A Man Among Women a Ranma 1/2 fanfiction by Vince Seifert (seifertv@csus.edu) Ranma 1/2 characters and situations are copyright 1987, 1999 by Takahashi Rumiko. Publishing rights (Japan) by Shogakukan Inc. Publishing rights (North America) by Viz Inc. This work is not intended to infringe those rights. Thanks to Dave Roeder and Darniil Entroth for prereading. ~~~~~ The traveller returned to the Tendo home on an afternoon in late spring, one of those boisterous days when the rushing rain showers would send water sluicing into the gutters one minute and five minutes later the sun would sparkle off the clean streets. She was a small woman, lean and athletic, with her hair pulled back and braided into a pigtail. Her clothing was baggy and soaked, worn and stained with journeying, but her step was light and quick despite the large pack she bore. She stopped outside the gate and swept her hands over her hair, apparently trying to groom it a little, but then gave a short laugh, pushed the gate open, and went in. There came a stifled squeal of excitement and a scrambling sound from inside the house as she approached; grinning, she swung the pack easily off her shoulders and set it beside the door, then waited. She didn't have to wait long. "Daddy! Daddy's home!" The door burst open and two small boys dressed in gis, perhaps six and seven years old, rushed out and launched attacks on her. Dropping to one knee, she fended off the boys' punches and kicks with blurring hands, laughing. "Enough!" she exclaimed finally. The boys stepped back and bowed, but she could easily see them trembling with the effort of standing still. "That's my good boys," she said, straightening. "Now, let's see if you're big enough to carry my pack in, eh?" "I am! Watch!" The larger boy grabbed the pack and hefted, shifting it a few centimeters but not quite able to lift it. "No, me!" The smaller boy shoved his brother aside, but managed even less. They glared at each other, then sighed disappointedly and each seized a pack strap. Between them, they were able to get it off the ground. Grinning, Ranma followed them into the house. Her breath caught in her throat at the beauty of the woman standing just beyond the tiled depression in the entryway; her kimono, the dark green color of forest shade, was adorned with paler green suggesting bamboo leaves, and her long hair was swept and pinned into a sable sculpture. "Welcome home, husband," the woman said softly, bowing. Ranma cleared her throat and bowed in turn. "Thank you, wife. It's good to be home. I hope everyone's well?" "Yes, everyone's fine." The woman smiled at the boys as they set the pack down with a thump. "Your postcard came a couple of days ago, and you arrived just when you said you would. Thank you for giving me time to prepare." "Well, you know me," Ranma said, slipping off her shoes. "I keep my word." She gave the boys a severe look. "Been keeping up with your training, have you? You haven't given your auntie any trouble?" "They've been giving me lots of trouble," came a new voice, "but nothing I couldn't handle." Ranma looked up at the gi-clad woman standing at the bend in the hall, one hand raised to rest on the corner, and smiled. "I'll bet. Thanks, Akane-oneechan." "I'm sure you'd like a hot bath, Ranma," Kasumi said. "Everything's ready for you. I'll just go change, shall I? Would you help me, Akane?" She turned and started up the stairs, moving with the grace required by her kimono. Ranma watched her for a moment, then shifted her regard to Akane. "Welcome back, Ranma," Akane said warmly, and followed her eldest sister. Ranma turned to the boys. "Now don't you go looking in my pack," she admonished them, leveling a slim finger. "You'll get your presents later." "Yes, Daddy," the boys chorused, looking solemn. "We won't," the younger one amplified. "If Taro does, I'll clobber him!" The elder rounded on him. "Says you!" "Enough!" Ranma said sternly, but her eyes were twinkling. "Now let Daddy have a bath." She wiped her feet carefully with a towel and headed for the changing room. The door closed, the soggy silk came off and was deposited in the waiting bucket with a squelch, and the boxer shorts and undershirt followed them. Ranma sighed with relief and went into the furo room, hanging out the sign and sliding the door closed behind her on the way, then pulled the plastic bath-stool over to the shower and began to wash off the grime of travel. She wasn't quite finished when she heard a tap on the door. "Yeah!" she called. "It's me, dear. Shall I wash your back?" "I'd like that, thanks." The door slid open and Kasumi came in, wearing a thin cotton yukata and with her hair back in its usual bun. She knelt behind Ranma and picked up a washcloth. "Did you have a good trip?" "Pretty good." Ranma relaxed as the cloth scrubbed at her back. "No real problems, a little excitement, helped some folks out, kicked some-- er, defeated some opponents." "Oh, that's nice. No new scars this time, I'm pleased to see." "Nope. How about yourself?" "No troubles, thank goodness. The children are fine, give or take a little more rambunctiousness than most people seem to expect. I called your parents when I got your postcard; they won't be over tonight, but they're expecting you tomorrow." "Great, thanks." Ranma paused. "You looked beautiful in that kimono," she managed. "Thank you for wearing it for me. Any man would be happy to come home to such a sight." The words sounded practiced rather than spontaneous, but the feeling was clearly genuine. "It was no more than you deserve, Ranma." Ranma couldn't see Kasumi's face, but she could hear Kasumi's blush in her voice, and she reddened a little herself. "And I enjoy dressing up for special occasions." Ranma smirked at the wall. "And this is a special