Disclaimer

  I do not, nor do I claim to own Ranma 1/2 or any of its characters. Upon request I am willing to take this story down, though I hope that will not be necessary.

  -o.O.o-

  Chapter 1

  Shifting the Balance

  The small cafe was nearly silent save for the sound of an old radio which emitted pop music so softly that one couldn't be blamed for thinking it was just in their own head. It had been hours since the bell above the door had rung for any visitors. Even the golden rays of sunset had long since vacated the premises. The artificial lighting that remained highlighted the dust in the air as it found its way down to the bar below. The faint scent of coffee which lingered in the air served as the only evidence of the day's previous activity. There was peace to be found in the stillness. Despite this, or perhaps in spite of this, an air of restlessness prevailed.

  Suddenly, an urgent tapping noise reverberated through the store as a shoe began to anxiously assault the hardwood floor. Just as suddenly, the red-headed owner of the offending foot let out an exasperated sigh from her seat at the bar. "Only five minutes left, Ryoga! Chop chop! I wanna get out of here the second it hits ten o'clock!"

  "You know, this would've gone a lot faster if you had helped me out with the dishes…" exclaimed the frustrated black-haired man as he descended down the stairs from the kitchen above. He rolled his sleeves down over his arms which were still slightly pink from having been submerged in steaming water. He turned his attention to the woman seated at the bar and gave her a death glare as he took off his apron and hung it on a peg near the base of the stairs.

  "You know just as well as I do why I can't do that. I can't allow myself to get into any hot water at work. That's why I work the tables and you work the bar!" This wasn't the first time they'd had this conversation.

  "We have gloves y'know...but remind me again why you have to be a woman to wait tables?" Ryoga questioned while lifting an eyebrow at the young woman before him.

  "FOR THE TIPS! C'mon I've told you all of this before, and you know just as well as I do that we both need the grocery money!" She yelled as her exasperation quickly turned to anger.

  "Ha! Suuuure…I swear, you're hardly a guy at all outside of school." Ryoga mocked.

  "I'm more mAn than you are even now!" Ranma declared, her assertion undercut by an ill-timed voice crack.

  Ryoga rolled his eyes and let out a deep breath, "Fine, whatever, just grab your things Ranma. It's time to lock up."

  A smile quickly replaced the expression of anger previously set into her face. Ranma popped up off the stool she'd been planted on and, with a faint skip in her step, quickly snatched her set of keys off the corner of the bar. With a bit more calm in her stride she made her way to the door of the cafe before quickly turning the sign affixed to it around. Just like that, the cafe was closed.

  She turned around and began waiting impatiently for Ryoga who had disappeared from sight. She laughed silently to herself as she wondered if he'd managed to get lost on his way to the office behind the bar. A couple moments later however, the lights of the store went dark and the pop music disappeared. Shortly after, her black-haired coworker emerged from the door of the office before making his way to join her at the door.

  They both stepped out into the crisp night air of the city. Ranma locked the door behind them as an icy wind blew through the darkened alleyway, reminding all who felt it of winter's presence, regardless of the lack of any actual ice or snow. Turning the corner out from the small alleyway which was home to their workplace, they joined the still crowded streets of Bunkyo. The neon lights of a street designed for fleecing people of their money once again illuminated them, this time in brilliant shades of yellow, green, and blue.

  They walked in silence for a few minutes before the shorter of the two complained "Maaaaaaan what a slow day that was."

  "What do you expect, the cafe's only kinda popular as a study spot since it's so close to the school. Of course we're slow now that the term's about over." The taller of the two stated matter-of-factly, leaning his head back and looking to the sky before quickly deciding that risking losing track of Ranma was a bad idea. "And I know that you know that because you also know that the cafe's gonna stay closed after tonight until mid January."

  "I knoooooooow but still…It was so boooring." Ranma groaned, "I'm just glad it's all over for a while. Not just work, but school too. I feel like I should be used to it by now, but midterms always get me so stressed out. I don't even want to think about what finals will be like this year. I'd rather fight Saffron again any day…"

  "Saffron huh?" Ryoga chuckled, "I wonder if he's been 'born again' yet."

  "If it gave me an excuse to not have to deal with classes in the spring then, hey, I hope so!" Ranma quipped, a cheeky grin spread across her face, forcing her eyes into a squint as she looked up at Ryoga.

  Her expression slowly shifted to one of contemplation before questioning "Hey, you haven't told me where you're going for winter break yet, what's your plan?"

  "Huh?" Ryoga looked at her puzzled. "I was just gonna stay at our dorm like we always do. It's not like I can just go and track down my parents, what with our family curse and all. Hell, I don't even know where I'd start looking for them."

  Ranma looked back up at him wide eyed, alarm clear on her face. "YOU CAN'T STAY AT THE DORM DURING WINTER BREAK THIS YEAR YOU IDIOT! THEY'RE KICKING EVERYONE OUT!" Her volume caused the other occupants of the street to turn briefly to see what the noise was all about.

  Ryoga looked as though he'd just been kicked in the face. His eyes bugged and his arms flailed around him as he staggered back. "W..wha…what…" he stammered, "Wh…why?!"

  "Because, dumbass , they're remodeling our building. There's been signs up for months!"

  "Then…oh god." He paused once again, the weight of her words finally setting in, "I'M GOING TO BE HOMELESS FOR WINTER?!"

  "It's fine." Ranma sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose, "I kinda figured this would happen. I'll see if my mom's alright with putting you up in our guest room. I don't think we're expecting anyone else so it should be fine." Her words caused visual relief for the fang-toothed boy. With a snicker she added, "Besides, this may wind up being for the best. It's not like you can get anywhere in this city without me and we wouldn't want you missing class next term because you're lost somewhere in Hokkaido!" She stuck her tongue out to add insult to insult. Content with her assault, she spun around and continued her march towards their building.

