Muyami Academy
What if they ALL went to the same school?
Many thanks to my prereaders, T.H. Tiger and Bombadil Goh, for helping to improve my tale.
DISCLAIMER: Ranma 1/2 characters and stuff, and Inu Yasha characters and stuff, copyright 1999 Rumiko Takehashi. Tenchi Muyou characters and stuff, copyright 1999 Pioneer & AIC. Mamono Hunter Yohko characters and stuff copyright 1999 AD Vision, NCS, Toho Company, LTD, Mad House, and I don't know who else. Yog Suggoth copyright 1999 Arkham House/H P Lovecraft, but luckily it only appears in this disclaimer... I hope.... ^_~
Chapter Two
Of Demons, Cures, and Curses
Can't think straight, now, for all the girls
Who claim engagement
Next are the rivals who want to kill,
To pound me to the ground
There's no way I can feel the face of normality
I'm a man, I don't understand what my father says:
You're a girl, you're a girl, you're a girl, boy...
Can't see my friends from my enemies,
They all get in my way
Can't take the pressure without the need
For one good fist fight
For insults made, and a mallet laid upside my head,
For all the pain and embarrassment, you're gonna pay,
Before I have time to really think it through
Every time it rains, or I'm tossed out to the pool in the back yard,
The transformation comes, I bite my tongue, and swallow pride and blood,
I feel little pain, I have become a redhead, short and cute,
I'm inclined to blame my father for turning me...
To a girl, to a girl
All I know is that it's pretty weird
(to tune of: Like A Girl, I Mother Earth)
Kagome stood on the third floor of the metal structure, while Ranma and Yohko were on the ground. Unable to negotiate the stairs, the thing -- whatever it was -- sat and stared up at Kagome, ignoring the other two. It was a mass of flesh, with multiple torsos visible, arms, legs, and heads sticking out in all directions. It spoke in a low, whispering moan, and stank of death and the sweet, sickening smell of rotting flesh.
Ranma wanted to throw up, but she knew Kagome was in trouble.
"The... shards..." the thing croaked. "Must... have... shards...."
The thing's main head, at the end of an impossibly long neck, shot up, three stories, to where Kagome stood. It bit down on the edge of the metal flooring, and then, incredibly, it began to pull it's body up after it, heading straight for their friend.
Kagome screamed. Ranma jumped up, hoping to punch the strange blob creature and distract it. From the corner of her eye, she saw Yohko also leaping straight up.
Yohko screamed, "You will never hurt my friends! Die, foul demon!" There was a flash of bright light as she swung her sword down, cleaving the creature in two. Moments later Ranma and Yohko landed back on the ground, with the creature's severed halves splattering between them.
"Yohko?" Ranma asked, taking in her costume and her glowing sword.
The girl flashed a smile. "I'm a demon hunter," she said. "I would've told you guys before, but... well, you'd never have believed me."
"I don't know about that..." Ranma began. Both she and Yohko froze as they realized the two halves of the demonic blob were slithering back together. It was reforming itself.
"It's not going to go down without a fight!" Yohko yelled, bringing her sword to bear.
"The jewel!" Kagome called down from the third floor. "Unless you get the jewel shard, it won't die!"
"Know what she's talking about?" Ranma asked.
"Not a clue. Look out, here it comes!"
***
Nodoka sat on the grass of her front lawn, tending to the neighbor's boy. He had a nasty cut on his shoulder, and a lump where his forehead had met pavement.
Her cowardly husband, the panda, stood nearby. Nodoka had not failed to notice that he stayed behind while three young girls ran off to face a demon.
Sota, the young boy, opened his eyes. He looked at Nodoka, momentarily confused.
"Kagome!" he said, suddenly.
"Ranma and Yohko are with her," Nodoka said. "Where are your parents, dear?"
"Grandpa's in the hospital," the boy said. "Mom's with him." He struggled to sit up.
"Relax, child. You've been badly hurt."
"But Kagome's in trouble! I have to get Inu-Yasha!"
Nodoka frowned. "Demon dog?" she asked. What do you mean by that?"