occasion?" "Oh, you're such a joker." The washcloth swatted gently at her back. "I'm always glad when you come home safe and sound. Besides, a little ceremony reminds us of who we are and where our duties lie, don't you think?" "Yes." Ranma was silent as Kasumi completed scrubbing her back and moved clear. "Thanks." She finished washing, rinsed off quickly, and stepped into the furo, shuddering a little as the change hit, returning his masculinity. Sighing, he immersed himself up to his neck, then glanced at Kasumi. Kasumi's eyes were politely averted. Sometimes she would join him in the furo for a leisurely half-hour of conversation, but evidently not today. Oh, well, if something was bothering her, he'd hear about it when she was ready to tell him, and not before.... "Is there anything special you'd like for dinner?" Kasumi asked, standing up. "Whatever you make is fine with me." It was, too. Kasumi finally looked at him, and Ranma was relieved to see affection in her glance. "You really are a pleasure to cook for, dear." She slipped out the door and closed it before Ranma could respond. ~~~~~ "Ah, Ranma-kun!" Soun exclaimed when Ranma, wearing the dark kimono he'd found awaiting him in the changing room, joined him on the veranda overlooking the koi pond. "You look well, Son." "So do you, Father." Ranma looked his father-in-law over carefully, but Soun seemed to be weathering the years without much difficulty; he looked happy, for one thing, and that counted for a lot. "Chasing the boys keeping you busy?" he suggested. Soun laughed. "Ha, they're a handful, all right. If I'd had boys, they'd probably be a lot like that." He looked wistful for a moment, then brightened as Ranma's sons came tearing around the corner of the house and skidded to a stop upon noticing the two men. "Your turn at the bath," Ranma told them before they could either escape or tackle him. "It's almost suppertime." "Aww--" "Go on, wash up." They went, grumbling. Soun returned to watching the garden and the sky, and Ranma followed suit. Their contemplations were interrupted slightly by Kasumi's delivery of drinks, but she retired in silence. Ranma sipped his tea contentedly. "I don't know how you can leave this," Soun muttered gruffly a while later. "Your wife, your sons, the school...." "I don't either," Ranma said quietly, without losing the contentment. "But in a few months, I will know, and so will you, Father." Soun's mustache twitched, concealing a reluctant smile, and he nodded without speaking. "Suppertime, everyone!" Kasumi's soft voice, raised as far as it ever was, triggered activity inside the house. Ranma stood up and offered Soun a hand, but the older man waved it aside and got up under his own steam. "I'm not that decrepit yet, sonny," he huffed. Ranma grinned. "Funny, Cologne says that, too." He followed Soun in. Supper was merry, with a couple of months' worth of catching up flying back and forth over the plates and bowls. Kasumi presided over the rice cooker, seeing to it that her family was well-stuffed. Akane brought Ranma up to date on her nephews' progress in kempo, not without interjections from her students. "When can I go on a training trip with you, Daddy?" Jiro demanded suddenly. "Panda-gran'pa says we're plenty old enough. He says you was on the road already when you was as old as me." Ranma glanced at Kasumi and flinched a little; her over-my- dead-body look was subtle, but he was expecting it. "Well, Panda- gran'pa's not your daddy, I am. And I say you're not big enough. You can't even lift my pack yet. We'll go on training trips someday, but not until I say you're ready. We won't be gone for months like I am, though, and we sure won't be gone for years like I was when I was your age." He glanced cautiously at Kasumi again, and was rewarded by a relieved smile. Soun had his hand over his mustache, though, and Akane was rolling her eyes and biting her lip. "I told them about the Neko- ken, but they thought it was a great idea," she said. "Jiro actually went around catching cats." "Aiyah," Ranma said under his breath, his pigtail standing out stiffly. Akane giggled. "You got it. I explained to him that you, um, would be really unhappy if you came back and found the place festooned with kitties. We had a heck of a time putting them all back." "Well, good," Ranma said. "I guess he's taking after his mother. I haven't forgotten that time SOMEone brought in ca- cats to drape all over me." He directed a mock severe look at Kasumi. "I'm so sorry about that," Kasumi said contritely, but her eyes were dancing with mirth. "It seemed to be the thing to do at the time...." "Hmph." Ranma glared at his sons. "Listen up, you two. Don't put those critters anywhere Daddy's going to come across them. Not as a joke, not as a prank, not ever. I mean it." "I won't," Taro said. Jiro nodded. "I was very clear about that," Akane said reassuringly. "Glad to hear it." Ranma pushed back from the table. "Thanks for dinner!" He went out while the others were echoing him and came back in with his pack dangling from one hand. "Now let's see what we have for good boys!" He opened the pack and rummaged in it for a moment, then peered craftily at his sons over the flap and held up a hand-sized wad of cloth. "Just one, so you'll have to share it. Here!" He tossed the packet and watched the resulting tussle benevolently. Eventually precedence was settled, and Taro unwrapped the cloth from-- "A tooth?" Taro held up the conical, slightly curved object and looked at it in puzzlement. "Got it in one. A dragon's tooth," Ranma said. Taro stared at him and scoffed. "There's no such things as dragons!" Ranma did not take offense. "That'd come as a shock to the dragons," he said off-handedly. He favored Taro with a grim smile. "I'm not making