“AH! A DEMON!! A DEMON!!” Grandpa yelled, grabbed a wad of wards, and began slapping them on the creature standing there in front of him.
“Hey! HEY! Cut that out!!” The demon swatted away the strips of paper; the wards were badly drawn and thus useless.
“R-Ranma?” Sota edged closer, peering intently at the transformed martial artist.
“Is that really you?”
“Yeah, it’s really me. Why do you ask?”
“You’ve changed.” The boy pointed towards the top of Ranma’s head.
Immediately Ranma reached up and his questing fingers found something on his scalp that shouldn’t be there.
Ignoring the old priest and the boy Ranma swept through the door and raced up to the house, sprinting up the stairs, not stopping till he was standing before the full length mirror in Kagome’s room. He took a deep breath to steady himself before opening his eyes…
In exceedingly rare moments like this Ranma was actually grateful his life was filled with bizarre things; such familiarity was all that kept him from going completely catatonic.
There atop his head were two real honest to goodness cat ears rising out from his ebony hair, twitching in reaction to his shock. Reaching up he touched the new appendages, feeling the warm blood pulsing through the skin beneath the soft fur. Just to make certain they were indeed real Ranma gave them an experimental tug and yelped at the sharp pain the move brought. Yep, they were real alright.
The young martial artist knew he should be freaking out about now, running about and screaming for explanations and cures, but all he felt was calm mixed heavily with curiosity. It wasn’t another curse, this he was certain of. His only explanation Ranma could come up with for his altered appearance was his merging with Hariken and finally mastering the Neko Ken.
A few experiments later and Ranma had the basic major ear muscles under his conscious control. Swiveling his new ears about the young martial artist was amazed at the range and depth of sound he could not detect. By focusing in on one particular sound he could listen to whatever was happening around him for an incredible three block radius!
Hearing wasn’t the only sense altered by his sudden transformation; smell and sight were equally affected. Scents he normally wouldn’t have even noticed as a human now stood out in sharp clarity; the lingering scent of Kagome on her bed sheets, the perfume her mother wore yesterday, and the glorious essence of his mate drifting up from the lock of his hair Ranma wore about his neck. Everywhere he now looked things seemed clearer, colors and shapes more sharply defined.
Blinking Ranma peered closer at his reflection. His irises, once round and full like any human’s, were now vertical slits that widened and constricted in reaction to the light coming from the nearby window.
“Just like a cats.” He murmured and was startled to see the tips of his canines. Grinning revealed a now very respectable set of fangs.
“Ryoga would sure be jealous. Wonder what else has changed.” And seeing that the girl who slept in this room was 500 years in the past Ranma didn’t think she’d mind if he stripped to inspect himself.
There were indeed other changes to be seen scattered upon Ranma’s body.
His height and basic body structure remained untouched and Ranma was thankful for that; his height placed him at just the right level to kiss his mate without bending over. Muscles were more defined and fairly radiated power; he could see the Ki infusing his flesh. Both the nails on his fingers and toes had strengthened and elongated into fine claws. Ranma flexed his hand and marveled at the pearly talons. He twisted at the waist to stretch and caught a glimpse of something black near his buttocks.
“A tail?!!”
It was a tail; long, thick, and covered with a thick coat of silky black fur. Just as with the ears Ranma gained control over his tail through a bit of practice.
“Guess ole Gramps is right,” he smirked at his reflection. “I really am a demon, a cat demon. Hope Inuyasha doesn’t mind this too much.”
Ranma thought if anything Inuyasha would be delighted with his mate’s change. Inuyasha was a half demon and therefore virtually immortal while Ranma, despite his extraordinary chi levels, could only hope to live a few meager centuries before age would rob the silver haired youth of his beloved mate. Now that Ranma was part demon he could look forwards to many, many long ages together with Inuyasha.
Hearing Sota come in the door downstairs Ranma quickly dressed, making sure to tear a small hole in his pants for his tail to stick out of, and prepared to face the Kagome’s family.
###
“Umm, could you please not do that Mrs. Higurashi.”
Kagome’s mother gave the black ears one more caress before releasing them. “Sorry about that Ranma, but they’re just so cute!”
The woman certainly took Ranma’s change far more easily than he had expected. She froze for about ten seconds before giving a squeal of delight and reaching for his ears, giggling as she played with the twitching things. After she satisfied her initial desire she moved onto to his tail, playing with it for a while before returning to her original target. Sota was almost as bad, wanted to touch but being a bit more polite about it.