The boy struggled harder. "He's a guy with dog ears," he said. "He's the only one that can help Kagome! I have to call him; he'll know what to do!"
Nodoka frowned. Demons? Curses? She had not believed in any of this stuff until a week ago. Reason told her that the boy was delusional, but her instinct was to let him go find this Inu-Yasha....
"Looking for me?' a deep voice asked. Nodoka glanced up; a strange boy was towered over her. He wore a traditional outfit of red, with billowing legs and long, flowing, robe-like sleeves. A necklace of prayer beads hung about his neck, with a few claws among the beads. He was powerfully muscled -- moreso even than her husband had been, all those years ago -- and he had flowing white hair.
All that, and... pointed ears?
"Where is Kagome?" the stranger demanded.
"Inu-Yasha!" Sota exclaimed. "You've got to hurry, my sister's in trouble!"
"Trouble, you say?" The dog-eared boy flashed the confident, sardonic smile of a natural champion who had never met defeat. "Tell me where... no, I can smell the trail of the demon...."
***
Ranma was covered in bruises, and Yohko was covered in blood. They circled the thing once again, as it slowly reformed itself and readied another attack.
A good ways away, Chikako was snapping pictures on a small 35mm camera. Where she had been hiding it before now was anyone's guess.
"What's it take, huh?" Ranma asked. "You've sliced it up a dozen times already!"
"I know!" Yohko replied. "I've never met such a stubborn demon in my life!"
"It's brain is in the mask!" Kagome called out. "There's a shard of the shikon jewel buried in the mask! That's where it gets its power!"
The creature let out a sound that was halfway between a laugh and a death-rattle. "I am... the mask... of flesh...," it said. "I was... carrrved... from the... trunk... of an ancient... bodhi-tree..., in which... was embedded... a shard of... the jewel... so mannny centuries... ago...."
"I'll distract it," Ranma said. "Aim for the head. Try to shatter the mask."
"You got it," Yohko replied, gripping her soulsword tighter.
"All I want..." the creature said, "is a... body... of my ownnn... I keep myself... alive... with the bodies... of others.... but mortal bodies break... so easily..., yess?"
It shifted, and looked up at Kagome.
"You have... what I need... more shards... to make a body... that will not break...."
"What the hell is it talking about?" Yohko asked.
"Now!" Ranma yelled, launching another of her patented aerial attacks. "Saotome School of Anything-Goes Martial Arts, Final Attack! Strike of the Flying Tiger!"
The name and nature of the attack mattered little. What did matter was that the creature's attention was drawn, momentarily, to the redhead soaring down at it from the sky.
"Demon!" Yohko called out, leaping forward. "I'm sending you back from whence you came!"
As the head of the demon turned, it's face once again split open to reveal jagged rows of teeth. Yohko's sword descended to meet it, slicing cleanly through the right side of the mask, which shattered.
Ranma and Yohko landed on their feet. The demon's body began to fall apart. The left half of the noh mask came free of the collapsing mass of flesh and flew upwards, into the air.
"Need... new... body...." it whispered.
"No!" Ranma yelled, realizing it was headed for her friend. She leaped to the second floor of the structure, placed one foot on the ledge, and pushed off. She sailed further up, landing at the edge of the third floor.
The mask flew straight for Kagome's face. She screamed, and blocked it with her hands, but it pushed itself closer, laughing hollowly.
"Nice... new body... it is mine...." the thing sighed happily.
"We'll see about that!" Ranma growled. She covered the distance in one leap and ripped the mask away from Kagome.
"Ranma!" Yohko called out behind her. Ranma spun about, holding the remaining half of the mask out before her. She could feel it fighting her, struggling to break free, but even as a girl, Ranma was far stronger than she looked.
"Don't move!" Yohko commanded. There was a bright flash of light, and Yohko's soulsword sliced down between Ranma's hands, shattering the remaining portion of the mask.
A small shard of crystal popped out and bounced onto the floor. Kagome bent down and picked it up.
"Another shard," she said. "Even here, in modern-day Tokyo...."
There was a soft thud behind them, and the three girls turned. A strange man stood there, dressed in red robes, with long white hair and the pointed ears of an animal.
