I have a feeling I may regret this Kazuki thought before he said to Ranma “How about we change the girls’ personalities?”
“If you say so,” Ranma replied before remove a piece of paper from his clipboard, “but remember what I said: their new personalities are random, you don’t get to choose.” Then he gave the paper a toss into the air before it vanished in a quick yellow light. “Your request has been sent and I’ll get a response back in-. Uh, hold on a sec.”
Kazuki watched as Ranma put a hand to his one ear, like he was getting a telepathic message. Ranma nodded a few times be fore he put his hand down.
Ranma smiled. “Okay, your request has been approved by my superiors. Now, before we give you your test run, would you like to spend some time going through my self-help books?”
“Not this time. Maybe I should at least try to stand up for myself first.”
“That’s the spirit, Kazuki. Learning to stand on your own two feet will help you a lot. So… let‘s get this trial period started.” Ranma snapped his fingers again and suddenly Kazuki felt himself grow dizzy. His eyes slowly closed and everything for him went black…
Kazuki bolted upright in his bed as his alarm clock’s ringing snapped him out of his dreamless slumber. His hand reached out and hit the shut-off button before it took hold of the clock, which read 8 AM. Kazuki yawned. Another dull school day.
“Up and at ‘em, Kazuki! It’s a lovely day.”
Eyes opened to their fullest, Kazuki turned to the source of the voice: Ranma was standing at his window, which the martial artist was just opening. “Ranma?!”
“That’s me,” Ranma said before inhaling deeply. “Mmm, nothing like a deep breath of fresh morning air to clear the mind.”
Slowly, Kazuki climbed out of his bed. “Then I wasn’t dreaming about-?”
“Changing your life for the better?” Ramna finished for him. “Nope. I just restarted your life at this point, where you first met the girls and learned about your genes. You’re gonna relive this day for your trial period and I’ll be by your side for it all. However, only you can see and hear me.”
“At least this time I’ll be on time for classes.”
“And I can get a first-hand look at your life in the process. Now get the lead out, Kazuki! It’s too nice out to stay indoors before school.”
Exiting the dorm, Kazuki waved at his landlady, Karei Hirosaki. “I’m leaving now,” he said to her.
Miss Hirosaki bowed. “Have a good day, Mr. Shikimori. Come back safely.”
Ranma stared at her. “Why is she dressed like she’s a member of the Addams Family?”
“Probably has something to do with my former spellcount. Seriously, I’m not sure why, either.”
Soon they pair found themselves walking through the gates to Aoi Campus. Ranma watched as several students made their way to the gates through transformations or teleportation, or even using familiars made out of paper. For some odd reason, it made him think about his first day going to Nerima High School with Akane. But that was another lifetime for him.
Returning to the present, he followed Kazuki down the halls of the school until they turned a corner and saw a boy in school clothes similar to Kazuki’s kneeling in front fo a wall with his hands in front of him in a weird gesture, like he was using his fingers to frame some sort of view.
“That’s Nakamaru,” Kazuki whispered to Ranma, “my so-called friend from my class and also the ring leader of said class. He’s a pervert and a schemer. If he shows any kind of friendship towards me it’s because its more to help himself out more than me.”
“So what’s he doing?”
“I remember he was using his magic to peep into Dr. Akai’s office while he was conducting magic/physical exams on the third year girls, including Kuriko. Looks like we caught him before Kuriko put up a barrier to block him out.”
Just then, they saw Nakamaru’s facial expression turn sour. It appeared that Kuriko had just put up her barrier, spoiling his view. Cursing, he tunre dhis head and smiled at Kazuki. Perfect! “Hey, if it isn’t my old friend, Shikimori.”
“Act normal,” Ranma quickly told Kazuki, “and don’t let on that you know what’s about to happen!”
“Hey, Nakamaru,” Kazuki said without any enthusiasm as his classmate pulled him to his side.
“Hey, could you help me out here, bud? On the other side of this wall the third year girls are getting their magic exams, and among these girls is Kuriko Kazetzubaki. Her family’s got the school board and almost the entire country in their back pocket. If we can capture an image of her in her undergarments and threaten her with it… think of the possibilities, man!”
Ranma scowled heavily. Good grief, this guy must be related to Happosai somehow! “Kazuki, tell him thanks but no because you have to get to class.”
“Thanks, Nakamaru, but I’ll pass. We’re gonna be late for class, you know.”
At this suggestion, Nakamaru frowned. “Look, Kazuki, we both know you’re a failure as far as grades and athletics go. Peeping’s probably the only way you’ll be able to enjoy life at this school. Besides, the only real way you can get anywhere in the world is by the number of times you can use magic. And I hear your count was-.”
”NAKAMARU!”
