I'm afraid I simply could not allow it."
Ayeka paused and gave the impression of being deep in thought.
Finally, she nodded and said, "There is no choice. You will have to
wait till you are older. At least two years."

  Ranma felt euphoria filling her body, but she managed to keep
her wits. "Gee.  I don't know. Seems you are right about me still
being a kid. After all, this body might only be fourteen or so. Maybe
I should wait till I'm as old as you are. I don't mind waiting ten or
twelve years hardly at all."

  Ayeka's expression became slightly strained, but with some
effort she kept the smile on her face. "That was not quite what I
meant. In relative terms, given the difference in our aging rates, in
two years you will be as old as I am. That is more than enough time
for you to mature and to learn to adapt to your new situation."
Ayeka gave Ranma a stern glance.  "That does not mean that you
can delay your training in the female arts. Promise me that you will
try your best."
  Ranma nodded her head.  While shorter then she might have
wished for, the pleasure of a two-year stay of execution would have
made here agree to just about anything. A lot could happen in two
years. Not, she told herself firmly, that she was still trying to duck
her promise. She wasn't her Pop. She'd made that promise, and
she'd stick to it.
  She'd show her stupid father what honor was all about.  The
stupid old man wanted it both ways. He wanted her to stay a boy in
spirit, but still marry some guy so the family line would continue.
Well, boys didn't marry boys, she'd given her word, and she was
stuck with it, but all that meant was that she was going to have to
become a girl in truth. It was a hard thing, but honor was a harsh
taskmaster. Ranma felt very noble and self-sacrificing.  She made a
vow to herself. She could do anything she set her mind to, and she
was going to become the best girl in the world. 
  That is, unless she managed to get the cure she needed from
the Musk. Then all bets were off. She'd be back to being a boy, and
boys don't marry boys. It wouldn't be like she was ducking out on
her promise, after all. It just wouldn't be possible to do it was all.
She smirked inside. Yep, a lot could happen in two years. She
smiled wildly as she hummed a little tune in her head. 'Never going
to marry no boy. Never going to marry no boy.'

  "Now that we have settled that," Ayeka said, oblivious to the
thoughts running through Ranma's mind, "let's take a look at the
clothes Tenchi-sama's father picked out for you. I think you'll look
very nice in this green one."
  Ranma groaned inwardly, her just-made vow to take her
female training seriously wilting under the force of reality, but
having won so much, she was prepared to give up a little. And the
truth be known, she was starting to find the idea of wearing
Tenchi's old clothing a little disturbing. The knowledge that the
shirt she had been wearing had once been worn by Tenchi had
started to make her feel more than a little weird. 
  Without any further urging from Ayeka, Ranma picked up a
bra and slipped it on backwards. Fastening the catch in the back of
it, she pulled it around her body till she could tuck herself into it.
Only then did Ranma become aware of Ayeka looking at her with
surprise.
  "Ranma-chan?" Ranma flinched. "You've worn a bra before?"
  Ranma sweated as she realized she'd given herself away.
'Damn, pay attention to what you're doing stupid.' She gave a
nervous laugh. "Yeah, sort of. A lady near where we were camping
a month or so ago gave me one. Said something about her son was
bad enough as it was without that sort of temptation around. She
was a weird lady.  When I asked where her son was so I could keep
away from him, she said he was with his girlfriend in her flying
saucer. You ever hear anything so silly . . ." 
  Ranma trailed off as she suddenly realized who she was
talking to. She gave a small self-conscious laugh and continued. 
"Anyway, I was curious, and I'd been having a bit of trouble with
them, my tit . . . breasts I mean, so I tried it. Took me a while to
work out how to put it on, but that's why I know how. Not that I'm
no expert or nothing," she hastened to assure Ayeka.
  "But you weren't wearing one when you came here, and you
had none in your bags."
  "Yeah, Pop caught me wearing it. He burned it and gave me
hell about how I was being weak, and giving in to the curse, and
that I was a boy, not a girl."
  Ayeka fumed - how like the man! "Well, you're to wear one of
those from now on. Proper ladies do not go without. Now, let's get
you dressed. Have you worn a dress before?"
  "No, that would have felt too strange. I mean the bra helped
my martial arts by keeping my tit . . . breasts under control, but a
dress would have just got in the way, and anyway, Pop would have
caught on too soon. I got away with the bra for two weeks before he
found out."
  As she had been talking, Ranma had been examining the
selection of dresses on the bed. They didn't look _ too _ bad. Her
eyes fell on something black and lacy, and she picked it up, only to
find that it was actually two pieces. She examined them curiously,
and then snorted. "Man, I thought Tenchi's dad was supposed to be
smart. Looks like he got took. These must have been second-hand
or something.  Half the material is gone."
  Ayeka who had been standing beside Ranma, deciding which
of the three dresses on the bed to put on her, looked at the objects in
Ranma's hands and suddenly blushed crimson. She snatched the
matching panties and bra from the surprised redhead and quickly
stuffed them in a random drawer. Ranma blinked in surprise at
Ayeka's reaction and asked, "What's the matter?  Why'd you stuff
them in there?  It ain't like anyone is going to ever wear them. What
with all those holes in them. You might as well trash them."
  Ayeka just blushed deeper and refused to talk, instead holding
up a light green dress and holding it against Ranma. She was going
to have to have a talk with Tenchi's father about what was
appropriate wear for a young girl. The bra and panties in the drawer
were never going to grace Ranma's body. She changed track
slightly and rethought her position; well, maybe on her wedding
night.