"Looks like you didn't need me after all," Inu-Yasha said, sounding somewhat disappointed. "Another shard of the crystal, eh? Interesting...."
***
Kagome fingered the crystal shard as the others looked on. They were all gathered in the Saotome family room -- Ranma, Yohko, Sota, Chikako, and Nodoka. Even Panda-san had been allowed in, although Yohko, Kagome, and Chikako didn't understand why the pet was included.
"That's what kept it alive?" Ranma asked.
"It's a shard of the shikon jewel," Kagome said. "The jewel of four souls. It can grant immense power -- even a single shard grants demons incredible power."
Ranma glanced up at Inu-Yasha, who was leaning against the wall nearby, a sardonic smile on his lips. For some reason, Ranma had taken an instant disliking to the guy, but that was nothing compared to Yohko's attitude. The demon hunter still wore her blood-soaked costume, and still wielded her soulsword. She stared rather pointedly at Inu-Yasha, who laughed silently back at her.
"Kagome, This dog person is a demon," Yohko said. "I can smell its stench from here. Let me kill it, before it kills any of us."
"Please, Yohko, I told you, he's a... a friend. He's not evil or anything."
"There's no such thing as a good demon," Yohko said.
"He's only half demon, remember."
"That's... that's just sick, Kagome."
"Enough insults!" Inu-Yasha growled. "If the girl wants to attack me, let her."
"No!" Kagome yelled, standing up. "Yohko, Inu-Yasha may be half demon, but he's helped me out, even saved my life, and I need him to find the other shards, so leave him alone! Anyway," she continued, sitting down, "you really wouldn't stand a chance against him."
"I've faced tougher demons than this idiot!"
"Yohko, drop it already!" Kagome yelled. Yohko stared into the eyes of her friend for a moment, then nodded. Her soulsword winked out of existence.
"I gotta learn that technique," Ranma muttered.
"It's a demon-hunter technique," Yohko said. "I don't think you could do it."
"I can," Ranma countered, "if it's a martial arts technique!"
"Anyway, as I was saying," Kagome continued, "the shikon jewel has the power to turn a minor demon into a demonic god. Naturally, all demons want to get their hands on it, even Inu-Yasha here. It was in the possession of Kikyo, the priestess of a village in fuedal Japan, and when she died she had it cremated with her, so that it would be removed from the Earth forever.
Unfortunately for her, she was apparently reincarnated... as me."
Nodoka frowned. "How can you know this, child?" she asked.
"Because," Kagome said, "I've traveled to the past, to the village where she lived. The well on our property is a gateway between then and now. Kikyo's been dead there for more than fifty years, but people still remember her... and I look just like her. But more than that, when I first arrived there, a demon bit me in the side... and the shikon jewel popped out. It was inside of me, apparently.
"Now it's loose in the world again, and, more than that, has been shattered into many pieces, and scattered over many miles of wilderness. Even a single shard is dangerous, when a demon finds it. You saw that tonight. That's why Inu-Yasha and I have to gather them all up -- many lives will be lost if we don't.
"And that's also why I've been gone from school so much, lately. I haven't been sick -- I've been living in the past."
Yohko held the shard for a second, studying it, then handed it to Ranma. "I've never heard of anything like that," Yohko said. "Shikon jewel? I bet grandmother will knows about it. I'll ask her; if there are more of these things around, it'd be nice to know about 'em."
Ranma looked it over. "Looks like an ordinary piece of crystal to me," she said, handing it back to Kagome, "but I can kind of feel a tingle in my hand when I hold it."
"Really?" Kagome asked. "I've never noticed anything like that."
"Enough talking," Inu-Yasha said, "I'm here to take you back...."
"In the morning!" Kagome snapped. "I'm not ready yet! At the very least, I need to see my grandfather, first...."
"Wow," Yohko said. "In a way, your life is just like mine...."
"Hmmm?"
"I mean, I'm a 108th generation demon hunter. I didn't really ask to be, or want to be, but it's my heritage. Grandmother began training me only a few months ago, and already I've fought a bunch of demons."
