On seat nearby, Nodoka Saotome sat, the Saotome family sword being sharpened against a whetstone.
Her face was a play of utter control. None would notice anything but complete and utter dignity, bordering on the cold, in the matriarch expression. If one did not know better, her composure would be absolute. But then one would notice where there had been wet spots on her clothing and how her hair was slightly out of its normal perfection.
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She had sent her son on a mission to become not only a martial artist, but a man among men. Genma had promised her that he would make certain that her son would be the best he could be when it was done. That contract that he had made had been her lifeline, her assurance that once the ten years were up, she would have her son again. There would be no chance that Genma would allow himself to be put into a position of failure in this, and so she was certain that she would find her manly son after their long seperation.
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That Ranma would be the most manly of men was what kept her controlled over all the years. Her acceptance of the training journey had been the idea that her presence would soften him too much. So as many a mother had to do in the past, she had given her son up so that he might learn to be something greater. In this way, he'd become the best that he could be and her sacrifice would allow her to at least have a son that she could be proud of.
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Much of the time of the seperation was spent imagining what her son would be like. How strong would he be. How many skills would he have. How many girls would he charm. And eventually, how many grandchildren would she get to coo over.
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But if the report was to be believed, and she was certain that it was, then all that she had given up had not what she had been promised. Instead of the training journey that her fool husband had told her would be happening, there had been nothing but hardship and pain, even when there was no need for it. All that had been done were travels that resulted in one mishap after another.
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What Ranma was to be was to be a strong martial artist who would have healthy relationships with the ladies. He was to be a man's man, who would impress all that saw him and cause girls to swoon. Yet what Genma had done was to abandon all possiblity of her son knowing of how to deal with the girls. There were no opportunities for him to learn what a real man should know.
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Instead, he had been taught to lie, cheat and do other things but none of it had been in order to have him impress women. Things like those might have been needed, but to do it to the exclusivity of anything else caused concern. added to that was the fact that no matter the fact that there had already been the Tendo arrangement, Genma inisted on selling off their son as a groom to girls' families that didn't know any better.
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And then there had been the training itself. To be truthful, to be the best at the Art, one did have to make the hard choices and sacrfices. But the legnths that Genma had gone astounded her. Training techinques so dangerous that they had been sealed by their originators only becae that much more alluring to her husband. Not that he really saw the dangers, but that he only saw the fact that they were supposed to be 'powerful' or 'unbeatable'. To think of what had happened with those cats in the pit!
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Still, she was completely certain that her son was manly. How could he not be when he had so many girls want to be with him? He seemed to have a talent for making girls like him, or at least it looked that way to her mother's eye. Perhaps it was because of his natural charm, or the good heart that he managed to keep, but he had no problem in that area.
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Not that she thought that it had much to do with Genma's training. In fact, it was likely that it was in spite of it, or the lack of it, that Ranma had turned out so well. And she was certain that Ranma wouldn't tell her about it. Genma certainly wouldn't.
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Holding up the family sword as she placed the whetstone to the side, the Saotome matriarch examined the blade. The fine edge had been honed to razor sharpness and was ready to do what it might be called to do. Taking a cloth, she began to polish the steel, bringing the metal to a high and gleaming shine. Once thet was done, she took the upmost care in placing and wrapping it in exactly the right way.
Then she made certain to replace her appearance to it's normal dignified look and set out to find her husband. The two of them were due for a very long... talk.
And while she set out,:
(Posted Wed, 22 Jan 2003 23:28)
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