“Ah, there you are,” Soun said to his two youngest daughters as they reentered the Tendo compound. “I know the two of you don’t like to have your routines interrupted, but could you come to the family room after you both have cleaned up a bit? I have an announcement to make.”
“Announcement?” Akane asked of no one in particular. “What does he mean by that?”
“I don’t know,” replied her little sister, “but he certainly looks happy as a crab.”
Akane resisted the urge to roll her eyes at her sister’s malapropism. “That’s ‘happy as a clam,’ Minako.”
“Isn’t that what I said?”
“No, you said ‘happy as a crab.’”
“Oh. Whoops.” For some reason, Minako always seemed to have trouble with idiomatic phrases, often leaving her family very much confused, though Akane suspected it wouldn’t be nearly as confusing (for her, at least) if she could figure out whether or not Minako was doing this on purpose simply to act the part of the airheaded blonde.
But that didn’t matter at the moment, so Akane decided to drop the subject. The two of them headed to their respective rooms to get cleaned up a bit—though that would be no easy task, since their father seemed eager to make his announcement as soon as possible, which in turn meant that neither would really have time to use the furo (besides, they could both see that Kasumi and Nabiki were already waiting for them). Thus, they both toweled off as best as they could, and put on some fresh deodorant before heading downstairs to meet with the rest of the family. It was vastly inferior to proper hygiene maintenance, to be sure, but it had the distinct advantage of not taking up very much time.
It was a bit ironic then, that their father’s announcement was one which they were not particularly keen on hearing.
“Fiancé?!” shouted the four girls in unison.
“Yes. His name is Ranma Saotome, and his father is a very good friend of mine. The two of them have just returned from a training trip in China, and they should be arriving here sometime today. It has long been our dream to unite the schools of Anything Goes, and if one of you girls would marry him, and continue maintaining our dojo, then the school’s legacy would be secure,” Soun said, glancing at his third daughter.
“What are you looking at me for?”
“Well, sis, you are the one who’s shown the most interest in the Tendo school, so you would be the most logical choice,” Nabiki pointed out.
“Ugh, I’ve got enough problems with boys as it is. Why don’t you let him have Minako—she’s nuts about them.”
“Hey!” Minako shouted indignantly, though to be honest, she was wondering what this boy would be like.
Nabiki gave a derisive snort. “Hah! If he’s interested in Minako, he’s probably a creep anyway.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“What? You’re only fourteen years old—that’s barely out of lolicon territory.”
“Are you saying you want to be engaged to him?” Akane asked.
“I didn’t say that…”
“I hope he isn’t too young—younger men are so… young….” Kasumi added.
“Hold on,” said Nabiki. “We’re talking about this guy as though he’s already got a bad reputation, when we don’t even know anything about him.”
“That’s right,” said Minako. “What is he like, Daddy?”
“I don’t know,” replied Soun. “I’ve never met him. But since Genma raised him, I’m sure he’s a fine young man.”
“Daddy,” Nabiki said slowly, “I can understand engaging one of us to a boy that none of us know. I may not like it, but I understand. But engaging one of us to someone you don’t even know? What were you thinking?”
“I’m only trying to do what’s best for you….”
“What’s best for us, or the school?”
“Why can’t it be both?”
Nabiki just groaned and slumped back to a sitting position.
It was Akane who broke the silence. “Well, I’m going to the furo.”
This had Soun a bit worried. “But they could show up any minute!”
“And I smell way too funky to meet anyone for the first time. What about you, Minako? Do you want to join me?”
“Sure.”
“You both smell fine enough to me.”
“With all due respect, Daddy,” Nabiki interjected, “an average man’s sense of smell isn’t nearly as refined as a woman’s. Besides, they’re right. They do smell like they’ve just finished a workout—hardly appropriate for someone who’s about to meet a prospective husband.”
“I suppose you’re right…. I just hope they’ll be finished by the time Saotome and his son show up.”
“If that happens, I’m sure they’ll understand why Akane and Minako aren’t here when we explain things to them,” said Kasumi.
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(Posted Sun, 23 Apr 2006 21:37)
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