"DESPERATION" (A Ranma 1/2 Fanfic) >From the desk of Megane 6.7 This is a work of Fiction. All Characters and Landmarks are the property of Rumiko Takahashi, Shogakukan Video, Kitty Films, Viz Video, Shonen Sunday, and anyone else who legally owns the rights. THE TENDO DOUJOU 8:20 A.M. The sunlight shone through the windows to brighten the sleeping form of Akane Tendo. Akane groaned and then rolled over on her stomach in an attempt to escape even the faintest rays of sunlight. For a brief moment she succeeded by turning away from the window only to have the sunlight increases by a wide margin. Akane growled in annoyance as she hears the overly cheerful voice of her sister, Nabiki. "Wake up time!" Akane muttered something incoherent and pressed her head further into her pillow. "Come on sleepyhead. You'll be late for school." Akane sighed in resignation as she rose to a sitting position. "Okay! Okay! I'm up already!" Akane grumbled. "See you at Breakfast." Nabiki left Akane's room and walked down the wooden stairs to the familiar living room. Genma and Ranma Saotome were already chowing down along with her father, Soun and her older sister, Kasumi, who ate in a much more dignified manner compared to everyone else. Nabiki took her seat at the table and quickly joined them in consuming Kasumi's delicious meal. After a moment, Soun paused in his rapid consumption when he noticed Akane wasn't present. "Nabiki, hasn't Akane gotten up yet?" Soun inquired. "Is she feeling all right?" A concerned Kasumi added. "She'll be down in a moment." Nabiki replied. And indeed, Akane chose that moment to walk down the stairs. She lets out a long yawn at the bottom and then slightly off balance, she walked over to the breakfast table. "Akane?" Soun was surprised at Akane's appearance. "You look tired." Genma noted. "What clued you in?" Akane responded in a gravely voice. Akane plopped herself down and started to eat. Ranma, noticing her presence for the first time, stopped eating for a moment and turned to look in her direction. "Say, Akane?" Ranma began. "Mph?" Akane mumbled with a mouth full of food. "If you're trying to catch up on your beauty sleep, don't bother, it isn't necessary." Akane looked up at Ranma, pleasantly surprised, until.... "After all, no amount of beauty sleep could possibly improve that tomboy exterior of yours." Ranma finished with the sincerity of a priest taking confession. There was a dead silence and a moment later Ranma went flying through the roof while the familiar scream "RANMA NO BAKA!!!" rang in his ears and continued to echo until Ranma plunged facefirst into the pond. Water that was much too cold splashed around him as he felt his body undergo the gender metamorphosis into female form. As Ranma-Chan came to the surface and spat out a stream of water, she glanced at her new breasts for a moment, sighed inwardly and then stood up and walked back inside the doujou. Akane continued to eat her food without pause. Ranma-Chan glared at her for a moment then stuck out her tongue and walked towards the bathroom. "That's my son. Always ready to admit when he's wrong." Genma said sarcastically. "Or should I say my daughter now." "He deserved it!" Akane muttered. Genma groaned. "I know he did. I just wish he would just accept his engagement to you and then everything......" "I haven't accepted it yet!" Akane angrily retorted. "Now now...." Soun admonished his youngest daughter. "All couples have their little spats now and then. It's all a part of being married...." "WE ARE NOT MARRIED!!!" Akane screamed in frustration. Soun instantly withered under the fury of Akane. "Don't y..y...yell at me." Soun soon burst into a virtual stormcloud of tears. Kasumi stopped eating and went over to comfort him while Nabiki and Akane both rolled their eyes, having seen this shameless display too many times to show any real sympathy. Kasumi, on the other hand, hugged her father close while talking in a soothing voice.... "There, there Father. Let it all out." "You're pathetic, Daddy." Nabiki added. Ranma soon returned to the table. He had changed back into a male and without a word he resumed his seat at the table and tore into the remains of Genma's breakfast since Genma had taken the opportunity to eat Ranma's. Everyone sat in silence for a few moments