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

  It was some time later that Tenchi made his way down the
stairs, his body aching in every place it was possible to do so, and in
a few places he would have said it was not possible as well. 
  The workout his grandfather had put him through had been as
intensive as any he had ever experienced. It had been more than
sufficient to drive his worries about Ranma out of his mind for the
duration. Now, however, his thoughts had once again turned to the
look of entreaty she had sent him at the shrine. Even though he
knew in his heart that Ayeka would do Ranma no harm, he could
not help but feel guilt over not doing something to help her. He'd
grown rather fond of protecting her, he realized.

  His vision was suddenly obscured by the face of someone else
who was clearly in distress. Tenchi pulled back in shock as Sasami
looked up at him, her eyes large and luminous with unshed tears. 
  "Tenchi-niichan, you're mean!" The tears that filled Sasami's
eyes spilled out and trickled down her cheeks. "Oneechan and
Ranma-oneechan didn't eat my breakfast, Nobuyuki-sama was too
busy with Azaka and Kamidake to eat, and you and Grandfather
didn't come. No one wanted my breakfast but Ryouko- oneechan
and Ryo-oh-ki. You're all mean!"

  "Ahhh," Tenchi murmured, rubbing the back of his head with
his hand. He dropped to one knee so his eyes were level with
Sasami's. "I'm sorry, Sasami. I was so busy with Grandfather, I
forgot." His stomach gave a rumble, causing him to give a small
laugh. "But I'm very hungry now, so I'll gladly eat whatever you
have, even if it's cold."
  Sasami's face screwed up in misery, and tears streamed down
her face as she cried out, "But there's nothing left. Your father
asked me to cook all the food I could find so it wouldn't spoil
before the house was fixed. And Ryouko-oneechan ate everything."

  Sasami's words were punctuated by a load burp from nearby. 
Tenchi looked over to see a rather bloated Ryouko sprawled on the
ground, numerous empty containers surrounding her. His stomach
once again rumbled, and it was his cheeks the tears now flowed
down. "I see," he said in a weak voice. "I guess I'll have to go into
town to get some more supplies, then." He groaned as he thought of
the long walk and the even longer bus ride ahead of him.
  Ayeka's voice came from behind Tenchi. "That sounds like a
good idea. Ranma and I need to buy some supplies as well."
  Tenchi turned, a smile on his face, intending to express the
fact he would be happy with the company. His voice died in his
throat when he spied Ayeka's companion. Not even the self-
conscious expression on her face could detract from the vision
Ranma presented.

  There was nothing spectacular about the pale green dress
Ranma was wearing. Or in the way her unbound hair fell in a
cascade around her shoulders and down her back. The ribbons that
held her hair back from her face could be bought for a dime-a-piece
in any store and were in no way unique. The black shoes on her feet
were perfectly ordinary, and the white socks with the decorative
tops could be seen on thousands of school girls. None of the things
she was wearing were in any way out of the ordinary, but somehow,
when taken as a whole, along with Ranma's natural beauty, they
created an image that could stop traffic.

  Beside him, Sasami expressed Tenchi's opinion to perfection.
"Kawaii."
  To Tenchi's surprise Ranma blushed slightly, and said, "Yeah,
I clean up pretty good, don't I?"
  "Oooohhhhhhhhh, how beautiful, how wonderful, how lucky
you are Tenchi!" Nobuyuki popped up with a camera in his hand,
the lens inches from Ranma's cleavage.  Ranma reared back in
shock. A second later, Nobuyuki was a faint dot in the sky as he
headed toward the lake. Ranma stood there panting, her hand still
raised in the follow-through to the punch that had sent Tenchi's
father sailing. 
  "Geez, what's with that guy?!" Ranma shouted, clearly rattled.
Ayeka gave a cough and Ranma wilted. "Ah, I mean, Oh _ he _
startled _ me.  I _ was _ so _ scared." Ayeka nodded in satisfaction. 
  Beside Tenchi, Sasami big-sweated and said in a soft voice,
"Scary."
  Tenchi nodded his head in agreement. Out of the corner of his
mouth, he asked. "Sasami, do you have pod people on Jurai?"


