“I don’t like this, Theo.”
Dr Diggers looked up at his wife. Typically for the energetic warrior, she hadn’t sat down after closing the door behind Shion and Ranma (now wearing a trenchcoat all his own, as they went out for some ice cream) and paced restlessly about the small hotel room.
“I, too, am disappointed with my countrymen,” remarked their visitor.
Theo nodded to the old priest. “Hino-san, I do not understand why Ranma is being treated this way. Nor does Shion, although she is too loyal to actually express disapproval.”
“She is also too young to do so,” said Hino with a thin smile. “Unfortunately, she has not been ordered to see to Ranma’s future above her own, as I am sure she would follow those orders most proficiently. As it is, she has no excuse to go outside of normal channels.” He shrugged. “I fear we must make the best of things for the boy ourselves.”
“Well, it doesn’t look like anyone else is,” retorted Julia aggressively. “I had to suggest looking at records of missing children myself!”
“Ah, I wondered who did that,” said Hino. “Enough. I believe, if we come up with a plan we agree to between us, that satisfies Agent Oguchi’s paranoia, the authorities will go along with it peacefully.”
Julia snorted. “Well, that’s going to be difficult. He was suggesting Ranma ought to be kept locked up to ‘restrain any remaining adverse influences’.”
Theo nodded. “He thinks Ranma’s martial arts skills are too good to be natural, doesn’t he?”
Hino laughed. “He thinks your wife’s skills are too good to be natural, Doctor Diggers! It’s fortunate his superior placed Ranma in your hands, because he would certainly be trying to separate you from the case if he could do it without insulting his boss’s judgement.” He turned serious. “Still, his official reasoning has the potential of rational thought behind it. In your opinion, is there any risk of Ranma having any permanent effect from this? A possession, or some such?”
“I can sense nothing of that nature,” said Theo soberly. “I can sense that he has a… damaged existence. The etherial stream is turbulent around him – to be honest, I believe he will need to learn either magic or the higher martial arts simply to stabilise his own health in the long run. But I sense nothing dangerous to anyone else in him.”
“That was my belief, as well,” returned the priest. “Although I can now understand some parts of the fire readings I did on him. I think such training would be wise – the futures I saw for him involve some considerable chaos, no doubt because of the way he affects the ethereal stream you speak of.” He sighed. “However, Agent Oguchi will want more than our assurances, I’m sure.”
“He’ll want us to prove Ranma is safe and normal. And even then he’ll want to have him put somewhere he can be watched all the time.”
“Yes,” sighed Hino.
“We can’t do that,” added Theo. “It would be proving a negative; proving an adverse influence does not exist.”
A long moment of silence fell.
“We can’t stay much longer,” admitted Julia. “I don’t like leaving the girls as long as we have already, even if Mother was happy for them to visit with her. Can’t you…”
“No,” sighed the shrine master. “Unfortunately, young Ranma’s predicament falls at a bad time. There are threats rising in the next few years, and my granddaughter will need my guidance and shelter more than she will realise. I fear I am too old to take on someone as young as Ranma as well.”
“I don’t want to leave him to Oguchi’s mercies. For that matter, I don’t want Shion to end up mousetrapped into caring for him if Oguchi won’t let him into the normal care agencies.”
Theo nodded agreement. “I can only see one way to prevent that, though.” He frowned. “I suspect Oguchi would be satisfied if Ranma was just taken off his hands and out of his jurisdiction, so to speak.”
“Theodore Pisqual Diggers, we already have two children!”
“We adopted Brittany. And it’s not as though money is a problem.”
“Brittany was a baby! Ranma should be starting school!”
“So we’ve missed out on the messiest part of raising him.” Theodore ran his hand through his hair. “I’m not certain it’s a good idea, you understand. But it’s the only one I’ve had so far.”
Julia glared at him, only partly mollified. Then her shoulders slumped. “I know, I know. I haven’t had any ideas,” she admitted. “I just don’t know how this sort of thing is normally handled on Earth-realm.”
“Better than this, Julia-san,” said Hino regretfully. “I fear Theo has a better idea than any that Oguchi is likely to come up with.”
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(Posted Mon, 05 Mar 2007 13:30)
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