it up, Son. Don't show that to teachers or scientists; it'd just make them unhappy. It's just like that you don't tell people I'm a woman sometimes. Okay? Now that we've got that straight, let me tell you how I came by it...." ~~~~~ The house was quiet a few hours later when Ranma turned out the light and slid under his quilt. His was the rectangular room between the tearoom and the bath, the room Happosai had occupied before the old master's final defeat. Scrubbing, incineration, fumigation, and even exorcism had been necessary to render it fit for habitation again, but now it was his, a bare, tranquil space with his few possessions tucked away in its cabinets. He'd always traveled light, and only carried souvenirs for other people. Ranma lay on his back with his hands behind his head, waiting patiently. Kasumi might come to his room, or she might not, but unspoken habit established that he was not to come to hers. Her room was still the upstairs room she'd lived in as long as he'd known her, very nearly on the opposite side of the house from his. Soun had offered to move out of the large ground- floor room he'd once shared with his wife, but she'd smiled and refused, citing the convenience of being next to the boys' room that had been Nabiki's before she moved out. To Ranma's senses, Kasumi's presence preceded even the dim flicker of yellow light through the cracks around the opaque shoji doors. The quiet tapping at the door came as no surprise. "Come in." She slid the door shut behind her, knelt, and placed the little candle-lantern on the floor, then blew it out. Her nightgown rustled in the darkness and then she was beside him on the futon, a familiar, soft-skinned warmth. Alert to her mood, he touched her gently, as she preferred to be touched, and was welcomed yet again. ~~~~~ "Kasumi...." Ranma's quiet word halted Kasumi as she was about to slide the door open to depart. She paused and turned. "Yes?" The candlelight glittered in Ranma's eyes. "If you don't mind staying a little while longer...." "Of course not, dear." She knelt, arranging her gown around her legs, set the lantern on the floor, and waited, watching him. "I brought you a gift." Ranma reached over to pick up a flat, hand-sized packet and set it on the floor between them. "Thank you, Ranma." She bowed and took the packet, placing it in her sleeve. Ranma knew she'd open it in private; he might see the jade bracelet later, or he might not, depending on how much she liked it and how much the household needed money. "Er...." Ranma wondered how to say it, then decided to just say it. "Do you want another child, Kasumi?" Kasumi smiled. "The two we have are enough for me, I suppose. If you want another, though...." "No, that's not what I meant." Ranma paused, chewing his lip. "If you don't, why are you here?" he asked, trying to pitch his voice so that it wouldn't sound like an accusation. Kasumi lowered her head so that her hair, so long when unbound, fell around her face. "It's my duty," she said softly. "Is that all it is?" "Oh, no, Ranma," Kasumi said quickly, looking up. "I didn't mean to imply that at all. This duty has always been a pleasant one. Even the first time, when neither of us really knew what we were doing. You've been very patient with me, and kind, and gentle." "It wouldn't have been right to be anything else," Ranma said, blushing a little. "Kasumi... are you happy?" "I'm content," she said after a short pause. "I have everything I should have: my home, my family, friends, a comfortable income. I'm married to a brave, strong, handsome man who is a good father to our children, and respectful to my father, and very discreet. All is in harmony." "Fine... I just, you know, well, you don't have to if you don't want to, is all." "Thank you for your consideration, Ranma," Kasumi said, lowering her face again. "But please don't concern yourself with that. I do want to. I want--" She stopped suddenly, then said in a voice so soft that only the stillness of the room enabled Ranma to hear her words clearly, "I will continue to perform all the duties of a wife, and you will continue to return to me." "Kasumi...." "I really am fond of you, Ranma." Kasumi gazed at him with candlelit affection, and Ranma reflected that he had never known Kasumi to lie to him in all the years they'd been married. "I'm fond of you too, Kasumi." Manners required parity in the response, but in truth Ranma himself thought of his feelings for Kasumi as more than fondness. "That's, er, all I wanted to say." "Thank you, dear. I'm glad you did. Good night." ~~~~~ Ranma greeted the sunrise in his customary way, on the road or at home, performing a solitary, elegant dance of precisely controlled violence. He finished and turned just as Akane spoke. "That's new." "Morning, Akane-oneechan." He hopped down off the rock by the koi pond. "So, are you going to teach me that?" "Of course. C'mon, I got something for you in the dojo." He headed off in that direction around the outside of the house; Akane went back inside, following the walkways to the same destination. When she got there, Ranma was waiting for her with an open smile and a foot-long parcel in each hand. "Take your pick," he said, holding them out. "Mmm... that one," Akane said, affecting a childlike demeanor and pointing at Ranma's left hand. He tossed it to her, and she plucked it out of the air and started unwrapping the cloth. "Oh, a box!" she sang happily. "Just what I always wanted!" "Open the box, silly," said a disgruntled Ranma. Akane did. "Wow, that's pretty," she breathed, taking out a steel kozuka. The slim knife had an integral haft decorated with intricate engraving; it was meant to be carried in a pocket carved out of a sword scabbard, with the engraving showing. Akane turned, sighted on