  "Maybe I'm better off homeless," Ryoga muttered under his breath, "I can already tell these next four weeks will be less of a vacation and more a test of my patience."

  -o.O.o-

  Rays of light streamed through the windows of the small dormitory room. Despite the occupants' normal aversion to cleanliness, the room was shockingly clutter free. Everything was packed away neatly into a pair of suitcases situated near the entryway, save for the day's attire which was resting neatly atop the luggage. Even still, the smell of sweat and musk stained the air, as was to be expected of the home of two martial artists. Said martial artists were situated on two beds parallel to each other on opposite sides of the room. The two dark haired men were sleeping soundly. A snot bubble slowly expanded and shrank from the pig-tailed boy's nose, his limbs were splayed out as if he was attempting to take up the maximum possible amount of room on the bed. The other boy, however, seemed the picture of peace. He slept on his side neatly, a small smirk framed by a single fang on his face implying pleasant dreams. Neither's sleep was fated to last long.

  "BZZZZT…BZZZZT…BZZZZT…BZZZZT…" An alarm blared from the clock on the shared desk nestled squarely between their bunks. Within seconds both men were up. Ranma shot up on top of his bed a frazzled expression smeared on his face, his stance, while ever so slightly off balance due to the springy mattress he stood upon, was clearly an expertly practiced defensive stance. The years of waking up to his father's assaults were still affecting him even after years of separation. Ryoga on the other hand lazed out of bed, rubbing his eyes and yawning. They both turned their attention to the alarm clock, still shrieking at them to get moving. It read eleven-thirty. They'd overslept.

  The two men rushed into action. They swiped their prepared clothes from atop their suitcases and rushed to get dressed as if it was a competition. Ranma ran into the bathroom to prepare himself, providing the other man a measure of privacy as he got ready in the bedroom. Within a minute they were both out the door, determined to make their twelve o'clock train.

  -o.O.o-

  Ranma stared out the window of the train as it rushed down the tracks, his emotions a mixture of excitement and trepidation. He felt silly for being so nervous. "I should be used to this by now, this isn't the first time I've visited home, not by a long shot." he thought to himself in an attempt to drive the butterflies from his stomach.

  He'd been living in Bunkyo now for longer than he'd ever lived in Nermia. It'd been nearly four years since he started attending Tokyo University. During that time he'd managed several trips to his family home for various dinners and events, mostly at his mother's behest. This would, however, be the first time since moving out that he would spend more than just the day in Nerima.

  He was hardly a child anymore at twenty-two years of age, but even still, heading back to Nerima always managed to make him feel like one. There's a certain loss of agency that comes with staying at your parents' house, one which Ranma had done his best to avoid in the past. He knew he was going to enjoy spending the holidays at the closest thing he had to a hometown, but the prospect still left him feeling off balance. He couldn't shake the feeling that something was going to go terribly wrong, as things were wont to do in Nerima.

  "Ugh...I should just be happy that I don't have any responsibilities for a short while." he attempted to reassure himself. A new thought flashed its way to the forefront of his mind, "One more term. Then I'll be back here full time." He shook his head and turned his attention to Ryoga who sat across from him, trying to dispel the nauseous feeling in his stomach.

  "So Ryoga, any plans once we're back in Nerima?" Ranma asked, seeking a distraction from his unease.

  "No." Ryoga replied flatly, "I wasn't even planning on being in Nerima until this weekend remember."

  "Yea, but c'mon, you should've had plenty of time to figure something out in the last three days. There's no one you wanna see, no place you wanna visit, no festival you want to attend? There's really nothing you want to do?" Ranma interrogated his roommate.

  "Uh…I could go for a warm bath I guess. It'll be nice to finally be able to use something other than our floor's shared bath." Ryoga said, clearly reaching for anything to satisfy Ranma and put an end to his questioning.

  "You and me both friend! I'm tired of worrying someone's gonna splash some cold water around and I'll wind up tits out in a men's room." Ranma exclaimed with a chuckle.

  Ryoga didn't hear him, he was too deep in his own thoughts. "Friend huh?" Ryoga wondered to himself. Heading back to Nerima hammered home that they weren't exactly the enemies they were the last time they were here together. "That's what time and exposure does to people I guess."

  It was Nadoka's idea that they should go to school together. After the wedding with Akane failed spectacularly, Ranma's parents decided they needed to change tactics. If they couldn't ensure that their school would get passed down through blood, they'd ensure it would survive financially. As such they commissioned both Ranma and Ryoga to attend business school, with the goal of them someday guiding the school into the future in the same way Genma and Soun wished to do years ago. Since then, they'd spent nearly the whole four years living together, and Ryoga was glad for it. He had to admit, Ranma was right the other night. There was no way he'd be able to attend college without Ranma's help with directions. It was a miracle they were able to take the same classes most of the time.

  "Though I'll be honest," Ranma began, shaking Ryoga from his thoughts, "I thought you'd also be excited to see a certain someone again…" a suggestive tone plain in Ranma's voice as he raised and lowered his eyebrows repeatedly.

  "Akari? It's been a year since we broke up, there's nothing there anymore you know that…" He trailed off, his voice a touch despondent. Despite their breakup being mutual, it was still a sore subject for the fang-toothed boy.

  "I thought Akane." Ranma corrected, wagging a finger in Ryoga's face.

  "Really?!," Ryoga stammered, "I thought you'd be the last person to want me hanging out with her."

  "I didn't say I wanted you to spend time with her. I just figured you'd want to given your old crush on her." Ranma retorted. "Besides, I'm sure she'd be happy to have her P-chan back."