All three turned to see a girl with red hair hovering before them, a sinister look on her face as she glared at Nakamaru. Both Kazuki and Nakamaru recognized her right away: Kazumi Matsuda. As she hovered before them, her skit flapped a bit to reveal her panties, although only Ranma somewhat noticed this. Kazuki and Nakamaru were too busy looking at her face in fear.
“Nakamaru,” Matsuda said again, “how many times must I tell you? Using stand-in magic to skip homeroom and-or class is in violation of the Class 2-E Pact-!”
Quickly, Nakamaru began his protest. “H-hold it, Matsuda! Just when were YOU on the side of Authority-?”
“Didn’t YOU make that decision?” Suddenly Matsuda started making hand gestures, preparing an attack spell. Thinking fast, Kazuki moved aside quickly to avoid getting in the line of fire. Nakamaru, on the other hand, started running down the hall as if his life depended on it.
“GET BACK HERE!” Matsuda shouted, flinging attack spells left and right. She didn’t notice Kazuki at all, or if she had she simply ignored him.
“I miss my old school,” Ranma muttered aloud. “Compared to here, the studnets were normal.”
Just then, the door to Dr. Akai’s office opened and out stepped a tall man in a white coat. His hair was long and black and he wore glasses. “I could have sworn attack spells were forbidden this week by the Principal,” he said before his eyes fell on Kazuki. He then smiled warmly. “Ah, Mr. Shikimori. A little early for your exam, aren’t we? Still if you’re ready, you may come in and join the third year girls.”
There were several shrieks emitting from within the doctor’s office. Obviously, the third year girls were not thrilled with Dr. Akai’s invitation to Kazuki.
Blushing at the thought of the semi-naked girls within the office, Kazuki shook his head quickly. “Uh, I can wait, thanks! I was just on my way to class.”
“Excuse me, please. Excuse me.”
Everyone looked to the doorway. Out came a tall blonde that Ranma and Kazuki recognized almost immediately: Kuriko. However, her appearance was different from the one Kazuki was familiar with. She wore glasses and she was missing the outer corset she wore with her uniform along with her garter belt. Also, when she looked at Kazuki, she smiled warmly without any hint of hidden motive.
“I thought I heard Dr. Akai say your name, Shikimori. I’ve been hoping to speak with you since this morning.”
Oh great, she found out about my genes sooner than I thought! Kazuki gulped. “Uh, Yes, Kazetsubaki-sempai?”
Kuriko bowed politely. “The principal talked to me earlier today and asked me if I wouldn’t mind tutoring you for a while. He said that your marks have been unsatisfactory as of late and figured maybe a tutor could help you out a little. That is, if it’s okay with you.”
“Looks like her new personality’s not so bad,” Ranma whispered to Kazuki. “Instead of being a cunning businesswoman who uses her sexuality to her advantage, she’s an intelligent woman who apparently is unaware of her sexuality. Kinda like the flashback version of Gina Diggers. In other words, she’s a late bloomer.”
I kinda like her this way. At least she’s not trying to strip me right here. “Uh, I don’t mind really,” Kazuki said, putting a hand to the back of his head. “Sorry to get you caught up in my problems.”
“Oh it’s not trouble.” Kuriko then leaned close to Kazuki. “Also, you and I need to talk about your other situation.”
“Then you know-?”
“Not here. I’ll be waiting for you at the school gate after classes, okay?” Having said this, Kuriko bowed to Dr. Akai and left.
Once she was far enough away, Dr. Akai closed his office door and suddenly said, “So you merely asked for the girls’ personalities to be altered I see. And hello, Ranma. I see you’re well.”
Ranma and Kazuki exchanged looks of total shock. “You can see him/me?” They said.
“Who else do you think made the request for Kazuki’s life to get a facelift? Now, since you’re here, let’s see about your count.” Taking his one hand out of his coat pocket, Dr. Akai attached a small green lens to the one side of his glasses and looked at Kazuki. A number suddenly appeared for him alone to see. He raised an eyebrow at the figure. “Only 25,000? I’m surprised you didn’t ask for more than that.”
Crossing his arms, Ranma replied to Dr. Akai. “It was reasonable enough for my superiors to allow, and I told him he couldn’t go overboard. And besides, this is only a trial period. If at the end of the day Kazuki decides this isn’t what he wants, we’ll try it another way-. Oh. Hold on, I got an incoming call.”
Turning away, Ranma put his hand to his ear and started talking quietly: another telepathic call. “What’s that?” he asked aloud without warning. “…I see. Thanks for letting me know. Goodbye.” Then Ranma faced Kazuki. “It seems there’s been a hiccup in the main system…”
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(Posted Tue, 18 Oct 2005 02:56)
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