the far wall of the dojo, and whipped her arm back and forward. Spung! The kozuka quivered in the target there, very near the dot. "Nice balance, too," Akane said, walking over and retrieving the knife. "Where'd you get it?" "Ukyo found it and thought you'd like it," Ranma said. Akane gave him a slightly odd look, but said, "Well, thank her for me, then. I have something for her, too, so remind me before the next time you leave." "You bet." Ranma held out the other parcel. "This one's from me. Careful, it's fragile." "How'd it get here intact, then?" Akane teased him, but she removed the wrapping carefully. "A scroll. What's on it?" "I bought that in Hong Kong from a guy who didn't know what he had. It's about meditation, but... think in terms of battle auras when you try it." "Aha. Thanks." Akane set the scroll and knife out of the way. "Now show me that kata again, will you?" "Okay." Again he went through the moves, a little faster this time. Akane was silent, watching, and remained silent for a while after he was done. "You're perfect," she breathed finally. "Hey, I always was perfect," Ranma said cockily. Anything to take the wistful, hungry look off her face.... "No. You were promising, and even brilliant. But now...." Akane fell silent again. Ranma walked over to her and raised his hand to caress her cheek, but she turned her face away and down, arresting his fingertips before they touched. "Not here," she murmured, her lips barely moving. "Where?" Ranma asked in a matching low tone. He saw her swallow convulsively. "Last night, did she...?" "Yes." Akane let out a puff of breath, half relieved, half unhappy. "All right, then. Um... the third place." "When?" "Tomorrow afternoon?" "Fine." He stepped back and raised his voice back to a conversational level. "I guess you could see that this kata's for fighting a strong opponent underwater. I call it Mantis Shrimp." He grinned. "Heh. None of my students are good enough for that yet, but maybe in a couple of years... Thanks, Ranma. These things you come up with on your trips really help the dojo." "Just doing my part." ~~~~~ "Ranma!" Nodoka exclaimed happily, flinging the door of the small house open wide. "Come in! Oh, it's so good to see you!" Her pretty face was still surprisingly smooth and youthful for a woman pushing fifty; that it was alight with joy at the moment probably helped. "Take it easy, Momma. Kasumi said she called you. You knew I'd be here tonight." He slipped off his shoes and stood, hands on hips, for inspection. "Well, yes, but-- Oh, look at you! What a fine, manly son! Here, let me take your coat-- my goodness, did Shampoo-chan make that?" Ranma looked down at the gold and silver dragon embroidered on his red silk shirt. "It's Joketsuzoku work, all right, but not Shampoo's. She's got lots of talents, but that's not one of 'em. She traded for it." "Well, it's splendid. Go sit down and we'll chat. Supper's almost ready." Nodoka hurried into the kitchen and bustled around for a moment, then came out again as Ranma settled at the table. Genma came down the stairs, a bit thicker all around, but still moving like a bear rather than a hippopotamus. "Evening, Son. Looks like you still have all your parts." Ranma's polite smile slipped a little. "Yeah, pretty much, old man." "Forgive me for the rudeness, Ranma, but-- did the camera work? Did you get the pictures?" Nodoka was practically trembling with eagerness. "Got 'em right here," Ranma said, patting his bundle. He opened it and took out a sheaf of instant photos. "I'm afraid the camera got kinda, uh, smashed, but the pictures came out OK, most of them. Here." Nodoka very nearly snatched them from his fingers. Her face lit up again. "Oh, look at them! Dear, look!" Genma peered over her shoulder, and even his usually grave expression lightened. "They're so adorable!" "They're little hellions, is what they are," Ranma said proudly. "Shampoo wanted another generation of Joketsuzoku warriors; well, that's what she's getting." Three girls, each as pretty as their mother and as tough as their father, he thought. Come to think of it, the other way around would have worked too. "How is Shampoo-chan?" Nodoka asked without looking up from the photos. "Same as always. She's all 'Airen! Wo ai ni!' when I show up, but two or three weeks later she'll snap at me or I'll blow up at her or one of the elders will complain about how my conduct is unbefitting a proper husband. Then we'll have a screaming fight and she'll kick me out of her house, yelling at me never to come back, never ever, and don't forget to bring the things on the list when you do! This time it was the elders." Ranma shook his head and rolled his eyes, but his smile was tolerant. "The girls think it's hilarious, especially if I'm a woman at the time." He put more things on the table. "Speaking of elders, Cologne sent this; you brew it like tea. She invited you again to come visit, by the way. This is... well, I dunno what it's called, but it's tasty." "Is Cologne-sama well?" Nodoka inquired. "She's still a great old bat. A little older, a little battier." "Oh, good." Nodoka laid the photos out on the table one by one, then stopped and peered at the last. "What's this, Ranma?" "Hm?" Ranma took the photo and looked at it, then blushed and put his other hand behind his head. "Oops. I meant to throw this one away. That's how the camera got broken. That's Kiima." "Kiima?" "She, uh, didn't like having her picture taken, and I found out the hard way. That blur there is one of her wings." "Wings?" Genma and Nodoka queried in unison. "Yeah. Her people live inside this big mountain. They have a lord who sits in this big lamp thing and sort of glows, and that's where all their heat and light come from. Decent guy, a bit standoffish maybe, but