Kagome smiled. "Yeah, I guess that's true. I didn't ask for this, either. Sometimes I wish I could just be a normal girl, like Chikako, or Ranma...."
*Normal, huh?* Ranma thought to herself. *Girl, you've got no idea....*
***
Kagome left for ancient Japan in the morning, after visiting her grandfather at the hospital. She said her goodbyes, and she and Inu-Yasha just leapt into the old dry well... and disappeared.
It left Ranma feeling sad and empty inside. She'd known Kagome for only a week, but it felt like forever. Ranma had had few friends in her life, and she hated to lose another one so soon.
Oh, Kagome promised to return, but Ranma and Yohko would soon be off to Muyami Academy. The private school was several hours away by bus, and they would only be home on holidays. The odds of them seen Kagome again soon were not good.
Time was flying by, and school was fast approaching, only a scant week away. Ranma's mother decided that now was the time to seek a cure to the curse, before Ranma was away at school. Thus, the morning after Kagome left, Ranma and her mother took a train to the far side of Tokyo.
"The Tendos are friends of the family," Nodoka said. "Tendo-san trained with your father. They were very close friends."
Ranma raised an eyebrow. Father had spoken of his good friend Tendo before, but he'd apparently left out some important details. He might have said, for example, "Soun Tendo runs a dojo in Tokyo's Nerima ward," or, "Tendo-san has three daughters about your age."
What else had pop neglected to tell her?
"Being a martial artist," her mother continued, "we can hope that Tendo-san has some information on your curse. If not, then he may know who to ask next. I'm certain he will do what he can to help us."
Ranma nodded silently, and stared out the window at the gray clouds and the drizzling rain. A cure would be nice, she told herself. She'd be a man again. It was everything she'd wanted since falling into that horrible pool.
...So why, after only a week, was she having second thoughts?
***
The Tendo household was much larger than the Saotome house. That was to be expected, since they owned a dojo, but Ranma was still surprised at the size of the place. There was a wall around the property, with an open courtyard just inside the gate, and a two-story house, plus the dojo itself.
A young girl of about her age had answered the door and led them into the family room, from where you could look out into a neat, manicured back yard, complete with a koi pond. Ranma was definitely impressed.
One long explanation later, Nodoka and Ranma sat quietly, waiting for Soun Tendo to speak. The man, dressed in a brown gi and with long hair and a moustache, clearly did not believe the tale. The three Tendo sisters looked on in equal disbelief.
"Let me get this straight," Soun said. "This girl showed up at your doorstep more than a week ago, claiming to be your son? And the panda she brought with her is your husband?"
"Yes," Nodoka said.
"Forgive me, Nodoka-san, but... why do you believe her?"
Nodoka sighed. "Surely, Tendo-san, you can see the resemblance between us?"
"Yes, but...."
"And," Nodoka said, "Ranma remembered many things from my household... especially the family sword. And, I have the letters that preceded her arrival, describing the curse, written in my son's hand. Do you think I would not recognize my own son's handwriting? If that were not enough, there is the panda, who is clearly too intelligent to be an animal, and who knows the Saotome school of fighting..." her voice trailed off. "Oh, I should have brought Genma along, I can see that now. He would have convinced you, but I see that I cannot...."
Ranma stood up and walked to the open side of the room, which looked out onto the lawn.
"Tendo-san," Ranma said, "I'm sure pop told you that he had a son, and was training him in the school. I can prove to you that I am my father's student, if you don't mind sparring with me...."
"Ranma," Nodoka said severely, "that's a new dress! Do not get it dirty!"
"I won't," Ranma said. "It's just some simple sparring... and I won't be the one to fall."
Soun laughed, standing up. "Very well, then," he said, "but your confidence will be your undoing...."
Ten seconds later, Soun Tendo flew through the air, crashing into the back wall of the property. He groaned, stood, and stared at Ranma.
"That..." he said. "That... that was one of Saotome-san's patented maneuvers! I'd recognize it anywhere!
"Ranma?" he asked. "Can it really be you?"
Ranma nodded, and Soun Tendo burst into tears.