  A half-hour walk and a fifteen-minute wait later, they boarded
the bus to town. Their party consisted of Tenchi, Ranma, Sasami,
Ryo-oh-ki, and somehow, having gotten himself out of the lake and
into dry clothes in time, Nobuyuki.  This far out on the route, the
bus was mostly empty, only a few dozing boys heading into the city
for a night on the town. 
  Ayeka had arranged, in a not-too-subtle manner, for Ranma
and Tenchi to sit on the rear bench, while everyone else sat at the
front, with the exception of Ryo-oh-ki, who was currently curled up
on Ranma's lap sleeping off her heavy breakfast. 
  Ayeka was taking nothing for granted, as Nobuyuki found out
as he tried to get a little closer to the couple. Tenchi winced at the
discharge of energy as his father ran smack into one of Ayeka's
force fields. The bus driver, understandably startled by a lightning
strike inside his bus, jerked his head around to see what had
happened. This caused him to swerve the bus from side to side as he
spotted Nobuyuki's slightly charred form standing in the middle of
the bus. As he watched in shock, Nobuyuki puffed out a cloud of
black smoke and shakily made his way back to his seat, holding
onto the seat backs in order to avoid being tossed about by the bus
as it continued to swerve. 
  The bus's gyrations caused the unprepared Ranma, her hands
filled with sleeping cabbit, to slide across the seat and firmly up
against Tenchi.  Sitting together, Sasami and Ayeka were also
tossed about, but they managed to stay in their seat, bracketed as
they were on three sides, and having their hands free. Tenchi,
braced in the corner, was able to get his hands up in time to catch
Ranma.

  Once again, Ranma suddenly found herself pressed against
Tenchi, his arms partially wrapped around her. She suppressed her
first urge, which was to deck him. Girls did not deck boys for things
that weren't their fault. Besides, she had her hands full of cabbit. 
That prevented her from acting on her first instinct. Her initial
response having been suppressed, she had to think, which delayed
any further action from her for several minutes. During that time
she became aware of the same pleasant, warm, and safe sensation
she had felt at the shrine.
  She flinched as if Tenchi's hands had suddenly become red
hot and she practically levitated away from him. Her face twisted up
in a scowl, and one hand closed into a fist. Tenchi flinched, closing
his eyes in anticipation. Nothing happened. He opened his eyes and
saw that Ranma had lowered her hand. It was still clenched into a
white-knuckled fist, however. 


  The bus driver began to slow the bus, intending to get to the
bottom of this. It would be his head if one of his passengers were
electrocuted by a short in the bus' wiring.  Ayeka, pleased with the
way things were going, did not want the two in the back interrupted.
She called out to the bus driver, "Keep going!" He ignored her and
kept braking. 
  "I said, keep _  going _ !" This time Ayeka spoke in a tone of
voice that the servants at the palace had long ago learned meant,
'take cover'. The bus driver did not know Ayeka that well, but the
tone of her voice caused him to look toward her. Ayeka glared
daggers at him. Suddenly, several small objects appeared out of
nowhere. He looked at them in shock, which turned to outright
panic as small bolts of lighting arced between them. Remembering
the charred figure in the middle of the bus, he suddenly lost all
inclination to stop. Facing front, he got the bus back up to speed,
and sighed with relief when a look in the rear view mirror showed
that they, whatever they were, were gone. Soon, he was once again
cruising at eighty kilometers-an-hour, glad that he'd escaped the
explosion.
 
  Ranma seemed to be having an argument with herself,
speaking softly, but in intense tones. After a few moments, she
looked up at Tenchi with a strained smile on her face. "Tenchan,
you really shouldn't be so forward. After all, we're not married
yet." She gave a high-pitched giggle and lowered her eyes back
down to the slumbering Ryo-oh-ki. 
  Tenchi sweated; this was starting to get very scary. It was time
to finally follow his grandfather's instructions about being a friend
to Ranma. Maybe he could find out what the heck was wrong with
her. To that end he cleared his throat and said, "I enjoyed sparring
with you this afternoon. I hope I didn't disappoint you too much."
  "Oh Tenchan.  You could never disappoint me. It was so nice
of you to let me win all those times. Being a poor weak girl and all.
I hope you weren't too mad at me when I got all angry and
unladylike. Tee hee."
  Tenchi stared at her in shock. Had she just said Tee hee? Yes,
she had. Tenchi's face hardened, and he took Ranma by the
shoulders. "Ranma, stop this!" he ordered. Holding Ranma firmly in
place, he looked around the bus and called out at the top of his
voice, "Ryouko, I don't know how you did this, but I want you to
stop right now! Bring back the real Ranma this instant!"

  Several miles away, Ryouko gave a powerful sneeze that woke
her from her after-banquet nap. Sitting up and rubbing her eyes she
looked around. "Tenchi! Sasami! Red! . . .  Sourface? Where the
heck is everyone?"

  Back on the bus, Tenchi was still yelling, which was drawing
looks from the few other passengers and a large sweat drop from the
bus driver, who wanted nothing more than to make it the last few
miles to his final stop of the day. He pressed down on the gas,
sending the large bus rocketing down the back road with predictable
results.
  Sasami and Ayeka grabbed the seat in front of them as they
bounced higher and higher. The other passengers did similarly,
several crying out to the bus driver to slow down.