kinda... resigned-like. Anyway, they all have wings, so she has wings." Elegant wings, strong and proud; wings that could fling air in metal-cleaving blades, or enfold a lover in rustling softness.... "Her feet have claws, too." She'd worn soft boots to keep from shredding his calves when she-- "Another conquest, Ranma?" Nodoka's voice broke into his memories, and he nodded ruefully. "Sort of, or maybe the other way around, depending on how you look at it. She lives near Jusenkyo, and I was poking around before I knew who-all lived there, and they caught me, and then they wished they hadn't. Man, that was an adventure and a half. I'll tell you about it sometime." "That sounds nice. Speaking of conquests, I haven't seen Kodachi-chan lately...." Ranma snapped his fingers. "That's right, I forgot to tell you. She got tired of-- er, we went our separate ways a few years ago. Well, she married this Norwegian skiier, August something, and she's happy. She spends more time out of Japan than I do, these days." Nodoka frowned a little. "It seems a pity. She was such a lovely girl, and she enjoyed being your mistress so much." Ranma grinned. "Well, he has a sister." "Oh, good," Nodoka said, her expression clearing. "And she's smitten with you, of course?" "Clobbered by me, more like," Ranma chuckled. "She does Martial Arts Freestyle Skiing, and I tangled with her in Hokkaido last winter-- no, the one before. But Ingeborg's just a buddy, really." "For the moment." Nodoka smiled rogueishly and gathered up the photos. "Still, you have Kasumi-chan, Ukyo-chan, and Shampoo- chan, and you've given me six wonderful grandchildren... that I know of. I'm so pleased that you're such a man among men." "I'm glad you're happy, Momma. If it wasn't for you, none of this would ever have happened." The double-edged words escaped Ranma's lips before he could stop them, but fortunately his mother only took the surface meaning. His father's eyes flickered, though. "You're welcome, Ranma. Well, I'll go serve dinner," Nodoka said brightly, rising. ~~~~~ After the meal, Nodoka went upstairs to put away her precious photographs and give her menfolk a chance to talk privately, but Ranma didn't take advantage of the opportunity. He appeared to be meditating, gazing at the wall over Genma's shoulder. Finally Genma broke the silence. "You should be grateful for the bounty that fortune has bestowed on you," he reproved his son. "Bounty?" Ranma asked softly without shifting his gaze or altering his expression. "Is that what you call it?" "What else? You have at least three lovely women doting on you, you have six fine, healthy children to carry on the Art, you may heed the call of the open road...." Genma's eyes grew misty with nostalgia. "Ah, I remember those days, the days when we went wherever we pleased--" "--and YOU ate whatever we could scrounge," Ranma grumbled, giving his father a flat-eyed look. "It was the core of the training to make you struggle for your daily meal," Genma said virtuously. "It made you strong." "It made you fat." "Hmph. Go on, tell me you don't enjoy your travels now." The older man stared at the younger and waited expectantly. "I like the traveling and the adventures," Ranma admitted, "and I like coming home, but I don't like leaving." He half- smiled. "That's one of the things I like about Shampoo: she makes it easy on me. She knows when I'm ready to hit the road." "And I'm sure she's even better in the kitchen than she was when she was here," Genma said, nodding. "And Ukyo's okonomiyaki are as excellent as ever, am I right? No need to ask about the fine table Kasumi sets; I've sampled her cooking often enough." "Yeah. What's your point, Pops?" Genma spread his hands. "You can go when and where you please, you have a warm home to welcome you whenever you tire of traveling, if one woman is cold to you or her meals doesn't please you there's always another... and yet you seem to harbor some sort of misplaced resentment. I can't understand it." Ranma stared at his father. "This is your idea of a perfect life, isn't it?" he asked in dawning comprehension. "Of course. Ha, I even envy you--" Genma shut up quickly and glanced at the stairs to reassure himself that Nodoka was out of earshot, then continued in a lower tone, leaning forward confidentially. "Perhaps I should accompany you sometime, eh?" "Sure," Ranma said easily. "With your thick head, you ought to be able to survive Ukyo's spatula-- oh, but Shampoo'll splash you with cold water and skin you for a rug. They're still really mad at you." He smirked, eyes glinting. "Well, perhaps not." Genma looked uncomfortable for a moment, then rallied. "Still, has any father ever given his son a greater gift? I did the very best I could for you, and succeeded beyond even my dreams. I trained you to be the finest martial artist of our time, I arranged for you to meet women of wealth, culinary skill, strength, or beauty--" "Those were accidents!" "Good fortune," Genma corrected. He sat back. "You've done well. Your mother is very pleased with your accomplishments, and that's gotten me off the hook for the ten years she was separated from us. There's no question in her mind that her sacrifice was a worthwhile one." "There wouldn't be," Ranma muttered. Genma sighed, pushing his glasses up his nose. "As I say, you've done well, but there is one thing I'm concerned about. This... affection for women that you have is understandable, at your age, but it is a serious weakness. They have their world, and we have ours. Protect them, yes, enjoy the comforts they provide, but do not love them to excess. They will steal your strength, the very quality that they claim to value, if you give them the chance." Ranma's mouth opened and closed. "Does Momma know you feel this way?" he asked