"Minami had several additional print runs made, but no matter how far it spread I doubt that many people outside of Nerima actually will have taken it seriously," Nabiki replied. "Remember that your curse was mentioned in it. People who didn't know that something like a gender changing curse was real will likely have dismissed the entire thing."
"Well I recognize many of them from school, but there are some people here that I have never seen before. I guess I will mingle a bit with them to get to know my students before lessons starts," Ranma decided.
Ranma headed first for a knot of familiar faces. Several of his classmates from school had decided to come. He did not know if they were ready for this sort of thing.
"Dai'! 'Roshi! What are you doing here?" he greeted his friends.
"Hi, Ranma," Daisuke answered, "we just thought that we would drop by and see what this course you are doing here is all about."
"Just like this? At the prices that Nabiki asks?" Ranma wondered.
"Well, I found an anonymous note in my locker the other day telling me I should try this. It is probably just someone doing a prank at my expense," Hiroshi admitted sheepishly. "But everyone else was going and I thought I might as well join too on the off chance that there was something to it."
"I got something a bit more personal," Daisuke confided," but I am also confused. Sayuri asked me out of the blue if I was going and when I said I didn't plan to she told me that maybe I should."
"I am here because of a bet with Yoshiko," explained Kouji.
They all turned to the fourth boy in the group.
"Hey I don't have any promise of a willing girl lined up, but I just thought I would try this master thing anyway and see what came up." Takendo declared full of hope and optimism.
"And you Gos'?" Ranma addressed the boy who stood by himself a bit off from the rest of the boys from Ranma's class.
"Me?" Gosunkugi squeaked, no doubt startled that anybody had actually noticed his presence. "I, uh, I am here because of a magic foretelling."
"None of your magic ever works," Daisuke cautioned.
"It wasn't my magic." Gosunkugi answered not even trying to defend his mystic abilities. "Miyo made a prediction. She said that something good would happen to me if I passed this test."
Ranma decided not to point out that Miyo wasn't any better at predicting the future than Gosunkugi was at practicing voodoo. On a hunch he resolved to later check whether Miyo had enrolled in Akane's course.
Out front a couple had just arrived in a sports cabriolet. Bidding his classmates goodbye for now, he decided to check out those two unknown slightly older newcomers. Once Ranma had gotten close enough he discovered something curious about the tall short haired member of the pair.
"You are a girl," he informed the blonde.
"You got a problem with that?" the girl replied aggressively.
Ranma hadn't meant to blurt it out like that, but he had just been justifiably proud of figuring it out so quickly. His training in recognizing cross-dressers had paid off.
"No! Sorry, I was just surprised!" Ranma apologized remembering his manners. "I am Ranma Saotome, the course instructor."
"I am Haruka Ten'ou." the blonde took his hand and squeezed it strongly to show that there were no hard feelings.
"And you must be my new student," he addressed the other girl.
"Yes, I am Michiru Kaiou," the green-haired girl acknowledge. "How did you guess?"
"Yes, most people would just see me wearing the pants in our relationship and assumed that I am the one in charge," Haruka added impressed.
"Nah," Ranma dismissed that idea. "You are just like my Akane, acting all tough on the outside, but you really need someone to take care of you."
Haruka muttered something under her breath and Michiru snickered.
"That is very perceptive of you," Michiru agreed.
"Anyway I better go now!" Haruka declared obviously trying to end this for her very embarrassing discussion. "I am going to drive out to Whirlwind to see if Chihiro has gotten in the new motor parts yet and will pick you back up once you are done here."
"Have fun and don't spend all your money in that store again," Michiru told her before kissing her goodbye.
"Originally we were mostly interested in the chance of getting any sort of legal recognition of our relationship, but after talking to the counselor, I think that this might really do Haruka some good," Michiru confided to Ranma as she watched her girlfriend drive off.
Ranma escorted her inside. It was getting slightly crowded and Michiru stood out as the only girl here. Or so Ranma thought until he noticed Kodachi among the waiting students.
Seeking out and dragging Nabiki aside Ranma demanded angrily: "What is the crazy gymnast doing here? I thought we said no Kunou?"
"Relax, Saotome," Nabiki told him while freeing herself from his grip. "Kodachi has promised to behave herself. She really isn't as bad as the rest of her family."
This might have been true, but was also not saying much.
"Are any of the other crazies here?" Ranma wanted to know.
"If you ask me they are all crazy," Nabiki replied, "but the only other member of your and Akane's fan-club here is Ukyou."
"Ukyou is here?" Ranma asked looking around.
"Yes, over there." Nabiki pointed her out. "And she enrolled in both courses. Something about keeping her options open."
While Ranma tried to puzzle that out a young man approached them. He looked rather confused and lost, not fitting in at all with the rest of the younger crowd.
"Can I help you," Nabiki offered.
"I am not sure," the man answered hesitating. "I didn't realize just what kind of course this was up until now."
"Hello, Keiichi," Michiru introduced herself into the discussion. "I thought I recognized you from that cycle shop that Haruka spends all her money."
"Miss Kaiou, hello," the young men brightened up seeing a familiar face.
"So what is your problem," Nabiki asked him.
"I think I have been the victim of a prank," Keiichi explained. "I thought that my girlfriend left me a note telling me to come here, but now I think it must have been one of her sisters setting me up. I really can't imagine her sending me to a course like this."
"What sort of person would play such a mean prank on her own sister?" Ranma demanded outraged. "You don't joke with things like this."
Next to him Nabiki coughed and sneezed simultaneously almost choking herself in the process.
"Maybe it is not a prank and your girlfriend is giving you a hint that she wants you to be more assertive," Michiru suggested.
Keiichi did not look convinced.
"Why don't you just sit in on the first lesson for now," Ranma suggested noting the time. "If it turns out to have all been a mistake, Nabiki will glad to refund your money."
Nabiki didn't look like she wanted to, but Ranma left her little choice as he herded his students into the dojou for their first lesson.
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(Posted Mon, 28 Mar 2005 22:45)
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