  Ryoga struggled to stop himself from causing a brawl in the middle of the train. He couldn't forget the shame, humiliation, and pain he'd felt the day Akane discovered his secret back when they were eighteen. He knew she was going to react poorly. She had every right to want to kill him. But he never thought she'd be that vengeful. He'd never both feared for his life and been okay with the idea of dying at the same time before, certainly not as much as then. He shuddered at the memory.

  "That's a low blow Ranma…" Ryoga said in an attempt to shut down the conversation.

  "She's calmed down y'know," Ranma quickly added, "I saw her just this summer. We got lunch in Shibuya after crossing paths at a train station. She didn't care. She even laughed about it. A lot can change in four years." Ranma gestured between the two of them. "A lot has changed in the last four years."

  "Ok fine, but regardless of how she feels, how would you feel about it?" Ryoga asked, turning the tables on Ranma.

  "Well ..uh…hmmm…," Ranma's face flushed as he spoke, "I don't know. I wouldn't hate it if you hung out. Things are complicated between Akane and I. We're not engaged anymore, not after that failed marriage. But…"

  Suddenly Ranma didn't feel like talking anymore.

  -o.O.o-

  The roads were covered in the last remnants of falling leaves, scattered about like paint flicked carelessly off a brush. It was an awkward sort of cold. There was a chill in the air, made worse whenever a stray gust of wind decided to stroll through the corridors of buildings. However, if you stood in the sun for too long you'd quickly find yourself warming. That fact combined with the high humidity made it so that you could easily start sweating in even just a windbreaker. The unfortunate result being that there was no adequate way to stay perfectly comfortable. The sky didn't help the less-than-perfect weather either. Gray clouds hung heavy in the air, threatening to rain sometime soon. Sharp rays of sunlight pierced their way through the gaps in the clouds, occasionally blinding anyone who dared to look too high up.

  Ranma stood at the door to his family home nearly paralyzed. His pulse was racing and he had to remind himself to breathe. He'd been dreading this moment since he stepped off the train over half an hour ago, but reading the sign in front of his family home labeled "Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts" made him feel as though he'd seen a cat. He simultaneously felt as though time was standing still, and that this was all happening way too fast. He looked over at Ryoga for guidance, but if he understood Ranma's pleading expression he didn't show it.

  "Just ring the damn doorbell already, it's awkward just standing here." Ryoga barked at the anxious Saotome.

  "Alright alright geez, gimme a break ok. I just haven't seen my mom or pops in months alright, and they're always so…well you know." Ranma took a deep breath before he pressed the button for the doorbell.

  An eternity seemed to pass as they waited for someone to answer. Ranma didn't know whether he should be grateful for the short reprieve, or upset about having the opportunity to "rip the band-aid off" taken away from him. With a sigh he lifted his hand to the doorbell to ring it again, right as the door opened.

  His mother was on the other side of the door, her eyes were closed in a worried expression as she apologized, "Oh I'm so sorry I was in the midst of cooking, I hope I didn't keep you waiting too long." She opened her eyes and her expression softened as she exclaimed "Oh if it isn't my little man! Come here, give me a hug." She wrapped Ranma up tightly in her arms for a second before realizing that the two of them weren't alone. She released her child and smiled at Ryoga. "A pleasure to see you as well Ryoga."

  "The pleasure is mine Mrs. Saotome, and thank you again for offering me a place to stay for the winter, it's extremely generous considering all you already do for me. If it weren't for you I'd be looking for another empty lot to pitch a tent in right now." Ryoga bowed to add emphasis to his words.

  "No need to be so formal." Nadoka chuckled lightly. "You've known my son almost longer than I have and you're working hard to help our family's business. You're practically part of the family yourself. So please, think nothing of it." She gestured them inside and they followed, stopping briefly in the genkan to take their shoes off before following her deeper into the house.

  They arrived in the living room. The sliding door which connected the room to the kitchen was wide open. Nadoka alone stepped through the doorway to continue working as they talked. Ranma gawked at the home, spinning around to take it all in. A light floral scent filled the air. Every surface, from the small shrine in the corner of the room to the shelves lined with a myriad of house plants, were dust free and spotless. The Saotome honor sword hung on the wall opposite the kitchen, making the martial artist gulp. He knew his mother wouldn't use it on him anytime soon, but that didn't make it any less terrifying of a symbol. The large sliding doors at the back of the room were wide open allowing the interior air to mix with outdoor's, leaving the room slightly chilly. Looking out into the yard Ranma could see the Saotome dojo, a late addition to the house added at Genma's behest after Ranma and him moved back into their family home following the failed wedding. It was connected to the main gate by its own path which wrapped around the side of the home to allow students easy access, though its doors were shut today.

  "Is pops out today?" Ranma wondered out loud.

  Nadoka spun around to look at Ranma as she answered, "He hasn't been here for quite some time Ranma. He disappeared over three months ago. Though he left a note saying he was "following up on a lead for a cure." The poor fool. He had at least promised that he'd be back in time for New Years though."

  Ranma felt a wave of relief wash over himself, at least he didn't have to start dealing with the old man immediately as well.

  "Anyways," Nadoka called out as she returned to her work, "you two should drop off your things. I'll be done with the food here in a few minutes."

  The two boys made their way into the hallway which separated the yard from the living room. Turning right and right again they walked up the stairs leading to the house's bedrooms. There were three of them in total. One large set of sliding doors at the end of the hall led into the parents' room while two smaller hinged doors flanked the hallway. These belonged to Ranma's room and the guest room respectively. Ranma gave Ryoga a nod before disappearing into his "childhood" room.

  -o.O.o-

  The room didn't carry the memories most childhood rooms did. After all, he had only really lived in the room for a little under a year before moving on to university. He assumed he may have lived in it before, when he was just a toddler, before his father took him away on their training trip. But Ranma hardly had any memories from when he was that young, let alone memories of a room of all things.