feebly. Genma looked proud. "Of course. I told her so in so many words. I took you away so that you would not be weakened by a mother's love. Soon enough the time will come for you to take your children away from their mothers, to harden them for a life of struggle." Ranma flinched, remembering Kasumi's look when that subject had come up. "I don't think so." "You will," Genma said confidently. "As for your, er, attitude problem... well, consider the Enlightened One's words on the cause of unhappiness." He heard Nodoka coming back down the stairs and fell silent, looking smug. "Gaah," Ranma muttered again. Privately, he thought it fortunate that all his children were being raised by their mothers. ~~~~~ "Saotome School Ultimate Technique: Martial Arts Sneaking Around Discreetly!" Ranma muttered under her breath with a wry smile. The "love hotel" was about a mile from the Tendo house, a nondescript concrete building decorated with a garish sign announcing its purpose and a scarcely smaller one advertising its rates, by the night or by the hour; at least the smaller one wasn't neon-lit, not that it really mattered in the light of afternoon. Ghosting in unseen was trivial for one of Ranma's skills, and locating the room harboring the quarry she sought barely more difficult. She tapped on the door, opened it, and walked in. Akane was sitting on her shins on the floor, wearing one of the short-skirted outfits she favored, looking young, cute, and wholesome rather than seductive. "Hi, Akane. I'll just be a minute," Ranma told her, locking the door and heading for the bathroom and its hot-water tap. When he came back out, Akane was on her feet; her expression was a strange mixture of anticipation and resignation. "I always promise myself this will be the last time," she said, almost to herself. "I always vow that afterwards, I'll dump you, and this will be the last time we ever do this." Ranma smiled a crooked, rakish smile. "Maybe that's why it's always so good," he said gently. Akane let out something that might have been a gasp, or might have been a sob, and flung herself into his arms. And then their world was nothing but thirsty lips, and questing hands, and trembling skin, and forbidden love. ~~~~~ "Do you know what day this is?" Akane asked later, when lust had slaked itself and tenderness remained. Ranma thought. Her question was obviously fraught with significance, but-- "Nope, sorry. What day is it?" She laughed softly. "You really don't know. Kasumi always commemorates the anniversary of your wedding, and you're good about remembering that and being home for it... except that one time. She was so worried, and she tried to cover it, but we could see." "I remember. I was afraid she'd fillet me with her favorite kitchen knife, but she just smiled and said she was glad I was all right. The miso soup tasted a bit strange that night, though." "Well, that day's important to Kasumi. This day.... Ten years ago today, a panda brought a pigtailed girl to our house." "Jeez. Was it really? I mean, I'll take your word for it, but you know, I hadn't seen a calendar in a while... I didn't know what day it was back then, either." "I suppose you wouldn't... but I did. This is the day I commemorate." "Akane...." "My life is divided into before that day and after that day, Ranma." "Yeah. I know what you mean. I'll remember now that I know." "Mmm." Akane paused. "I went down to Kyoto last month." "Ah." "I went to see Ukyo." Ranma sighed, knowing what was coming next. "I met your daughter." "Of course you did," Ranma said in a tone that blended equal parts of wry amusement, exasperation, and resignation. "Kurone's a doll, Ranma. Ukyo and Konatsu are raising a lovely little ninja-chef who doesn't know if she's a boy or a girl, and doesn't care. She'll probably grow up to be the sanest kid in this whole deranged country, and who would have figured that?" "Yeah. So?" Ranma asked cautiously. "SO WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME, YOU JERK?!" Akane's furious shove shot Ranma out of bed like an arrow from a bow, but he bounced nimbly off the wall and landed on his feet, nude but not naked; he was neither defenseless nor self- conscious. "Why the hell do you think?" he demanded. "I KNEW you were going to see Ukyo and Shampoo!" Akane shouted, crouched in the tangle of sheets on the bed. "I COULDN'T not know that! But I told myself that you weren't screwing them! I managed to convince myself that you wouldn't! But then I saw that cute kid, and I KNEW! She was every bit as cute as, as, as YOU are, you son of a bitch! I didn't ask, but she HAD to be yours! HOW COULD YOU?!" Ranma ran a hand through his hair and sighed, then looked her right in the eye. "That was the deal." Akane froze. "...what?" "Huh. I guess you never talked to Momma about it. Or maybe she wouldn't have told you, I don't know. I'm pretty sure she doesn't know about us." "Why didn't you tell me?" Akane repeated, plaintively this time. "You didn't ask," Ranma said without a trace of levity on his face. "Ranma, that's STUPID!" "No, it's not," Ranma said forcefully. "It's the way things are. Look, I don't know if Kasumi knows about us or not, because she's never asked me 'Ranma, are you screwing my sister?'" Ranma grimaced and shook his head. "No, Kasumi wouldn't say that." He cocked an eyebrow at Akane's involuntary giggle. "She's never asked me, 'Ranma, are you sleeping with my sister?' She probably suspects; she's pretty sharp. She may be sure. But she's NOT going to ask, because then I'd have to answer, and man, if I had to choose between lying to Kasumi and answering THAT question truthfully, knowing what would happen...." Ranma shook his head again. "I don't know, and I hope I never find out. But Kasumi wouldn't do that to me... or to herself, or