***
"Are you swallowing any of this?" Nabiki, the middle Tendo sister, asked. She had short hair, neatly cut in something like a page style, and wore cutoff jeans and a loose green top. As Ranma sparred with her father, she leaned against the doorframe and studied him with a calculating eye.
"That Ranma's a martial artist?" Akane said. "That she knows the Anything Goes style? Yes, of course."
Nabiki glared at her sister through half-lidded eyes. Akane, the youngest of the three, was about Ranma's age. She had long black hair, and wore a yellow gi, which she always did after school, when she trained.
"Akane, even I can see that much," Nabiki said. "I meant about the curse."
"Well," Akane said, "I don't believe she was ever a boy, if that's what you mean. Who ever heard of such a thing? Guys don't just turn into girls because they've fallen into some pool of water...."
"Precisely," Nabiki said. "Father's friend, Genma Saotome, said he had a son, but he was clearly lying. If Nodoka hasn't seen Ranma since she was five, she may have forgotten the truth... especially if they agreed to raise Ranma as a boy...."
Kasumi placed her hand to her mouth. The oldest Tendo sister was warm, friendly, and very pleasant to be around. Since their mother had died, she had become the 'woman of the house', tending to the family's needs without complaint. Wearing an apron over a modest skirt and top, she even looked the part of a dutiful housewife, albeit a very young one.
"Oh, Nabiki," she said, "you don't really think that... the poor girl! How could anyone do that to their own child?"
Nabiki shrugged. "It happens. Since we don't know all of the details, we'd best play along for now...."
***
In Ranma's book, men didn't cry, but Soun Tendo was still bawling fifteen minutes after admitting that Ranma was who she said she was. It made no sense to Ranma -- didn't her problem affect her far more profoundly than it did this strange man?
"Oh, what a tragedy!" Tendo exclaimed. "Oh, what a horrible fate to befall such a cruel curse! Oh, I can hardly believe my eyes... what a tragedy!"
Soun showed no sign of stopping, so Nodoka finally said, "Tendo-san, about the cure...."
"Is there a cure?" Tendo asked. "Didn't you say that there was no known cure?"
Nodoka looked at Soun Tendo severely. "Tendo-san, I am asking you for a cure. You are the martial artist, not I. I take it you have no knowledge of this curse, or how to cure it?"
Soun shook his head sadly, then burst into a new round of tears.
Akane suddenly stood and said to Ranma, "This could take a while. You want me to show you the dojo?"
Ranma smiled and got up. She really did want to check the dojo out, and she also recognized in Akane another martial artist, someone who trained hard and might make a good sparring partner.
Asking to be excused, Ranma followed Akane through the house and out back.
"So, you really were a boy?" Akane asked.
Ranma nodded. "Until a few weeks ago, at least...."
"Are you sure? You don't just think you were a guy?"
Ranma sighed, and said nothing. After a few minutes, Akane said, "You're going to Muyami Academy, aren't you?"
Ranma nodded.
Akane led the way into the large training hall. Ranma looked around, taking in the smooth wooden floor, the decorations on the walls, including a small shinto shrine, and the wooden beams which arched overhead, holding up the roof. She imagined having this to train in, every morning -- especially when it rained.
Akane watched Ranma with a piercing gaze, as if Ranma were a puzzle to be solved. Finally she plopped down against one wall and invited Ranma to sit beside her.
"Really, Ranma," Akane said, "you're not like any boy I know, but I guess I'll believe you, for now." She held out her hand. "Wanna be friends?" she asked.
Hope stirred in Ranma's breast. She could use all the friends she could get.
"S-sure!" she said, taking the other girl's hand.
"Okay, then!" Akane smiled, and it was the most beautiful thing Ranma had ever seen, transforming the girl's entire face.
"Wow," Ranma said, "you have a beautiful smile, Akane. You should smile more often."
Ranma spoke without thinking. A moment later she realized that it sounded like some sort of come-on. Her face grew red, and she looked away, frowning.
"Ranma?" Akane asked. "Do you really think that?"
When Ranma didn't respond, Akane said, "I've been watching you since you arrived. You look... lost. Sad. Unsure of yourself. This must be really hard on you."
"I suppose it is," Ranma said, non-commitally.