  Even still he felt a weight in the room. His mother's essence dripped from every corner of the room. The dark hardwood that matched the rest of the house was clean and freshly waxed. The bed was neat with only simple white sheets adorning it. The closet was only half full with the clothes he hadn't brought with him to his dorm, each article appeared crisp and freshly ironed. The desk in front of the window was barren, save for a cup of pencils and a coaster. Turning around there was a traditional scroll painting on the wall depicting a horse barreling through a field.

  Ranma sat on his bed with all the grace of a stone dropping into a pond and let out a deep breath he wasn't even aware he'd been holding in. He sat there, completely still, for a moment before turning to unload his suitcase. He took stock of all he owned: Three white button-ups; two pairs of slacks; a gi; his waitress uniform from the cafe; four pairs of jeans, two blue and two black, all of which were decidedly feminine in their cut; a pair of yellow corduroy pants too small for his current form; one red and one blue blouse; three frankly tiny t-shirts; a denim jacket which was also too small for his presently broad shoulders; and finally several sets of underwear designed for both his forms. He couldn't help but notice the bias in his wardrobe. "Then again," he started to convince himself, "it's always been easier to find fashionable clothes for my female form for the few times I need em'."

  As he began hanging them up however he realized there wasn't a single article of women's clothing at all in his closet, which was strange. He could have sworn he had left behind at least a couple of outfits. A certain set of overalls with "China" written across its chest coming to mind alongside a certain white dress. After a moment's contemplation he sat on his bed only to immediately hear his mother calling from down below.

  -o.O.o-

  Ranma entered the living room once again to see his mother prepping a bag. Giving the room a second glance he noticed two things. The first was that the table was suspiciously empty. The second was that Ryoga was waiting near the genkan putting his shoes back on.

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  "We're going out? I thought you made dinner?" Ranma asked, a puzzled look stricken across his face.

  "Yes and technically yes." His mother responded "I made half of dinner. We'll be eating at the Tendo's tonight."

  Ranma's face lit up with an expression of excitement which he tried to bury by taking a deep breath. His eyes bulged slightly as he drew in just too much air. His cheeks flushed with embarrassment before he was forced to exhale and gasp for more air, betrayed by his own lungs.

  Ryoga snorted and fell into a fit of laughter at the display "Ha! That face isn't 'complicated!'" he let out after finally catching his breath.

  Ranma glowered at his rival turned friend and yelled "Haha, laugh it up piggy!"

  Ryoga was unfazed by the rather unoriginal insult, finding himself chuckling a little more before thinking to himself "This'll be great, dinner and a show."

  -o.O.o-

  For the second time this day Ranma found himself hesitant to knock on a door. Though the effect was different this time. Before he had felt fear, this time he just felt nervous, as if he expected himself to trip over his own words. He clenched his hand into a fist and gave the hardwood door a gentle rasp. A moment later he was face to face with Nabiki and the popsicle stick which hung from her mouth.

  "Oh…hey Ranma, long time no see, c'mon in. We're gathering in the living room." She said casually while removing the stick from her mouth.

  "Thanks. It's nice to see you by the way. It's been what?...a year since we last saw each other?" Ranma asked, easing into the small talk.

  "Not quite that long, my graduation was only this last spring." Nabiki corrected him with a light chuckle. She turned her gaze to Ryoga and sized him up, "Though it's been much longer since I last saw you around here P-chan." Her voice was accented by a gentle teasing tone.

  "Can you blame me? I thought Akane would chop me up and serve me in a bowl of sweet and sour pork if I ever showed myself here!" Ryoga interjected, attempting to form a defense for his absence.

  "A few years ago maybe. I think today though she may even be happy to see you." Nabiki smirked.

  Ryoga smiled weakly, rubbing his hand on the back of head. "Yea let's hope so. I'd rather not be forced to leave before I've had anything to eat."

  They worked their way into the living room of the Tendo household. Stirring could be heard from the kitchen as Kasumi was no doubt dutifully working on the second half of the night's meal. The clack of a shishi-odoshi could be heard from the yard, drawing Ranma's attention to a familiar pond. Suddenly Ranma was a teenager again, reliving old memories. A private smile formed on his face. For the first time since returning to Nerima, he felt as though he was home.

  He was torn from his daydreaming when Kasumi called out from the kitchen "Welcome everyone! I'll be out in just a minute with some tea!" Nadoka promptly ran off towards the kitchen to aid the eldest Tendo sister.

  Turning back towards the doorway leading to the yard, Ranma's gaze drifted down to see Soun and Dr. Tofu, the two intensely engaged in a game of shoji. Ranma blinked for a couple of seconds as realization dawned on him. "Dr. Tofu! What are you doing here? Is someone hurt?"

  Just then Kasumi flowed out of the kitchen, a tea tray in her hands. "No Ranma, nobody's hurt…" she began, placing the tray on the living room table. She walked over to Dr. Tofu and wrapped her arms around him "...he's with me!" Her face glowed with a blissful smile.

  "Finally worked up the courage to ask her out huh Tofu?" Ranma grinned at the young doctor.

  "Well uh…not exactly." Dr. Tofu responded pensively, a hand scratching behind his ear. "It was actually Kasumi who finally asked me out. I guess she was tired of me messing up patients whenever she'd come around."

  "Well that, but I was also tired of waiting to be able to do this." She cooed, leaning Tofu's head up so that she could lean down and press her lips to his in an upside down kiss.

  Tofu's face ignited like a furnace at the public display of affection and his eyes glazed over. He was totally dazed and would likely remain that way for several minutes. Kasumi giggled at the reaction, patting him gently on the head, sealing his fate further. She turned her attention away from the dazed man and towards the tray of tea she'd left behind on the table. The scent of the fresh matcha was starting to fill the air. Sitting seiza at the short table, she lifted the kettle to call attention to it and asked "Would anyone care for some tea?" as though she hadn't just paralyzed a man seconds prior.

