Later in the evening, all Tendo family members were at home, to welcome the two guests.
"And remember what I said, dear," Kimiko told Soun. "While I'm all for the joining of the families..."
"I know, I know..." Soun sighed. "We don't want to rush them, it's their decision, and they can use as much time as they want to get used to each other..."
The deputy headmistress of Furinkan gave her husband a peck on the cheek. "That's it! And now, would you please go and set the table?"
Another sigh. "Yes, dear..."
Sometimes, Soun was wondering who was the man in the house. Then again, he knew that he married a witch. And witches, even Japanese ones, have always known to be more headstrong people than the 'traditional housewife' stereotype that's so common with the Muggles... such as him.
Well, at least she didn't mind the contract between him and Genma... as long as the children could make the final decision by themselves. And while their daughters were all talented witches, Akane still showed enough interest in the arts that he could convince Kimiko to let him keep the dojo running... only that now, it doubled as a Duel Hall for wizards and witches.
"These Saotomes... they are Muggles, right?" Kasumi asked as her mother entered the kitchen. "Then I suppose a normal, Japanese dish is in order?"
"Well, they don't know much about wizarding cuisine... but I suppose there wouldn't be much that would alienate them. Still, let's start with something harmless."
Just then, the doorbell rang.
"I'll get it," Nabiki said as she was just coming down the stairs and walked right over to the door.
She opened.
She wasn't prepared to see a giant panda standing in front of her, next to a short, but buxom, red-headed girl.
The girl waved sheepishly. "Hi! We're the Saotomes! Um, can we come in?"
Nabiki blinked, turned around and yelled: "Daddy! It's for you!"
When the two strange guests had entered the house, Kimiko frowned and gave Soun a weird look. "Dear, you never told me your friend had a daughter... or a panda as pet," she whispered.
"L-let me handle this, honey..." Soun gulped. "So, young lady... what did you say was your name again?"
The girl looked at the floor. "Um... Ranma Saotome..."
A lot of poking from Nabiki's side ensued.
"She clearly doesn't seem like a boy to me, Daddy!"
"Would ya stop that?" Ranma said in an embarrassed voice and covered her ample chest.
"And you are Genma Saotome's daughter, I suppose?" Kimiko asked.
"Well, yeah... I'm his child..."
"Well then, dear, can you tell us when your father arrives?"
The girl fumbled with her thumbs uncomfortably. "Um, he's around..."
"Mom, leave off with the questions already," Akane spoke up. "Don't you see the poor girl's shy?"
She was happy to see that this 'Saotome' guy had a daughter her age. He walked up to her and extended her hand. "Hi, I'm Akane! Wanna be friends?"
Ranma looked up at her and smiled. "Well, I... Yeah, I'd like that, Akane!"
Akane grinned. "Great! Hey, Daddy told us your father would be a great martial artist. Do you practice the art as well?"
"I sure do," Ranma said, suddenly feeling much more confident. "There's no one that can beat me."
Akane grinned. "Well, let's find out, shall we? How about a little fight before dinner?"
Kimiko sighed. "Akane... you know I'm not too happy when you use your wand at home. The ministry..."
"Ah, they won't know it's me. As long as we don't tell them, they'll simply assume that you or Kasumi did it."
"Very well..." her mother agreed. "But don't make it too long, or else dinner will get cold."
"We'll keep it short." She turned around to face her guest. "Shall we, Ranma?"
As she led the red-headed girl to the dojo / Duel Hall, Ranma couldn't help but notice several strange things in the household.
Such as the chimney. Normal Japanese houses didn't have chimneys. And then there was that strange clock with the names of the family members on its hands... and the tiny owl...
"Say... what did you mean when you said you wanted to use your 'wand'?"
"Ah, of course you wouldn't know," Akane giggled. "Well, while I am a martial arts student as well... I am also a student witch."
Ranma blinked. "A... witch?"
"Yeah, you know? A girl who can do magic. You don't have a problem with that, do you?"
"Uh, no, that's fine..." Although in her mind, Ranma thought: 'Great! Just what I wanted, more magic in my life... Oh well, at least she seems to be nice enough.'
They entered the dojo, and Akane got out her wand.
"This is a very special wand," she explained. "It's core is a Tengu feather... the wand salesman told me it is perfect for someone who likes to combat. Well, and I'm learning how to combine my magic with my martial arts training."
"I dunno, isn't that, like, cheating?" Ranma wondered.