"Tell me about it," Akane said. "It always helps when you talk about it."
Ranma looked at her doubtfully, then shrugged.
"When it first happened," she said, "I was scared. I didn't want to be a girl. I just... I wanted to die."
"Really? Is being a girl so bad?"
Ranma grimaced.
"You gotta remember, I've been travelling with pop since I was six. Everything I know, I got from him. Pop says girls are weak. He doesn't have a very good opinion of them... of us.
"But I've been with mother now for more than a week, and she's so noble, and caring, and... strong, even. I guess you'd have to be strong to put up with my pop, right? And the more I get to know her, the more I think... I think it would be nice to be like her, and to never grow up to be like my dad.
"I guess being a girl isn't really so bad."
"You're lucky to have a mother still," Akane said. "I know my life would be better, if mom were still here."
Ranma nodded.
"Maybe it's all for the best," Ranma said. "Mom seems to like having a daughter, and she even seems to like having dad as a pet panda, who sleeps on the porch."
Akane laughed. "And I thought my family was strange!" she said. "Well, I can tell you one thing: my sister's gone to Muyami Academy for a year now, and she really likes it. She's going there because she wants to get into a good business college.
"I'll be going there too," Akane said, "but in my case, it's just to get me away from all the jerks at Furinkan High...."
Ranma raised an eyebrow. Akane grimaced.
"I don't know if you'll even believe me," she began, then giggled. "Listen to me... here, you're saying that you're really a guy, and I think my story's unbelievable! Okay, then, there's this guy named Tatewaki Kuno who's an upperclassman at my school. He made this stupid speech last quarter, in which he told the whole school that anyone who wanted to date me only had to defeat me. Ever since then, I've had to fight half the boys in school just to get from the gate to the front door."
Ranma looked at her in surprise. "You mean... every morning? All these guys fight you?"
Akane nodded.
"And you beat them?"
"Hey!" Akane said, "I'm a student of Anything Goes martial arts too!"
"You must be pretty good, then," Ranma said.
Akane laughed. "Well," she said, "it was good practice, anyway... but some of their parents were threatening to sue, if the school didn't kick me out -- as if it were all my fault -- so now I'll be going to Muyami."
Akane stood up. "Hey, let's have a little match, shall we?"
"Okay," Ranma said, getting up.
Before they could even square off, Nodoka called out from the dojo entrance. "Ranma! I don't want you to get your new dress dirty."
"We were just going to spar a little, Mrs. Saotome," Akane said. "I can lend her one of my gi's, if you like. That would be all right, wouldn't it?"
"That's a very nice offer, Akane-chan, but now's not the right time. Your father, Tendo-san, thinks that his uncle might know something about Ranma's curse, and since it's still early, we thought we'd take the bus out to the Masaki Shrine and see what he has to say."
Soun Tendo nodded. "If the master were still alive," Soun said, "I'm sure he would have the answer. However, barring that, I do believe my uncle may know something about this...."
***
The ride out to the shrine took more than an hour. Nodoka and Kasumi sat together, with Tendo-san and Nabiki in another seat, and Akane next to Ranma. It almost felt like a family outing -- or what Ranma imagined a family outing would be like.
"Tenchi's my cousin," Akane said. "You'll like him. He's okay, for a boy."
"You don't like boys much, do you?" Ranma asked.
"No," Akane said, with finality. "But Tenchi's okay, and... you're okay."
Ranma smiled, a little ruefully. "I suppose any boy that looked like me would be okay," she said.
Akane laughed, then said, "Tenchi doesn't have a mother anymore, either. He remembers even less of her than I remember of my mom. He lives with his dad in Tokyo, but when school's out, they live at his grandfather's shrine. It's really big, with woods, and a huge old sacred tree. You'll like it."
It's funny," Ranma said. "Lately, all of my friends have shrines, or dojos, or something similar. Even Yohko said there was a secret shrine beneath her house."
"Yohko?" Akane asked.
"One of my new friends," Ranma said. "You'll get to meet her. She's going to Muyami, too."