  Ranma made his way to the table and reached for a glass, offering it for Kasumi to fill, which she readily did. Ranma brought the glass to his lips, savoring the lightly bitter liquid and letting it warm him from the inside out. Ryoga sat down next to Ranma and began the same ritual. A moment later Nadoka emerged from the kitchen with a tray of rice balls. She joined the others at the table next to Kasumi and began to hand out the appetizer.

  "Now don't go filling up on these ok, dinner is still on its way." Nadoka pleaded.

  Ryoga snorted "Heh, I don't think that's gonna be an issue for this one." he teased, jabbing Ranma in the arm with his elbow.

  "Be that as it may, Kasumi worked hard on tonight's dinner and I won't have you missing out on her hard work." Nadoka reaffirmed.

  "So," Soun interjected as he sat at the end of the table in a lotus position, "how's school been you two? I've hardly heard about it at all from you since you left. You're still in the business college, yes?"

  "That's correct." Ranma nodded "As much as it helps to master the arts, you need to know a lot more to run a successful dojo than just how to throw a solid punch. Frankly though, you haven't heard much because not much has happened. Save for the stress of exams nothing noteworthy has really happened. You could call it boring, but honestly, it's been a welcome new normal compared to the chaos of our high school years." Ranma took another sip of his tea before continuing. "That being said, I'll be happy to be done soon. I can't help but feel as though I've been disconnecting from the art somewhat. I've had to spend far too much time buried in books, and not nearly enough time in the gym. I'm excited to start helping out at the dojo come summertime." That earned a smile from both Soun and Nadoka.

  "And here I thought you were content as a waitress." Ryoga chimed in, needling the young Saotome. The comment wasn't lost on the elder Saotome though, an eyebrow rising in condescending curiosity, like a noblewoman speculating as to what the "riff raff" were up to.

  Ranma stammered for a second before defending himself "You know that's just a part time gig jackass." He lifted an arm and prepared to slug his fang-toothed friend as a familiar voice interrupted them.

  "Ranma! Ryoga! You're here!" Akane exclaimed, a mixture of surprise and joy accenting her features. Noticing the fight about to break out she added "Do you two want to go spar?"

  They both nodded eagerly.

  -o.O.o-

  If Ranma wanted any confirmation that he was losing his edge he had it now. It'd been only fifteen minutes or so since they'd started sparring and he was already breathing heavily. Sure he was fighting two versus one, but that was beside the point. This fight should have been easy for him. Ryoga had given him trouble in the past, sure, but he'd never left him winded so quickly, and Akane…well he was pretty certain he should be able to dodge Akane in his sleep by now. Though he had to admit, she had improved a lot since high school. She still attacked with the strength of an ox, but there was a certain grace to her movements now that wasn't there before. It was clear she wasn't just spending her time in the dojo smashing cinder blocks anymore. She wasn't anywhere near the same level as Ryoga or himself, but give her another year or two of focused training and who knows. She showed potential.

  Ranma was broken from his musing when they both started shouting, dashing across the room, quickly closing the gap between them with fists poised on the offensive. Ranma chastised himself for getting distracted and readied a defensive stance as the two charged at him, preparing himself for the incoming blow. He anchored his feet to the hardwood and right before their strikes hit his chest, he brought his arms together into an X covering his chest. Their combined attack assaulted his arms with incredible force, sending quakes of pain rippling through the bones in his forearms. He staggered imperceptibly at the impact, his feet nearly losing their grip on the floor. He had to stop this fight now, one way or another, if he wanted it to end with his reputation intact. Just then, he heard Nadoka and Kasumi calling them in. The food was ready. He had his out.

  "Did you hear that guys? Guess we should wrap this up before the food gets cold." He argued unconvincingly.

  "Kasumi can wait another minute, that's all we need." They replied in unison.

  Ranma gulped as they rushed at him once again. He scrambled out of the way of their attack and out the dojo door. He hoped to gain the advantage by leaping onto the roof of the Tendo residence. His training focused on aerial combat, theirs didn't. If he could bait out the right attack, he could still win this.

  As if on queue they met him on the rooftop and began another assault. They charged at him side by side and leapt into the air, they each had a leg pressed against the others forming a single point of impact. Ranma knew how to deal with this. He jumped to their side, holding his hands together like a hammer, waiting for them to pass by so he could launch them down into the grass below. Instead, Akane pivoted off of Ryoga at the last second, changing her leg from a battering ram into a baseball bat, and unfortunately for Ranma, he was the ball. Her leg collided with his side and sent him launching into the pond below. The next thing he knew she was underwater.

  As she surfaced from the pond a second later, the redhead screamed at the other two martial artists "What the hell guys, now I'm all soaked! And right before dinner too! I swear I'll get you back for this, you un-cute…stupid…ahhhgh!" Akane and Ryoga burst out laughing as the tiny girl searched for a one-size-fits-all insult.

  "Some things never change!" Ryoga managed to get out between belly laughs.

  Akane nodded in agreement. "Yeah I guess you're right. Though, not everything. For instance: I'm not gonna just leave her soaking down there this time. You, however, should get to the table asap if you don't wanna wind up eating your dinner from a trough." Akane joked, using a finger to push her nose up into the image of a pig snout. Ryoga shuddered at the imagery and stealthily made his way down towards the kitchen.

  Akane hopped down to the yard below, offering a hand to the waterlogged woman. "C'mon let's get you dried off for dinner." Ranma weighed the pros and cons of staying mad in her mind before accepting the outstretched hand.