and then Kasumi exclaimed.... "Oh! I almost forgot. The mailman delivered this for you, Ranma." Kasumi handed Ranma a letter. "A letter?" Ranma glanced at it. "Yes, it's from Cologne." There was a dead silence. Ranma looking at the letter with confusion while Akane glared at him. "Sending a letter isn't usually Cologne's style." Nabiki remarked. "Yeah...." Ranma was carefully checking the letter for signs of a trap, all too aware of how tricky the old ghoul could be. Finding none, he ripped the top of the envelope open and found a handwritten letter inside. "So what is it Ranma? An invitation to a date with Shampoo?" Akane inquired sarcastically. "You had best steer clear of that chinese girl, boy." Genma said in a warning tone of voice. Ranma tried to ignore them as he began to read the letter. As he did, everyone tried to look over his shoulder only to have him turn away. Ranma's face grew pale as he continued to read the letter all the way to the end. Then Ranma looked up, an expression of anger and shock etched on his face, the letter firmly clenched in his hand. "I....I can't believe it...." "What?" Everyone asked at the same time, dying of curiosity. Ranma rose to his feet. "I....I have to go to the Nekohanten. There's something important that I have to take care of." Before anyone else could say a word, Ranma quickly ran out of the Tendo home through the backyard. Akane quickly recovered and rushed to the backyard. "Ranma, you idiot! Where do you think you're....going?" Akane found she was talking to thin air as Ranma was out of sight. She frowned, briefly considered going after him, and then, feeling the eyes of her family on her, she turned around and returned to her seat at the table, where she quickly dug into her breakfast with a vengeance. "Akane, you aren't going to let him get away with that, are you?" Nabiki asked in an amused tone, marveling at the new-found energy that her sister was now displaying with the remains of her breakfast. "....(gulp)....I....(chew)....could care....(swallow)....what that pervert....(slurp)....does with that....(chew)....bimbo....(SNAP!)" Akane paused as she looked down at the remains of her splintered chopsticks, crushed by her fist. She uncurled her fingers, allowing the color of her knuckles to fade from white to pink. "I guess she cares after all...." Kasumi remarked in a cheerful voice. "I'm....going to school now." Akane replied in a strangled voice as she got up, retrieved her schoolbag and took a moment to slip on her shoes before leaving. "Have a nice day, Akane." Kasumi's voice echoed in her ears as Akane walked through the gate. On the way, Akane made a vow that she would keep her temper under control, and that she would patiently wait for Ranma to return from the Nekohanten.... THEN she would kill him. * * * THE NEKOHANTEN 8:35 A.M. As Ranma approached the restaurant, he noticed the lights were out and there was no sign of any customers. Ranma tried to open the door, but found it locked so he started to bang his fist against it. “Open up you old ghoul! Don’t make me break the door down!!” Ranma threatened as he urgently pounded the door with his fist. He was about to carry out his threat when the door suddenly swung open revealing the withered form of Cologne resting on her staff and looking non-plussed. “I had a feeling you would come, son-in-law.” “What’s the meaning of THIS?!” Ranma demanded as he threw the crumbled letter to the floor. “Exactly what it says.” Cologne replied in a calm voice. “What gives you the right....!” Ranma began. “I am an elder of the Joketsuzoku village and Shampoo’s great grandmother. She is an amazon of that village and she must obey my commands without question. She must commit seppuku.” Cologne replied simply. “WHY?!?” Ranma nearly screamed. Cologne smiled at his reaction. “Tell me son-in-law, why is the idea of Shampoo committing seppuku so wrong when you, yourself, would have to do the same thing should your mother find out about your curse?” Ranma’s eyes widened in surprise and then narrowed dangerously. “How the hell do you know about that?” he spat. “Nabiki was quite helpful in informing us about your family troubles for a reasonable price. But that is besides the point, Shampoo’s honor is no less important than your own and she has disgraced