to you." Akane had stopped looking furious or hurt; now she looked astonished. "Ranma...." "Akane, if you really want me to tell you, I'll tell you. No lies, no excuses, no regrets; it's all my fault, and that's all there is to it. But you have to ask, and you'd better be damn sure you want to know the answers. I trust you not to hurt anyone with them." "I see." Akane looked like maybe she did see. "I do want to know some of it, I guess." Ranma sat beside the bed and looked up at her. His gray eyes were very tired. "Ask, then." "What deal?" Akane whispered. "You remember what happened. We escap-- er, graduated from Furinkan, and the very next day, our parents staged that big family meeting. They said we'd obviously never let ourselves get married, so they'd decided to quit trying, and they announced that the engagement had been transferred to Kasumi." "And Kasumi said she would marry you," Akane said, nodding. "I've always wondered why, but I've never had the nerve to ask-- oh." "Right. And they said the wedding was tomorrow. And I acted like a jerk, and you acted like a, a--" "--an uncute tomboy--" "--yeah, and things went to hell." Ranma took a breath. "What you don't know is what happened after I ran out. I remembered what happened when I was engaged to Nabiki, and I thought about how Shampoo, Ukyo, and Kodachi were acting up, and I knew Kasumi would get hurt, even by accident, unless I did something... decisive. So I went to the Nekohanten and kicked Shampoo and Mousse out and talked to Cologne for a long time, and we made this deal. She'd take Shampoo back to China if I'd come over after a decent time had passed and...." "And knock Shampoo up." "Bingo. After that, I felt, er, ruined enough to go to Ukyo and offer her the same kind of deal. That's why Kurone's name is Saotome. She's on the clan register." "How many children do you-- does Shampoo have?" Akane managed. Ranma's shoulders slumped. "Three. All girls. They aren't Saotome, though." "Oh, god." Akane folded up, leaking tears. "How could you?" "I'm my father's son, and my mother's," Ranma said wearily. "My father thinks women are only good for making heirs and keeping house, and my mother thinks a man among men can have as many women on the side as he can handle as long as he's discreet about it and doesn't embarrass his wife, and I was a dumb kid who couldn't see another way out and thought the girl he loved with all his heart didn't love him back." Akane jerked suddenly and sat up. "All your heart?" "Yeah. Back when it was whole." "Ranma, if you'd been able to talk like that then--" "Things would be different, yeah." Ranma smiled wryly. "But then how could you be unfaithful...." Akane trailed off; the pieces were beginning to fit together. "To you? Akane, if I was going to be faithful to anybody, I would be faithful to Kasumi! I was, for more'n a year, but then I started getting the letters, and it was time to keep my other promises." "Oh...." That put Akane back on track. "But how could you think that was a good deal?" "It was a compromise. Our elders all got what they wanted, or near enough, so they were all happy. Our generation... well, there wasn't enough of me to make everyone happy, so I tried to make everyone, well, equally unhappy." "How did... were you happy?" Ranma fixed her with his gaze. "It was a horny teenager's dream come true." SLAP! "Thank you," Ranma said softly, lifting his hand to touch his stinging cheek. "That was just like old times." "Sorry," Akane managed. "For a moment, I forgot you're not mine to hit any more." "No, I mean it." Ranma sighed. "The thing was, I wasn't a teenager, and I wasn't horny, either. I'm not gonna tell you it was bad, but it wasn't... um... delightful. I didn't find out how good it was supposed to be until you seduced me after you came back from college." "What? YOU seduced ME!" Akane protested. "Whatever." Ranma paused. "If you decide this is really the last time, though, I won't give you any trouble about it." "Is that what you want?" "You should know better than that," Ranma said in a low, wounded voice. "But you deserve a guy of your own." "What makes you think I haven't tried to find one?" Akane retorted. "No reason. No reason at all. I'm sure in no position to complain about it." "I did try," Akane admitted. "At university, and after I came back from Kyoto. But they're all so... normal." "How about Ryoga?" Ranma asked, but it was obvious what the suggestion cost him. Akane snorted. "That pig. He doesn't love me, he just wants to get into my pants." "Heh. Yeah, ever since Akari tripped him and beat him to the floor, he hasn't been quite so shy around the ladies. I ran into him in Shanghai a month or so back. He was trying to get to Tokyo, but I was going the other way, so I gave him directions to Bangkok and hoped for the best. I thought you forgave him for P- chan, though." "I did, but... he's not you." There wasn't anything Ranma could say to that. "I still daydream of how things might have been if we'd gotten married. We came so close, that one time...." "The time you woke up wearing a wedding kimono?" Akane nodded. "But you were a jerk, and I reacted appropriately." Ranma smirked ruefully, but didn't comment. "But after that, things just kept on the way they'd been going. All those harmless magical artifacts, stupid challenges, and silly arguments! I loved you, but I was afraid to tell you, because I didn't think you loved me back. I thought I had all the time in the world. If only something had happened that made me sure you loved me... I think I could have told you, then. Or if I'd been braver. Or...." "Or if I'd told you," Ranma agreed. "As it was, I didn't figure it out until I saw you the morning after the wedding. You looked just like I felt." "I was hung over!" "That