  -o.O.o-

  Inside Akane's room Ranma found herself twiddling her thumbs. Wrapped only in a towel, she attempted to avoid the blue-haired woman's gaze and, with it, any accusations of being a pervert. The worry was completely unfounded of course. Akane had even been the one to suggest that she follow her into her room after she had a chance to rinse off with clean water.

  At the moment Akane was digging through her closet searching desperately for something for the shorter woman to wear. She figured that since her childhood room had her childhood clothes she'd have something lying around from when she was Ranma's size. But as it turns out, Akane wasn't the only one who'd gotten a bit taller with time, and now all of her old t-shirts were nearly crop tops for Ranma. Her considerable bust wasn't helping the situation. After a few minutes of rifling however, she emerged from her closet like a prospector finally striking gold. "This'll do it! They may fit you more like Capri's than they used to, but I'm certain they'll fit!" Akane held her discovery out as if wanting the redhead to bask in her victory over the closet.

  And bask she did, for in Akane's hands was a pair of overalls she was all too familiar with. "They were here the whole time?!" she exclaimed.

  "Huh, what do you mean Ranma?" Akane asked, a puzzled expression on her face, obviously out of the loop.

  "Oh uh, it's just…I could have sworn they were in my closet back home, but when I unpacked my luggage earlier today I didn't see them. I had no idea what happened to them." Ranma explained, her eyes a bit downcast. Suddenly her eyes bulged, "But…but it's not like I needed them or anything! I was just confused that they were all gone is all!" "Smooth Ranma, very smooth..." she thought to herself as she let out a sigh.

  "I figured you knew they were here." Akane said, a hint of confusion in her tone. "A short while after you moved out, your mother brought them and a bunch of your other old clothes over. She claimed you didn't want or need them anymore and said she thought we might get more use out of them than you would."

  "I guess that makes sense…" The redhead trailed off, a bit too solemnly for Akane's liking.

  "Well, the lost is found." Akane smiled at the girl in front of her, suddenly realizing how close to nude she was, "Now let's get you dressed and then we can join the others before we miss dinner entirely."

  -o.O.o-

  The two girls exited Akane's room into the upper hallway. The sounds of rain could be heard from outside as the droplets bounced off the building's roof and walls. They walked in silence as they worked their way through the hall and down the stairs on their way to the living room. Ranma hopped down the last few steps and spun around to trap Akane on the last couple stairs.

  "Hey so, before we go back to the group and get scrutinized by everyone I just wanted to say thanks for this." Ranma said, her words almost making Akane trip down the stairs onto her.

  "Ranma being genuine?! College really has changed him." Akane thought to herself in stunned silence.

  Ranma looked as though she still had more on her mind though. But whatever it was, she didn't say it, instead opting for "Well how 'bout some curry!" Before turning around down the hall, leaving Akane wondering what the hell just happened.

  Ranma walked over and plopped down next to Ryoga, she positioned herself with one leg held in her arm and the other leg crossed under it.

  Akane was right, dinner was settling down already. Half the table didn't even have dishes in front of them anymore. Luckily for Ranma however the large serving bowls for curry and rice were still present. She greedily filled her plate before digging in. Looking up from her spoon for a second she noticed her mother looking at her with a twinge of concern and condemnation.

  "Oh sorry I forgot…table manners." Ranma said a little bit ashamed of her lack of decorum.

  "It's not that dear," Nodoka began, "or at least it isn't only that. It's just, you're still in that…form."

  "Yea well I didn't see much of a point in drawing a bath while you all finished dinner without me. I mean c'mon, it woulda taken twice as long for me to get ready if I tried to draw up hot water. Not to mention that the only men's clothes in this building are Soun's. At least this way I get to wear my own clothes." Ranma argued, doing her best impression of an attorney.

  "I just know that if Ryoga had been the one to fall into the water tonight, he'd have made every effort to become himself again right away, so I just don't understand why you don't. You're both affected in the same way by your curses aren't you?" Nadoka questioned her child, clearly trying to lead Ranma to a certain conclusion.

  "Yea but I don't turn into a damn pig." Ranma retorted.

  "RANMA SAOTOME," she collected herself, "you will not speak to your mother like that." Nodoka's face brimmed with well controlled anger.

  "I'm sorry. But the point is: I'm still human. I'm still me. Besides, I just told you why it doesn't make sense for me to change back right now. But if it bothers you so much I'll change back first thing when we get back home, is that alright with you? Because as it is with all this rain right now, I wouldn't be able to stay a man by the time we made it home anyway." Ranma finished, shutting down the conversation.

  Just in time, Kasumi exited the kitchen once again. This time carrying a large bottle of sake and several cups. Akane appeared from the hallway finally at roughly the same time carrying with her a deck of cards, and a case of poker chips. Before Nadoka could form a rebuttal, the table welcomed the new distractions.

  -o.O.o-

  An hour later there were no obvious signs of tension in the room at all. Save for the quick glances shared between oh so serious poker players. The sake had lifted everyone's mood and made them exceptionally receptive to the distraction of fake gambling.

  Nabiki was grinning ear to ear, a mountain of chips before her; Soun was stressed, forced down to his last chip; Akane had a serious expression on her face, her brows furrowed as she analyzed her hand; Nadoka and Kasumi sat one end of the table, deep in their own conversation; Ranma was projecting her best attempt at a poker face, plainly bluffing her current bid; Ryoga, his face flush with alcohol, turned to Ranma and said "Hey, y'know I hadn't noticed it until now, but your hair's gotten pretty long Ranma. And why's it down like it is right now? Not that it's a bad thing, it looks good, I'm just not used to it." Ryoga admired her scarlet tresses for a moment. Noting how they curled slightly the farther they wormed their way down her back and rested between her shoulder blades.