  Tenchi, gripping Ranma by the shoulders and looking around
wildly for a certain space pirate he knew had to be here, was, like
Ranma earlier, caught off guard by the bus's sudden gyrations. He
lost his balance and fell forward, pushing Ranma flat against the bus
seat and settling firmly down on top of her. Ryo-oh-ki, who had
finally woken, gave a startled mewl and just barely escaped being
crushed as she leapt from Ranma's arms.

  Ranma had been surprised by Tenchi's sudden shouting and
had wondered if Ryouko had maybe done something to the boy
while she had not been around to protect him, when he lurched
forward. Tenchi's actions were very similar to certain male type
behavior that Ranma had become far too familiar with for her
liking. For some reason, perverted boys, and men, seemed to
consider her the perfect target. Up till now one of the things she
most liked about Tenchi was that he had never once tried to grab a
cheap feel. Now suddenly, out of the blue, he seemed to be making
up for lost time.  She had time for just one quick thought. 'Geez, if
I'd know acting like a perfect girl was going to do this to the poor
guy, I'd never have agreed to go along with Ayeka.'

    The combination of him suddenly pressing her down on the
seat and then falling on top of her, joined with the sudden jolt of
fear that Ryo-oh-ki's mewl sent through her, was more than
adequate to stop her from even thinking of continuing her version of
girl-like behavior.
  With a scream of, "Get the heck off of me, you pervert!" she
laid a lovely right cross to his chin. Tenchi was thrown across the
bus and against the wall. For a second he lay there, eyes glazed,
then they focused and he gave a shout of joy. "Ranma, you're
back!!" 
  Ranma eeped in dismay as Tenchi suddenly rocketed across
the bus and picked her up in a bone-cracking hug. At the same
moment, Ryouko, who had homed in on the group via her link with
Ryo-oh-ki, suddenly phased through the back of the bus with a cry
of, "Tenchi, you're so mean.  How could you . . . What the hell is
going on here?!! Red, what the hell do you think you're doing?!!"
  "What's it look like, you old mummy? I'm trying to get this
pervert off of me. What's it to you?"
  "Oh Ranma! I'm so glad you're back!"
  "What? Tenchi! You let her go right now. She's not even
interested in you. Come hug me like that."
  "What do you mean I'm not interested in him? He's my
fiancee. You keep your grubby paws off him you mummy."
  "How dare you! What right do you have to keep Tenchi, when
you'll never give him the love he needs?" 
  "Ha!  Shows how much you know. I got honor, you hear? I
said I'd marry him and that's just what I'm going to do. Hey!
 Tenchi, you pervert! Watch the hands!" 
  "Oh, Ranma. I'm so glad you're all right."
  The rest of the conversation was mercifully drowned out as the
rear of the bus became ground zero. Ayeka, who was being crushed
by the small mass of humanity trying to get as far away from the
rear as possible, sweated and muttered to herself, "I guess it's going
to take a lot more than clothes to make Ranma a girl."
   The bus driver tried his level best to push the gas pedal
through the floor.