the amazon line by her repeated failures.” “We’re not in the Joketsuzoku village now! You can’t order Shampoo to kill herself here!” “I can and have. Shampoo is an amazon no matter where she goes. She was born an amazon and she will die a amazon.” “Shampoo doesn’t want to die! I won’t let you kill her!” Ranma replied coldly, his eyes dead serious. “You’re correct. Shampoo doesn’t want to die. But she will kill herself regardless, because she is a amazon and she will not turn her back on everything....” Cologne seemed to hesitate for a moment. “....on everything she has been taught since her birth.” “I won’t let you do it....” Ranma replied firmly. “I won’t have to. Shampoo will perform the ceremony herself tomorrow. I will not allow you to interfere.” Cologne’s voice grew hard. Ranma felt his body start to tremble with rage, every single fiber of his being wanting to throttle this cold hearted ghoul for being so cruel. “However....” Cologne added. Ranma waited, still seething with fury. “If you should decide to marry Shampoo tomorrow and come with us to China, Shampoo would not have to die....” Ranma was quiet for a long time before he replied. “That’s what this is all about isn’t it? You’re trying to force me to marry Shampoo so you can satisfy your own honor.” “No, Ranma. I’m doing this for my granddaughter. She loves you very much and doesn’t want to go back to China without you. I fear if I hadn’t gone to these lengths, she would have remained here indefinitely and I cannot allow that to happen. She has already allowed her fighting skills to deteriorate over the past year....” Ranma was silent as Cologne continued. “I do not want to force you to marry Shampoo but it seems clear that you will not be making any definite decision any time soon and I have no desire to spend my remaining years waiting for you to make up your mind.” “Where’s Shampoo now?” Ranma suddenly asked. “In her room. But if you're thinking of changing her....” Cologne’s voice trailed off as Ranma ran towards Shampoo’s room. * * * As Ranma approached Shampoo’s room he noticed her door was open just a crack. Ranma gently pushed the door open while knocking to make her aware of his presence. Her eyes were red from crying, her face streaked with tears. Shampoo seemed to be a shadow of her former self. Without a word, Ranma suddenly found himself hugging her, she sobbed into his red shirt, soaking it with her tears. Ranma just held her for a long moment, at a lost for words. Then Shampoo released him and walked over to her window, staring outside at the morning sky. “Shampoo, I got your letter and....” Shampoo wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and turned around to face him. She tried her best to smile. “Shampoo....glad Ranma come. Shampoo never thought it come to this....” “N....Neither did I.” Ranma replied. "How could the old ghoul do this to you?! Her own granddaughter!" Ranma exclaimed with growing anger. Shampoo nodded miserably. "In amazon village, honor come before family. If Ranma no marry Shampoo, Shampoo must die. Great-Grandmother see to it personally." "She....She can't do that! It's not fair to you. Bad enough you have to live by those stupid amazon laws but to disown you just like that....It's not fair!" "It not your fault Ranma. Shampoo fail to win Ranma's heart. Shampoo must bear the disgrace of failure." This isn't China! You don't have to obey her rules here! You can live your own life and do whatever you want to do. We can find a way to...." The words faded from his lips as Shampoo gently placed a hand over Ranma's mouth. She smiled faintly. "Shampoo happy Ranma care for her......even if only a little. But Shampoo live as amazon, fight as amazon, and die as amazon. Shampoo can't reject 300 years tradition. Besides....” Shampoo looked down at the floor for a moment as she whispered.... “Shampoo no want to live without Ranma....” Ranma swallowed hard as the full impact of that statement hit him. “So then....if I don’t marry you, you’ll end your life, just like that?” “Just like that....” Shampoo replied softly, her eyes brimming with tears. “And you’re absolutely sure the only way I can save your life is to marry you?” Ranma asked. Shampoo nodded again. Ranma turned his back to Shampoo, as if considering something for a moment. Then he