  "It has gotten pretty long hasn't it." Ranma mumbled, her face red from a mixture of both the alcohol and his sudden compliment. She grabbed a handful of hair and looked down and pulled it into view. "It kinda gets away from you when you have it up in a tie twenty-four-seven. I think the last time I had a haircut was in the spring before Nabiki's graduation. As for why it's down right now, I was just letting it dry faster, nothing more to it than that."

  "I don't know, I feel like it was pretty long even at my graduation." Nabiki piped up in between hiccups.

  "Maybe so, I can't really remember. You know I'm not one to care too much about my hair." Ranma reminded them flatly.

  "You know, Ranma's hair isn't the only thing that seems to have grown." Akane interjected, pointing her glass to shift the table's attention from the redhead towards the bandana wearing man to her left.

  She was right, Ranma thought as she found herself re-examining her roommate. She hadn't noticed the subtle ways in which Ryoga had changed over the years while it had happened, but when prompted to inspect her friend the changes were obvious. His face was slightly more chiseled as the excess fat of youth gave way to a more adult jawline. Flecks of stubble graced his chin and thin lines accented his features. His hair had grown shaggy and curled near the ends, its volume only barely contained by his signature bandana, an accessory nearly as permanent a feature of his face as his deep green eyes. He still looked like Ryoga. He still had a perpetually smug look about him, a detail magnified by his single fang sticking from the corner of mouth, but even Ranma could acknowledge that he'd crossed the line from "young man" to "man."

  "Okay, well what about you then Akane, huh?" Ranma piped up, a slight rush to her words. "I mean, hell, you changed the most out of all of us. You've somehow grown, what: three, four inches? What are you? Bamboo? That's not normal for a human!"

  "Yeah! Well at least I look proportional!" Akane roared back, her hand reaching out to the faint outline of a rapidly apparating mallet.

  Just then their conversation was interrupted by a knock at the door.

  Akane was the first to get up, making use of the chance to calm down. The rest were left to wait as she stormed off around the corner and into the hall. There was another knock on the door. This time Akane yelled out "Coming!" in an attempt to silence the uninvited guest.

  A few moments passed as everyone waited in silence before Akane opened the door, they all perked their ears up to give themselves a better chance at listening in on the conversation with the mystery visitor. Their efforts were made entirely unnecessary when Akane loudly called out "MR. SAOTOME?! What are you doing here!"

  -o.O.o-

  The glasses wearing martial artist sat at the end of the table, a stoic air about him. The light hanging above caught his frames in such a way that caused his eyes to disappear in the glare. His wife sat at his side attempting to dry him off as much as she could through his gi with a kitchen towel. The rest of the room sat agape in disbelief, still unable to process the sight before them. And who could blame them? For what sat before them was none other than the Genma Saotome, the cursed martial artist, the half-man/half-panda, drenched from head to toe in rain water, notably not a panda.

  "Ranma," he said, cutting the silence and stealing the room's attention, "I've done it. I've found a cure."

  "You don't say pops." the young girl replied, sounding as though she'd seen a ghost. "How'd you do it? Did you find the spring of drowned man?"

  "No no, it wasn't the spring of drowned man. In fact, that was the first thing we tried and we quickly found out that completely replacing the type of curse one is affected with permanently is impossible. But I'm getting ahead of myself. First, have you ever thought about the temperature of the water that changes you?" her father asked, beginning his answer.

  "I mean cold water changes us, hot water changes us back right?" Ranma asked rhetorically, clearly not understanding what her father was trying to get at.

  Genma continued, "Body temperature, that's what matters. About thirty six and a half degrees to be more accurate. You're right, cold water changes us and hot water changes us back, but 'cold' and 'hot' mean nothing without a reference point, and your own body temperature is that reference point."

  Ranma nodded to indicate that she was following so far.

  "But imagine if that wasn't the case. If you had the ability to move that reference point which defines what 'cold' and 'hot' mean away from your body temperature, then suddenly you can decide when you change. And as it just so happens, Jusenkyo itself held the secret to adjusting that scale. I spent weeks in local libraries, working with the guide, and after trawling through records we found what we were looking for. We'd found research logs from a now extinct tribe of amazons who had done extensive testing and experimentation on the pools. Tragically, little of it remained. However, what did proved to be all that we needed. If you remember, Jusenkyo isn't home to just cursed pools. There are also plenty of 'blank' pools, waiting for tragedy to strike within them so that they may inflict their own. We witnessed this ourselves with Akane years ago."

  Akane winced slightly at the memory of her near-death experience.

  "While the water of these blank pools was of no use to us, their sediment was." Genma produced a bottle and shook it slightly, its contents rattled on the inside like a muted maraca. "We found a recipe which utilizes the sediment of the blank pools to create a pill capable of shifting the balance between your two forms in favor of your true form. This is the cure we've been looking for." With a smug grin and a light popping sound Genma opened the bottle and retrieved two pills from within and handed one to both his stunned child and her equally shocked roommate.

  Ranma timidly received it as if handed a tarantula. She carefully cupped it in her hands as though it may bite her at any second.

  "They work by adjusting the reference point away from body temperature. Unfortunately, you can't just take one pill and be done forever. Each pill adjusts the reference point by a tiny bit more than three degrees and you can only take one each day or it'll offset your ki or something like that. The exact details were lost from the records but they made it sound real bad. As a result it takes around two weeks and about twelve of these for you to be cured. After that the only water that could change you would have to be colder than ice, and that's not exactly something you'll ever have to worry about. Even still, I'd recommend taking a few more than that, there's no harm in taking more than is strictly necessary, and it will help to provide peace of mind that you never have to worry about changing again. Personally I've taken twenty already and I brought well over a hundred pills with me. Figured that's enough to cure all of Nerima. The best part is that the effect is permanent, once the scale is set, that's it. It doesn't drift back towards center and these pills only go one way." Genma procured two more small bottles from his backpack and placed one in front of each of the young martial artists. "There's another twenty four pills in each of those. Along with the ones in your hands it should be more than enough to cure you."