  Much later, after a rather eventful, if predictable, day of
shopping, they got back home. After bandaging up their exteriors
and getting some food in their interiors, they gathered in the living
room to relax in whatever manner appealed to them.
  Tenchi slumped on the couch, his legs stretched out in front of
him and English textbook in his hands. It was only a matter of time
before he would have to begin attending school again. He didn't
want to be too far behind when he did. He was dressed in his usual
black pants and white shirt.
  Ranma sat cross-legged on the couch beside Tenchi, a bundle
of martial art mangas between them. Ranma had changed from her
dress into an outfit she had bought while shopping with Ayeka.  A
blouse with wooden ties that was so green, it might as well have
been flourescent was tucked into a pair of baggy black pants that
were also unique, color-wise. They were not one shade of black but
rather were smeared haphazardly with several; from a dusty pale
gray, to one that was so dark, hints of purple were present. Ranma
had found them in a bargain bin, along with several hundred others,
all exactly the same. She had reacted with something close to glee at
the discovery they were cheap enough that she could buy three sets
with her limited pocket money. 
  It had taken a bit of effort on her part to convince Ayeka, but
by pointing out that she needed clothes she did not have to worry
about damaging during her training sessions, she had gotten the
princess to agree with her choice.
  Both garments were loose fitting, and while they could not
hide Ranma's figure, they did work quite well in minimizing it. 
Ryo-oh-ki was laying in the nest provided by Ranma's crossed legs. 
While perusing the latest adventures of the Dragonball gang with
one hand, Ranma evoked pleasurable murmurs by stroking Ryo-oh-
ki's tummy with the other.
  Ayeka was sitting in one of the large easy chairs combing
Sasami's hair, the younger girl was perched on a footstool in front
of her older sister. Ayeka occasionally glanced at Ranma's clothes
with some vexation. She was not sure which she found more
annoying: the fact that she had not been able to argue successfully
against buying them; that the outfits might as well have been sacks
for all the good they did Ranma's figure, or that Ranma had
selected three of the outfits, all exactly alike. Looking at the eye-
straining color of the shirt and the blotchy black of the pants, Ayeka
had no problem guessing why they had been so cheap. She was just
glad that Ranma had only been able to afford three pairs. The way
she went through clothes, they would not last long. 
  Ayeka was also mildly annoyed that Ranma had rejected her
advice on which outfits to buy. There had been tops available in
several different colors, if not as cheap, or garish as the ones Ranma
had bought. But, when Ayeka had suggested several different tops,
or maybe some outfits of a different style altogether, the redhead
had looked at her as if she were speaking an alien language. Even
when she had offered to pay for them herself and pointed out the
advantages of mixing and matching, Ranma had declined.
  In Ranma's own words, the outfits were comfortable, cheap,
and easy to move in. What difference did it make what color they
were? Ayeka sighed.  Ranma had made such a good start this
morning but she had rapidly backslid after the incident on the bus. 
  Ayeka's jaw firmed as she vowed to continue the fight. She
was not going to give up. Ranma would become a lady! She vowed
this on her honor as a princess of Jurai. Ayeka took one more look
at Ranma and added a rider to her vow. Ranma would also learn
fashion sense, no matter how painful the acquiring was. 
  Behind Tenchi and Ranma, Ryouko was half laying, half
floating, atop the back of the couch. Every now and then she would
reach down a hand, intending to twirl a finger in Tenchi's hair.
Curiously, every time she attempted this, Ranma would apparently
reach a particularly exciting part in her manga, causing her to shoot
her hands out in imitation of the action inside.  Somehow, her
upthrust hands always managed to strike Ryouko's hand, knocking
it away from Tenchi. Ranma would apologize and go back to
petting Ryo-oh-ki and reading her manga, while Ryouko would go
back to waiting for Ranma's guard to drop. They both seemed to be
enjoying the impromptu sparring match.
  If this behavior seemed a bit mild for the two of them, Tenchi
and Ayeka had, speaking to the person they each had the most
influence on, laid down the law. They had expressed in no uncertain
terms how unhappy they would be if the newly refurbished home
was destroyed. Any fighting in the house would be met with the
most extreme displeasure. Neither Ryouko nor Ranma wished to
annoy their respective lecturers, so they had promised to be good. It
was, however, possibly too much to expect them to live in perfect
peace, hence their current activity. No doubt they would start
making faces at each other soon.
  The final members of the group, Nobuyuki and Katsuhito,
were each seated in an easy chair. Nobuyuki had his favorite
camcorder on the floor beside his chair, ready to snatch up if either
Tenchi or Ranma looked like doing anything romantic. At the
moment, this seemed unlikely and so most of his attention was on
the TV, which was turned down low so as not to distract Tenchi
from his studying. 
  Katsuhito was reading a letter, the one Genma had written, and
that Ayeka had finally remembered to deliver. Genma had been a
bit more certain of the tone he wanted to take with Katsuhito, and as
a result, this effort was a great deal more legible then Ayeka's had
been. Also, a lot longer.