***
Katsuhito Masaki, the patriarch of the Masaki family and the priest of the Masaki shrine, looked Ranma over carefully, like an antique collector appraising an old vase. He had graying hair and a moustache, with square, wire-rimmed glasses. His clothing was very traditional, and he had the serene expression of a samurai who had retired to take up calligraphy or to care for his bonsai trees. But for all that, Ranma sensed that here was someone who could very likely beat her, in a fight, to within an inch of her life.
She wanted to fight him, but knew she'd probably never get the chance.
"The curse did a very thorough job, I see," the grandfather said. "You're a very healthy girl, Ranma… very healthy."
"Grandpa!" Tenchi exclaimed. The old man smiled, a twinkle in his eye.
"Just stating the facts," the grandfather said. "I must say, I've never encountered it's like, although I've certainly heard of Jusenkyo. I can't remember the specifics, but I'll look through my books. I have a lot of notes and records of ancient curses, and perhaps... no, I'm almost certain that I've got something about it..."
Tenchi's father and grandfather were not related by blood, despite having the same last name, but they did look a bit like each other. Nobuyuki Masaki had a similar moustache and similar glasses. However, he was not nearly so trim and well-muscled as the grandfather, and Ranma wasn't surprised to learn he was an architect, with little knowledge of martial arts.
Tenchi was a different matter entirely. The youngest Masaki was about the same age as Ranma and Akane, and Ranma recognized a kindred soul -- someone who trained as long and hard as Ranma did. With any luck, Ranma thought, they'd get a chance to spar with each other.
Tenchi greeted her politely. "Nice to meet you, Miss Ranma," he said.
For the first time in days, Ranma felt self-conscious about being a girl, and wearing a dress. When it came to being friends with Yohko, and Kagome, and Akane, it wasn't a problem, but now... Ranma and Tenchi couldn't exactly be best buddies, could they? As far as Ranma knew, guys didn't really have friends that were girls, unless they were girlfriends. How did you relate to a boy, when you were a girl?
Luckily for Ranma, she wasn't given to introspection. In five minutes the whole train of thought had left her head and rolled on out the door, and, instead of trying to figure out how she should act, she acted like herself.
"This may take a while," the grandfather said. "Would you like to stay for dinner? I can even offer you rooms for the night, if it gets too late."
"That's kind of you, Masaki-san," Tendo said.
"That's a very generous offer," Nodoka said. "Now, if you would be so kind, which way is the kitchen?"
"I don't think..." the grandfather began.
"Nonsense," Nodoka said. "If you're going to extend such generous hospitality, the least I can do is prepare dinner for our group. Kasumi and I have brought some supplies...."
The grandfather smiled. "Well, to be honest, I do get tired of my own cooking...."
Grandfather Masaki wandered off to study his books, with Soun Tendo following him. Nobuyuki Masaki led Kasumi and Nodoka were into the kitchen. Nabiki got up to wander about the house, leaving Akane, Ranma, and Tenchi in the living room, looking at each other.
"So," Tenchi said, scratching the back of his head nervously. "Grandfather says you're both martial artists...."
The two girls nodded.
"Ah... I had something I was going to do..." Tenchi paused, and then grinned. "I guess I can show the two of you. It's a little ways up the hill... do you want to come along?"
Ranma looked at Akane. She shrugged.
"Sure," Ranma said.
***
The old path wound up the hill, through the woods and between rows of bamboo. It was a steep climb, and neither Akane nor Ranma were really dressed for it. Still, they were both in good shape, and managed to keep up with Tenchi without too much trouble.
It was a wonderful spring day, with the sun warming the ground and with birds chirping in the trees and animals rummaging through the undergrowth. It reminded Ranma of being out on the road with pop. If nothing else, her father truly appreciated how beautiful nature could be.
"Is it really true that you were a boy?" Tenchi asked as they climbed.
Ranma nodded her head. "Pop and I were training in China. We went to this place called Jusenkyo -- the legendary training ground of accursed springs. I guess there are all sorts of warnings posted about it, but Pop can't read Chinese, so... I fell into this pool where some girl drowned a long time ago, and I turned into a girl. Pop fell into a different pool, and turned into a panda."