  Ryoga didn't miss a beat. As swiftly as he'd ever done anything in his life, he threw the pill in his hand up and into his mouth, swallowing it with an audible gulp. A gulp which Ranma mirrored. Hers was, however, caused by an equally swiftly growing anxiety rather than by forcing a pill down without a drink. She gawked at the pill in her hands, a familiar nauseousness once again paralyzing her as it had earlier that afternoon. Looking around the table for a way to ground herself she saw the eyes of the entire table were now upon her. Her father drilled holes into her with his expectant eyes.

  "Well what're ya waiting for m'boy?" Genma questioned when their eyes met.

  "Yea right…of course. I just need something to wash it down." Ranma grabbed hold of the water pitcher sitting on the table and began to pour herself a glass. Her hands trembled causing her to nearly miss the glass multiple times. Stealing herself she forced the pill down her throat with a torrent of water.

  -o.O.o-

  The night was quiet save for the distant sound of the occasional car and the footfalls of three pairs of shoes as they struck concrete. The clouds had vanished an hour prior allowing the group to make the trek home for the night. Stars shone brightly in the night sky, like diamonds suspended in squid ink. The chill from the evening had nearly turned into a freeze, the temperature lowered substantially by the evening's rainfall. A layer of dew made the world shimmer.

  "I really appreciate what you're doing Ryoga, I'll be sure to scold him in the morning for this regrettable behavior." Nadoka called out behind herself as she kept pace with her husband, hugging his arm for additional warmth.

  "It doesn't bother me Mrs. Saotome, this isn't the first time this has happened. She always forgets how much of a lightweight she is in this form." Ryoga explained with a nostalgic chuckle. Nadoka blanched at the implications of his words.

  Ryoga lugged the unconscious redhead on his back. After Genma's bombshell, the night eventually returned to one of festivity. Between hands of poker Ryoga spotted Ranma drinking like it was going out of style. He couldn't decide if Ranma was drinking because of how rapidly she was losing chips, or if it was the other way around and her poker face was as bad as it was because of the alcohol. Regardless, the end result was that Ranma, chipless, had fallen into a deep sleep long before it was time to head home, and try as they might, no one was able to wake sleeping beauty.

  Ryoga noticed a warm damp feeling begin to spread on his upper back. "If she's just going to drool all over me, maybe I should've tried more forcefully to get her to wake up." He silently fumed. "At least she's not that heavy…and the extra body heat is probably worth it tonight."

  The group quickened as the Saotome household came into full view, their eagerness for indoor heating reflected in their now brisk pace. Genma quickly unlocked the front door. The group let out a collective sigh of relief as they crossed the threshold into the warm building.

  "Well that sure was a night," Nadoka exhaled, her exasperation laid bare in the delivery of her words, "if you'll excuse us Ryoga, I'd like to head straight to bed." Genma nodded in agreement.

  "Yea that's no problem, I'll make sure this one gets to bed as well." He teased, lightly bouncing his snoring backpack.

  They climbed the stairs together and separated in the hall. The middle-aged couple disappeared behind the sliding door to their room, faint giggling following in their wake. Ryoga quickly excused himself into Ranma's room.

  Moonlight faintly lit the room, making its already tidy appearance seem overtly sterile. He gently set the slumbering woman down on the bed. Ryoga gave her a once over. The dim lighting made her seem almost ethereal and deceptively frail. He had to admit, if he didn't know who Ranma was, he'd probably think she was the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen. After all these years, he still couldn't believe that someone so lithe was so unbelievably powerful. He found his gaze lingering on her features, soaking in the fine details and contours of her face. That's when he noticed something he almost couldn't comprehend. Her face had a light sheen and her eyes were almost imperceptibly puffy. She hadn't been drooling on his back, she'd been crying.

  Oh wow...you finished the chapter. Thank you, it means a lot. I hope you liked it. If you did, let me know. If you didn't, let me know why. I know I have a lot of room for improvement as a writer so hopefully, as this story goes on, you can see me grow in real time.

  Annnnnnd, here's where I have to fess up a bit. I'll be honest, I wrote this chapter about two to three months ago. And I wrote half of a second chapter almost immediately after that. So, why am I only posting this now? Well...I wanted to be able to have a second chapter ready completely before publishing this one. That way I'd have a buffer which would hopefully allow me to post updates on a somewhat decent schedule. That hasn't happened. And that's for two reasons. The first reason was Christmas, which for me means family staying over for nearly a month, something I'm sure everyone can admit kinda saps away a lot of free time. But the other is that I've just started attending college again for the first time in years and I'm more swamped than I expected to be.

  Before you get too worried, I want to make it explicitly clear that I do not intend on orphaning this story. It frankly just means too much to me. In fact, part of me posting it on here before I finally got around to having the buffer was to ensure that I'd have yet another reason to stick with it. However, I cannot at this moment commit to any real degree of regularity. My initial goal was to be able to post a new chapter every couple of weeks, but I'm thinking now that I'll only be able to post one every month or so. My promise to you, the reader, in exchange for my irregularity, is that I will never compromise the quality or length goal of the chapter. This is because like you, I am also a reader and I also hate when a chapter feels like a waste of my time or anticipation. I've got in my head a goal of about eight thousand words per chapter right now and I will do what I can to meet or exceed that goal every time before posting. And it won't just be fluff. I'll try to make each and every chapter have a good reason to exist.

  I hope this promise entices you to stick around. I have a lot of ideas I want to explore with this story and I want you to be just as excited about it as I am.