Akane shook her head. "No, not at all. You know, when I battle a former challenger in the dojo, a Muggle - meaning someone who doesn't know about magic at all - then I'll fight on my own. Sometimes, I even accept challenges from wizards who can't fight without their wands at all. In those cases, I'll restrain from using the arts. But I always wanted to know if I can combine those two styles. Do you think you are good enough?"
Ranma shrugged. "Well, I'm one of the best, so sure, go ahead!"
Akane smirked. That girl certainly was full of herself... but if she really was such a good martial artist, why not? Akane was looking forwards to a battle where she could use all she got.
"All right, then, on my count..." She readied her wand. "One... two... and three!"
"Here I come!" Ranma shouted, dashing at the dark-haired girl. Surprisingly, Akane was able to block her punches with her hands, without letting go of the wand.
Then Ranma broke through her defenses, her palm striking her at the chest.
Akane gasped as the other girl's hand landed right on her breast.
Ranma quickly pulled back her hand. "Oh, s-s-sorry about that, I didn't mean to..."
Akane chuckled. "Hey, relax! It was an accident! Sure, if you would be a boy, I would have socked you... but as you're a girl, no harm is done, right?"
Ranma laughed nervously. "Hehe, yeah... No harm done..."
"All right, let's try this again..."
Akane then -attacked with a kick, which Ranma dodged with a backwards leap.
Akane thought this was a good time to try out that new spell she had learned last week.
"Aguamenti!"
----
In the living room, Kimiko and Soun were sitting next to a bulky, bald man that was wearing a pair of glasses... he was also slightly damp.
"Oh my!" Kimiko said, sounding very much like her eldest daughter. "I've heard about such curses, but to think that there are so many variations of them..."
"Well, this certainly makes things... interesting," Soun spoke up.
His old friend Genma nodded. "Yes, indeed! On the other hand... you two did a pretty good job hiding all of this from me. Who knew that the school where you are working would be a magical one, Kimiko."
"Well, then I suppose Ranma and Akane will both have to get used to each other... at least they seem to get along with each other just fine."
"Well, that's true, honey..."
"PERVERT!"
Kimiko sighed. "Guess I spoke too soon..."
They ran to the dojo, where a damp, very male Ranma was wildly dodging the hammer strikes of a pissed off Akane.
"Hey, I thought you said it was an accident."
"Yeah, but you're a BOY! That's completely different! You creep! What was the big idea, grabbing me on the chest like that?"
"Oh man... can't you let me explain at least...? Pops, don't just stand there, do something!"
The three parents sighed.
"Yes, this is indeed going to be an interesting relationship..." Genma muttered.
----
Later that evening...
"Akane, you really have to control that temper of yours. Of course Ranma was hesitant to tell him about his curse. Especially not after you said you would hit him."
"Sorry, Mom..." Akane said in a grumbling voice. She still felt betrayed... she had so been looking forward to have a new friend...
Her mother smiled. "Don't you worry, dear! I'm pretty sure that the two of you can still be friends. He seems like such a nice boy..."
Akane groaned. "Mom, did you have to use that Legilimancy of yours again?" It was hard to hide something from your mother if she was able to read your thoughts.
"Oh, I'm not doing it all the time," Kimiko smirked. "Only when I feel that it would be appropriate."
"Um... I'm sorry about all this, Mrs. Tendo..." Ranma said uncomfortably.
"Don't worry about it too much, Ranma!" the Tendo matriarch replied. "Actually, your fight with Akane gave me a very nice idea... Your father said you aren't visiting school at the moment, right?"
"Well, that's true, but..."
"Then what would you say if I offer you a job at the school as my assistant?" She smiled. "I'm also the teacher for Defense against the Dark Arts, and the leader of the Duel Club, you know? And there are many students at Furinkan that have expressed their desire to fight just like Akane... to be able to combine the arts with magic. I'm not skilled in the arts, I'm afraid, and I couldn't really convince my husband to do it."
"M-me? But I'm not... I can't do any magic!"
"That's not important. Just show my students how to practice the standard martial arts moves, and I'll try to combine it with my magical lessons. Your father told me how good you were, I don't believe you would have trouble teaching those teenagers."
"Besides," Genma intervened with a grin. "It would be a good excuse to be close to Akane."
While Akane wished she could punch Genma in the face, Ranma wasn't sure what to say.
Well, he didn't have anything else to do, so...
"Um... I guess I can do it."
Kimiko smiled. "Great!"
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(Posted Sun, 22 Apr 2007 08:58)
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