  *Master, I beseech you, take Ranma under your wing. I know
she's only a girl, but she has some small talent and is currently the
repository for all I have managed to teach her. Till I can pass that
knowledge on to her son she is the sole repository of the hopes and
dreams of the Saotome School of Anything-Goes Martial Arts. She
is lazy I admit, but I'm sure a master of your stature can drive some
small amount of knowledge into her. 
  Don't be afraid to be hard on her. She needs to be tough. Is it
not said that the lot of a martial artist is not an easy one?  I ask only
that you keep her away from her mother. It gives me great pain to
speak ill of a member of your family, but I fear Nodoka's reaction
when she discovers Ranma is not the son Nodoka supposes her to
be. Please give me time to work on my wife. If she should show up
without me, hide Ranma from her. It could very well save the girl's
life. 
  On the subject of Ranma's life, I would also ask that you do all
you can to keep Ranma from going back to China. She has told me
of your tale, but even if the so-called cure existed, it would do her
little good as she is not cursed as I am, but merely suffering from a
delusion. If she goes back to China she is as good as dead. I know I
can trust you to keep her from throwing her life away.  She is still
young and foolish.  She must bear the heir to the Saotome school
before she can take such a risk.
  I realize this is a great deal to ask of someone as important as
you are, but I remind you that Ranma is family and will sometime
in the future be the mother of the child that will carry on your
family style as well as mine.  In her lies the hopes of both our clans.
Protect that legacy.  Keep her alive and healthy.*
  Katsuhito shook his head in dismay. Some things just never
seemed to change. Genma was still able to shovel it with the best of
them. One fact, however did distress him. Even with  knowing the
man as he did, Genma had still managed to get through his guard
and touch a tender spot.
  Katsuhito had outlived the many children he had fathered.
While he still had their descendants such as Tenchi and Ranma
around, the loss of each one had hurt him deeply. Ranma, with her
resemblance to Xian Pu, had opened old wounds. The thought of
her going off to face the Musk, to try and attain something that
might not even exist filled his heart with sorrow. He had learned the
hard way that his children had to grow up and make their own
decisions, but that did not make it any easier. 
  He was more tempted then he cared to admit to keep Ranma
here until she grew reconciled with her new body. It would be easy
enough. He could simply tell her that she would not be ready to
leave until she performed some obscure feat to prove her skill.  It
would be child's play for him to come up with something that
looked simple, but was in reality incredibly difficult. Hmm, maybe
that trick he'd played on little Po, 'snatch the pebble from my hand
and you will be ready to become a great warrior.' The last he'd
heard of the youngster, he'd entered a monastery. 
  Katsuhito shook his head in regret. No. It would not do.  Just
as it would not do for him to accompany Ranma to the Musk
empire. 
  While in this day and age he was unlikely to become a god, as
his Aunt Amaterasu had become a goddess, he could still do
irreparable harm to human development if he interfered too much.
His just living on this planet was risk enough. Taking part in
Ranma's adventure could have consequences up to and including a
war between China and Japan. Lord knows he had seen wars start
over smaller, and sillier, things. 
  No, difficult as it was, he would have to let Ranma find her
own destiny. For his part, he would have to be content with training
her as best he was able.  Turning slightly in his chair, he called out,
"Ranma." When the redhead looked his way he flicked his wrist and
sent the letter spinning across the room to where she was seated.
  Ranma caught the document between two fingers and looked
at it curiously. Her eyes widened slightly as she saw it was from her
father. For the next several minutes she read, pausing every now
and then to deflect a new move by Ryouko or to snort a derisive
 comment about her father.
  Ranma, with one last expression of disdain, laid the letter
down and addressed Katsuhito. "The old fart never changes. You
watch.  He'll be crawling back here with an empty belly any day
now." Ranma then directed a challenging look at Katsuhito. "So,
you going to do like the old man asked? Keep me all safe and
secure so I can be a baby factory?" Beside Ranma, Tenchi blushed.
  Katsuhito returned Ranma's look with one of mildness. "I
promised to train you," he said, and then just looked at Ranma
expectantly, as if that statement covered everything.
  Ranma looked at him skeptically. "So, you ain't going to string
me along, telling me I'm not good enough yet?"
  Nearly a millennium of training enabled Katsuhito to keep a
perfectly straight face as he said, "Of course not, when you think
you're ready, you may go."
  The skepticism did not fade from Ranma's face. "Oh, and
what if you don't think I'm ready? You're just going to wave bye I
suppose?"
  Katsuhito rubbed his chin, as if puzzling out this conundrum.
"That is a hard question. I do have a certain obligation as your