too." Ranma smiled wistfully. "That night was the first time I ever got drunk... and the last time, because it didn't help one little bit." "Yeah." Ranma had no temptation to smile at that at all. "Do you ever daydream about how it might have been?" Ranma sighed. "I try not to think about it, because there's not much point in what-ifs. I just try to find the best in the situation I'm in; worrying about stuff that's already happened would mess me up. It could have been pretty good. I would have been faithful to you, I think." "Well, I should hope so!" "Akane, it's not too late to find out," Ranma said in a dead- level voice. "We can't change the past, but we can change the future. Shampoo and Ukyo have what they want; I haven't slept with Ukyo since before Kurone was born, and Shampoo won't miss me enough to make trouble. We could go away together." Akane turned away. Her bare shoulders hunched and shuddered. "Damn you," she whispered finally. "Damn you for making me say I won't go. But I won't do that to Kasumi, or your kids-- ALL your kids!-- or my students, or myself... or you, damn you." "Sorry. That's the most I can offer you. It's more than I've ever offered anyone else." Ranma considered. "If you asked, I would promise to be faithful to you and Kasumi. Momma can think what she likes; she's got her grandkids." Akane thought about that. "That... might be... good." "Or I could be faithful to Kasumi." "No." That answer came very quickly, and Akane blushed and hid her face in her hands. "I'm glad. Of all the pieces of myself that I gave away, this is the one that means the most to me... because you're the one I really wanted to be happy." "Ranma... am I the only one you love?" "You're the one I love the most," Ranma said with utter sincerity. "Mmm." Akane clearly wasn't happy about the distinction, but she didn't ask the next question. "What really irks me about finding out that I wasn't the only one you were unfaithful to your wife with-- oh, hell." The convolution was just too silly to take seriously, and Akane had to stop to straighten her face. Ranma was evidently employing soul-of-ice to keep from cracking up. "Anyway, I thought I was special. Now I've lost that." "Well...." Ranma suddenly looked very uncomfortable. "My, er, female form is still a, er, virgin... but you can have that. If you want it, that is. Er." He cleared his throat, not daring to look at Akane. Akane's eyes opened wide. "What did you say?" "I'm not gonna say it again," Ranma mumbled. "It was hard enough the one time." "That's what I thought you said." For a moment, Akane appeared to be torn between clobbering Ranma and kissing him. "No offense, but no thanks. I mean, it's sweet that you offered, I guess, but... no." Ranma heaved a relieved sigh. "To tell you the truth, that was a piece I didn't really want to give away." He considered again. "The only other thing I can think of to offer you is a child." "I thought of that," Akane said evenly. "I've been very careful to avoid it. To give birth to the bastard child of my sister's husband while living in my sister's house and teaching at my sister's dojo... no. That would be so far past awkward, I don't think it's even in this dimension." "Yes. So now what?" Akane smiled grudgingly. "It's a real pain when the best choice you can think of is what you've been doing all along." "Tell me about it." "I don't want any promises from you, because that would be like making a promise to you, and I don't want to do that. But I won't make vows about this being the last time any more; that's just fooling myself. You might get tired of me-- shush! Or I might get tired of you. But until then...." "All right. That's more than I'd hoped for, really." "I won't ask any more questions for now, because I've had all the answers I can endure for a while, but I guess I'm not sorry I asked... and I'm glad you trusted me with the answers." "So am I," Ranma said soberly. Acting on some unspoken agreement, Akane got up and collected her clothes, then took them into the bathroom while Ranma retrieved and donned his own scattered garments. A few minutes later she came out again, looking neat and presentable once more, and regarded him thoughtfully. "What does make me feel special is that I don't think you've told anyone else all this." "No. Well, Cologne knows some of it, of course, and Momma knows some, but how I feel about it... you're the only one I've talked to about that." "That's something." "It's a lot. Akane, I--" "Sssh," she said, suddenly putting her finger to his lips. "It's all right." She slid into his arms, easily and naturally, turning her head to rest her cheek on his chest. Ranma breathed the scent of her hair and reveled in the flow of comfort and support between them, an almost physical thing, and knew she felt the same pang he did when they parted reluctantly. Akane studied him for a moment. "You make great kids, I have to admit," she said. "That's something too." "They make it all worthwhile," Ranma said simply. "And you're good to Kasumi-oneechan. I really can't begrudge her that." Akane looked at her watch. "There's another twenty minutes left on the room. See you back home, Ranma- niichan." She departed without further ceremony, leaving Ranma to wander into the bathroom and dash himself with cold water. "Well," Ranma said to herself, looking at the pigtailed woman in the mirror. The choices she'd offered Akane felt like choices she'd offered herself, and refused in favor of what was. Duty suddenly seemed lighter, and she wondered if this was how Kasumi felt, and she resolved never to ask. The woman in the mirror smiled a shy, wondering, almost innocent smile, blurred, and was gone. ~~~~~ Desire is the ultimate cause of all unhappiness. -- Buddhist principle ~~~~~ end A Man Among Women ~~~~~