turned back and slowly walked up to Shampoo and placed her hands in his own. “Shampoo....” Shampoo looked deeply into his eyes. “Ranma....” Ranma took a deep breath. “I’m sorry but I can’t marry you....” Shampoo blinked. “W....What?” Ranma’s face was filled with regret and remorse. “I’m sorry Shampoo, but....” he hesitated and then finished his sentence. “I can’t marry someone that I don’t love....” “B....B....But....?!?” Shampoo was in shock, her eyes were filled with disbelief. “But Shampoo die unless....” Ranma lowered his head in sorrow. “I know....but that’s the way I feel....I’m sorry we couldn’t be better friends....” Ranma started to leave.... “W....WAIT!” Shampoo’s voice was on the edge of desperation. “Ranma....Ranma no leave Shampoo like this!? Ranma have honor....?!” Ranma paused at the doorway. “If I married you with love Shampoo, that would be the greatest dishonor of all. I can’t do that to you. You mean too much to me as a friend....” Shampoo’s jaw dropped as Ranma walked out of Shampoo’s room and turned around with his hand on the doorknob. “I’ll always treasure our friendship together and think of you with fond memories.” Ranma whispered as he gently closed the door. Shampoo could only stare after him, too shocked to do otherwise. * * * Ranma walked back out into the dining area where Cologne was waiting for him. “So, son-in-law, how did it go?” Ranma was clearly upset as he replied. “She went through with it! I can’t believe she went through with it! She was ready to make me believe that she was going to die. I can’t believe she was willing to hurt me like that....” Cologne gave him a sympathetic look. “She is getting desperate to win your affections. I realize you have every right to be upset with her over this latest charade.... “Upset is not the word! As far as I’m concerned she can go jump in the....” Cologne interrupted him. “That would not be wise, son-in-law. By pretending not to love her enough to save her life, you taught her a valuable lesson about hurting people. But if you walk away forever, there is a good chance she will never recover.” “I don’t know if I can forgive her. How can I ever trust her again after pulling something like this....” Ranma replied angrily. “I don’t expect you to for a time. Still, our own charade should have the desired effect on Shampoo.” "I still don't know why I had to pretend to be mad at you when you were the one that told me the truth in the first place...." "Quiet!" Cologne hissed, taking a quick glance back. "Shampoo was hiding behind the curtain until you went to her room. If our plan was to have worked, We couldn't let her think that something was amiss, now could we?" Ranma glanced at the curtain and then remembered that the door had been ajar when he arrived. “Are you going to tell her the truth now?” “Only if it seems she is on the verge of losing control again.” Cologne replied. “Right now, it might be best to leave things as they are. You made it clear that you still consider Shampoo to be a friend and she won’t risk that losing that again.” “Okay. I guess I better go to school now....” Ranma replied as he turned to leave. “Thank you for showing Shampoo the error of her ways.” Cologne replied. “Though it still saddens me that you will not be joining our family.” Ranma smiled faintly. “I appreciate the compliment but I can’t just run away to China and leave behind everyone I care about.” Cologne returned his smile as Ranma left. Then she calmly picked up the crumbled letter that had warned Ranma of Shampoo's plot from the floor and placed in her robe just in case it was needed. THE END And so ends my first attempt at a fanfic focusing somewhat on Shampoo. Please don’t be too brutal as I’m used to writing stories about Ukyou and Kasumi. I wrote this in one sitting, primarily because of all the recent debate about Shampoo as a fiancee for Ranma and decided to jump on the bandwagon so to speak. After finishing “Legend of Ranko” Part 6, I just wanted to do something a little different. I figure this could’t be any worse than “Three Pages Long”, something I wrote while suffering the flu and was meant to be deliberately twisted.... I have another Shampoo story, “A Cat Out of Hell” in the works but it’ll be a little while before I get that done. As always, C&C is welcome. :)