master to make sure you don't do anything too stupid."
  "Stupid?!" Ranma growled, but before she could say anything
else, Katsuhito continued in his matter of fact voice.
  "I suppose, in that case, I'll just have to break your leg."
  The rest of the people in the room joined Ranma in a facefault.
  Ranma was the first to regain her feet. She looked at Katsuhito
with anger in her eyes, which slowly faded, till she was smirking at
him. "All right. I guess if I let an old fart like you break my leg, I
ain't ready."
  "That's right." Katsuhito nodded in agreement. "A frail old
man like me should be no match for a healthy young girl like you."
He gave a mock cough into his hand and thumped his chest. "As a
matter of fact, lately the chill night air has been giving me some
problems." He leered at Ranma in a very close mimicry of
Nobuyuki's lecherous look. "I don't suppose you'd like to start
sleeping up at the temple? An old priest needs a nice young shrine
maiden to keep him warm at night and to rub mustard on his chest.
I'd be happy to give you extra training as payment."
  "Grandfather!" Ayeka protested, blushing red. She reached out
and covered Sasami's ears with her hand. 
  Ryouko chortled at Ayeka's reaction, she'd been enjoying the
byplay, especially as Ranma's distraction had let her finally get her
hand close enough to run her fingers through Tenchi's hair.
  Annoyed, Sasami pulled herself free. Giving Ayeka an
annoyed look, she turned to Katsuhito and asked, "Can I be a Shrine
Maiden, too? I promise I'll look after you very well."  
  This time, only Sasami remained standing as everyone else in
the room collapsed. Even Katsuhito was not immune. Ayeka
bounced back to her feet, her face so red it glowed. She grabbed
Sasami by the hand. "Is that the time? Oh my goodness! You should
have been in bed ages ago, Sasami! You've had a long hard day!
Come along, no arguments, a young girl needs her rest!"
  "But I want to be a shrine maiden," floated back to the
remaining people as Sasami and Ayeka disappeared up the stairs.
  Ranma continued looking in the direction they had gone for
some time before turning back to Katsuhito. "Too bad, old man. 
Looks like you miss out. Pity.  Would have been a good match.
She's just a kid, and you're in your second childhood." 
  Behind Ranma, Ryouko had taken advantage of all the face-
faulting to somehow end up in Tenchi's lap, much to his apparent
discomfort. 
  Katsuhito seemed to be giving Ranma's comments serious
thought, but after a moment, he shook his head. "Sasami is kind and
makes a good meal, but she's too skinny. When you get to my age,
you want something soft and cushy to lay your head on. A nice
plump girl like you is just the ticket."
  "Plump? Plump!?" Ranma said in outrage. "What do you take
me for? Ryouko?" Behind Ranma, Ryouko's head whipped around
in indignation. From where she sat, she couldn't see the sly grin on
Ranma's face or the wink the redhead directed toward Katsuhito. "I
don't lay around on my butt all day like her, eating all the food in
the house. If you want a girl who's plump, you ought to take her
on."
  "Hey!" Ryouko protested.
  She was ignored as Katsuhito nodded his head thoughtfully
and said, "That is true. I have noticed she's been getting a bit broad
across the beam."
  "HEY!!" This time Ryouko's protest was much more
pronounced.  She was half-way across the room to Ranma and
Katsuhito when she belatedly remembered her promise to Tenchi
regarding fighting in the house. She hovered in the air fuming. 
  Ryouko's feelings were not improved when Ranma turned to
her and said, "Wow, I'm impressed!" She directed her next words to
Tenchi, who was watching the proceedings with more than a hint of
trepidation. "Ain't you impressed, Tenchi? It's really something
how she can still fly with all that weight holding her down."
  Ryouko turned stricken eyes toward Tenchi. "Tenchi, you
don't think I'm fat, do you?" she asked in a pleading voice. This
time it was Ranma who failed to detect the sly look on Ryouko's
face. "Ranma's bottom is much bigger than mine, isn't it?"
  "HEY!?" It was Ranma's turn to protest this time. "I don't got
no fat ass." Ranma strode across the room and positioned herself
beside Ryouko, only a foot or so away from Tenchi's seated
position on the couch. She turned her back to him and bent over
slightly. "Here. Look. Isn't my bottom in better shape then fatso
here?" 
  Ryouko duplicated Ranma's move, and also shoved her
derriere in Tenchi's face. "No. Tell her Tenchi. I've got the best
bottom."
  Tenchi was not sure which was going to kill him the sight
before him, or the consequences of any answer he might make. His
life was saved by a surprising source. "Uncle Genma," he blurted
out.
  Ranma and Ryouko looked over their shoulders at him.
"Huh?" they both inquired intelligently. 
   Wordlessly, Tenchi pointed at the TV screen, causing all
present to look that way. A general murmur of recognition ran
around the room as everyone recognized the well-padded form of
Genma's cursed body legging it across some sort of sports field.
  "What the hell!?" Ranma blurted out. She looked around the
room. "Who has the remote? Someone turn it up." Nobuyuki held
up the object in question and soon the TV set, which had been set
on low volume, was blaring forth the story on the screen.