"I can't even imagine you as a guy," Tenchi said. "It must be strange."
"You said it," Ranma agreed. Anyway, that's why we're here, to see if your grandfather knows of a cure."
"Where do you go to school?" the boy asked.
"Mom's sending me off to some private school. She says I've got a lot to catch up on. I guess she's right."
"It's a good school," Akane said. "Muyami Academy. My sister goes there. I'll be going too." Her eyes lit up. "Hey, Ranma! Maybe we could be roommates?"
"Uh..." Ranma faltered, suddenly realizing the full implications of being at a private school. "You mean, I'll have to share a room with... a girl?"
"Well, of course," Akane said. "I mean, since you're a girl yourself...."
"Yeah, I guess. I didn't really consider that. I mean, I'm used to living out on my own, nobody but pop and I... and I've only been a girl for three weeks."
"Anyway," Akane said, "school starts next week. How about you, Tenchi?"
"Hmmm?" the boy said. "Oh, it's only a day away. In fact, if you'd waited until tomorrow to come, neither dad or I would've been here."
The path ended at a rock outcropping -- a huge slab of rock balanced on two pillars of rock, forming the entrance to a cave. Green moss covered the rocks, and as they stood there, they could hear the wind whisper and moan through the bamboo. It was an eerie sound, one that Ranma had never quite gotten used to.
Tenchi headed into the cave. The floor was level and there was decent head clearance. Ranma looked at Akane, shrugged, and followed the Masaki boy in.
Twenty feet into the cave they came to a locked, rusting gate. Tenchi wrapped his hands around two of the bars and stared for a moment into the depths beyond, then glanced back at them and grinned.
"I've been coming here and staring through these bars since I was a kid," he said. "I've never been past this point, 'though."
"What's in there?" Akane asked.
"I'm not sure," Tenchi replied. "Once, grandpa told me a demon was locked up in there."
Ranma glanced at Akane. The statement didn't seem to worry her much, but she didn't have Ranma's recent experience to draw on. Until yesterday, Ranma hadn't believed in demons, either. Akane, meanwhile, didn't appear to believe in Ranma's curse, let alone in demons.
"A demon?" Ranma repeated.
"That's what he said," Tenchi added. "A long time ago, a demon descended from the heavens to terrorize the people and destroy their villages. But then, a heavenly warrior, riding on a dragon, came. Using his holy sword, he defeated it, and bound it here forever with his sword embedded in the ground.
"That was Yosho... my direct ancestor. That's the story, anyway."
"Demons?" Ranma asked, again.
"Yeah. Can you believe that? Like anyone believes in demons these days."
"Yeah," Ranma said half-heartedly. She rattled the steel bars and stared past them. "Well, at least it's locked in there," she said. "I guess we'll never know the truth, but...."
She paused. Tenchi grinned as he held up an iron ring, from which dangled several old iron keys.
"I stole these from my grandpa just an hour ago," he said. "Want to check it out?"
"Um..." Ranma said.
"Come on," Tenchi said, "it's just an old cave. Or are you scared?"
"I ain't scared of nothin'!" Ranma growled.
"Then how about you, Akane?" Tenchi asked.
"I..." Akane saw the challenge in the eyes of her second cousin. "I... ah, n-no, I'm not scared," she finally said. "But, Ranma, I don't think we should...."
Ranma bit her lip, thinking. "I agree," she said, then crossed her arms and stared at Tenchi. "You're going in there, regardless, aren't you?" she said. "Either now, with us, or later, after we've gone. Right, Tenchi?"
"Well..." Tenchi said. "I've always wanted to check it out... promise you won't tell grandpa?"
"Better if there's three of us, than just him," Ranma said. Akane sighed.
"Okay, I... I guess you're right...."
"Just a second, 'though," Ranma said, and ran out of the cave. When she returned, she was carrying a solid, three-foot piece of wood.
"What's that for?" Tenchi asked.
"Something to bash demons with," Ranma said.
Tenchi laughed. "That's the spirit!" He placed the key in the rusted lock. "Look out, demon," he called out. "Here we come!"
*to be continued*
Chapter Three: Awakenings and Revelations
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