  " . . .anda has been avoiding capture for over an hour now, but
it looks like his luck has run out. The combined forces of the local
police and the Zoo, as well as various volunteers, have managed to
trap him inside the grounds of the local high school. You can clearly
see the students observing this strange activity from the windows of
their classes. I doubt the residents of Furinken have ever seen
anything this bizarre. 
  Unless I miss my guess, we will soon be seeing an end to this
chase. With all the gates blocked and a high wall surrounding the
grounds it's only a matter of time . . . Did you see that!? The panda
climbed over one of the walls. Well, that was unexpected, to say the
least. Looks like the speculation that the Panda is an escapee from
some circus might be the case after all.  He certainly is nimble for
such a big, fat, fellow." 

  "Not bad," Ryouko commented as she looked at the screen
avidly. Her former profession had left her somewhat of a
connoisseur in regards to fleeing the authorities. "He's got them
rooked good."
  "Yeah, if there is one thing the old man is good at, it's running
away," Ranma said sardonically, but underneath the derision in her
voice, there was something else, and it did not escape Katsuhito's
attention that she was watching the screen just as avidly as Ryouko.
  Tenchi looked at the two girls, puzzlement clear on his face. "I
don't understand. He barely made it over that wall." He asked
Ranma, "Don't you feel at all worried?"
  "Huh? Nah. The old man's running a scam. Don't you see? He
could hop over a wall like that in his sleep. He's got them thinking
he's a lot less quick than he is. You watch. He'll give them the slip,
find some hot water, and the legend of the wandering Panda will go
up a notch."
  Ryouko nodded in confirmation of this. "Broken wing, oldest
trick in the book. Let them think you're easy prey and they'll be so
busy chasing you, they won't notice your partner sneaking around
behind . . ." Ryouko trailed off as she suddenly noticed everyone
staring at her. "Ah, ha, ha," she half laughed, half coughed, then
suddenly pointed at the screen. "See, what did I say about
overconfidence?"
  Eyes shifted from her back to the TV, and she heaved a sigh of
relief. She was having enough trouble with Tenchi without rubbing
his face in her larcenous past.
  Ranma gave a guffaw, no longer even trying to maintain a look
of disdain.  In the foreground two zoo keepers were tangled up in a
cargo net that they had apparently tried to snag Genma with.
Meanwhile, in the background, Genma was free and clear and, true
to Ranma's prediction, heading toward a ramen shop, a very likely
source of hot water.  By all indications, it looked like Genma was
about to once again get away scot free. 
  Ranma's chuckles suddenly choked off.  She gave a gasp. A
figure in dark clothes and glasses had just stepped into the camera's
view. In his hands was a heavy rifle. Even Ryouko reacted as he
raised the gun and pointed it at the rapidly retreating panda. Her
reason for objecting, was along the lines of not wanting to see an
end to some interesting entertainment. Ranma's reaction was a bit
 stronger.
  "No, you bastards! Who the hell shoots pandas? Are you
crazy?"  She grabbed the side of the TV and gave it a shake, as if
that would distract the man with the gun. "Stop it! Stop it!" she
screamed at the TV. Katsuhito was suddenly there, folding her into
his arms and trying to force her eyes away from the screen. Ranma
would not let him. She could not win free of his arms, but neither
could he force her eyes away from the screen.
  The man with the gun squeezed the trigger, and he rocked back
slightly as his weapon discharged. Many yards away, Genma
suddenly arched his back and went up on the tips of his hind paws.
He stumbled forward a few steps, his front paws reaching around
behind him in a vain effort to reach the injury, and then fell
forward, raising a visible cloud of dust. 
  "NO!!!!" Ranma cried out in despair, and finally giving in to
Katsuhito's urging she turned her head and buried her face against
his chest. She cried out, "You stupid old man!" then her voice was
muffled by Katsuhito's robe.
  The three men continued to stare at the TV, the picture
bouncing as the cameraman ran toward the downed panda. A start
went thorough Katsuhito, and a gasp of relief rose from Tenchi and
Nobuyuki.  
  The unexpected reactions caused Ranma to lift her tear-stained
face away from Katsuhito's chest and look once more toward the
screen. Katsuhito made no effort to stop her this time. Ranma stared
for a moment, and then a choking sound rose up from deep in her
chest. "Huh, ha, Ha, BWAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAH!!!"
  Tenchi and the others joined her in relieved laughter. On the
screen the dark-clad man reached forward and pulled the large
tranquilizer dart from Genma's backside.


Epilogue:

  Ryouko and Ranma had moved to the floor and were sitting
close to the TV, a bucket of popcorn between them. In between
mouthfuls, they exchanged slightly ribald suggestions as to
Genma's eventual fate.
  On the screen, the man with the tranquilizer gun was being
interviewed by a _ very _ attractive lady anchorwoman, while
numerous disgruntled members of the print media took what
pictures they could. 
  A commotion in the front lines of the cameramen announced
the arrival of a brown-haired school girl. She had a small camera in
one hand and was using both elbows to clear herself a space among
the professionals. 
  "Nice work there," Ranma commented.
  "Not bad, but if she wanted to be really effective, she should
be aiming a bit lower," Ryouko said. Behind her, Tenchi and
Nobuyuki winced slightly and crossed their legs.
  "Oops, there she goes.  Too bad, she was sort of cute," Ranma
said, as the girl was dragged away by the pair of men Genma had
tangled in the cargo net. They were more then slightly disgruntled,
believing rather strongly that it should have been them being
interviewed by the babe. Instead they were stuck doing crowd
control. The girl kept clicking her camera till she was out of sight.
Unfortunately, she'd picked a bad location, and the only shots it
looked like she'd managed to get were of the newscaster.
  "Oh, is that the sort you like?" Ryouko chortled, giving Ranma
a nudge in the ribs.
  "Well. I do sort of like a girl who ain't afraid to go for what
she wants," Ranma replied with a distracted air, as she watched her
Pop being loaded into a cargo truck. A second later, she realized
what she'd said and started to backtrack, "that is . . .I mean . . ." It
was too little, too late.
  "Oh really. You like aggressive girls?" Ryouko asked, in a
voice that had more then a hint of a growl to it. Ranma leaned over
backward in fear as Ryouko suddenly loomed over her. Then, with a
yelp of terror, she scooted out from under the descending Ryouko
and made tracks for the great outdoors. 
  Nobuyuki looked at Tenchi, tears in his eyes. "Oh Tenchi! 
You're so lucky!" he cried out, before dragging Tenchi into a rib-
cracking hug.



  

  And that wraps up another chapter. I'm sorry I missed getting
to Mihoshi as promised this chapter. But it's been so long since
wrote that I needed to do a fun stand alone chapter just to get back
into it. 
Next chapter we rejoin Nodoka and the girls and several groups who
are also heading in the same direction, Nerima, figures eh?

After that, we will rejoin Tenchi and Ranma, and finally, Mihoshi.

  I'd like to thank all the fine people who went about and
beyond in pre-reading for me, still hanging in there even after
months with no new chapter.

  I'd also like to thank the people who took the time to write me
that they enjoyed the story, and when the heck was the next chapter
coming out. Believe me, there is a very good chance you would not
be looking at this chapter now if not for them.

  One final note. I skipped the Shopping trip because I wanted to
get this story out, and I thought I could for the most part skip it. If
you are so inclined, give me a post, and if no one has already taken
the task up, I'll be happy to let you write a side story covering that
episode.

T.H. Tiger.
schell@interlog.com