“I’ve never seen or heard of anything like this.” Gramps shook his head, still amazed every time he looked at the transformed young man setting across from him.
“Well, the way my life’s gone, this is just par for the course.” Ranma took a bite of his miso ball, savoring the taste. Mrs. Higurashi was certainly a good cook, maybe not quite as great as Kagome but better than many.
“Hey Ranma?” Sota tugged at his sleeve to gain the teen’s attention. “Didn’t your name used to be Saotome?”
“Yeah, it used to be but not anymore. Why’d you ask?”
“Here, take a look,” the boy handed him the latest addition of Tokyo’s top newspaper. Curious, Ranma took the paper and opened it, eyes scanning over the bold printed headlines. Ranma’s newly acquired ears twitched spasmodically as he fought to suppress his laughter.
*~*~*~*~*~* HAVE YOU SEEN THIS MAN???? *~*~*~*~*
Genma Saotome, age 51, has been positively identified from fingerprint as the man in white that evaded police during the raid on the Tendo residence three weeks ago. Along with Soun Tendo Saotome is suspected in assisting their master Happosai, the captured underwear thief and molester, in his many crimes and repeatedly hiding his presence from the authorities.
Saotome himself is a known criminal wanted for a virtual plethora of crimes, numbering over 2,000, committed over the last 30 years. Charges pending against Genma Saotome include theft, breaking and entering, bill skipping, evading police, assault, assaulting an officer, animal cruelty, child endangering, child abuse, child abandonment, slavery, and attempted murder.
Many of the charges listed above stem directly from Saotome’s treatment of his own son. Starving and abusing the boy for years Saotome forced his own child to steal in order to satisfy his own gluttony while leaving his son to survive on whatever scraps he could find. What is perhaps Genma Saotome’s most heinous and far reaching crime involve him repeatedly engaging his son to girls whose fathers ran food establishments. Currently Saotome has ‘sold’ his son into marriage to no less than 33 young girls”one for so little as a bowl of rice, a fish, and two pickles.
In a letter released by the police Saotome’s son states he has renounced his family name and sent along several computer disks, photos, and medical files containing evidence against his former father. The young man’s current whereabouts are unknown at this time.
Genma Saotome is described as a heavy bodied man with wire glasses and a bald head. He generally wears a white training gi and headscarf. Saotome also can disguise himself as a large panda. If you see Genma Saotome in either form please contact the special police force immediately. DO NOT attempt to contain or capture this man for despite his girth and lazy appearance he remains a formidable martial artist. A reward of 5 million yen is offered for information leading to his arrest and capture.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Finishing the last sentence Ranma couldn’t contain himself any longer and burst into riotous laughter. This was absolutely hilarious; the fat old fool was so deep in the shit he’d shoveled out over the years there wasn’t a snowball’s chance in hell of Genma dragging his lazy ass out of it. Now everyone knew what kind of people Saotome and the Tendos were thus effectively ruining both family schools reputations forever.
Hmmm…5 million yen. That was one large wad of money. Hell, for 5 million yen he’d turn Genma in himself. Rubbing his chin in thought Ranma believed it would be a good test for his new body and senses…
One glance at the window showed the day was drawing to a close; it was time to go home. As much as Kagome’s family wished him to stay Ranma thought it best if he go stay with Doctor Tofu now.
Doctor Tofu made sure that Ranma knew that not only was his home and apprenticeship open to the young man but his family registry as well. If Ranma approved the good Doctor would adopt the teen as his son, granting Ranma all the rights and protections that a family in Japan allowed. Though small in number the Ono clan were one of the older and more powerful clans in Japan and several members held important positions in the Japanese government. Tofu had already used one connection to get Mousse a proper set of papers so he could marry Kasumi and remain in Japan. Those selfsame connections could also be used to kick Cologne and Shampoo out of the country when the time was right.
Now that he had succeeded in gaining control of the Neko Ken he could accept Tofu’s generous offer. Mousse had already become part of the Ono clan so that he could offer Kasumi a real family which would make the ex-Amazon male his brother once Tofu added him. That didn’t bother Ranma at all, having been an only child on the road he’d always wanted a brother or sister.
Ranma would start his position as Tofu’s apprentice, making an effort to learn everything the good Doctor could teach him in the healing arts as well as the Tofu family’s fighting style. Tofu’s new residence was quite larger than his old one and sported a very well designed dojo just waiting to be used. It wouldn’t be a one way trade off of knowledge, Ranma was going to teach Tofu, Mousse, and Kasumi his own version of Anything Goes so that they would be able to defend themselves if his chaotic former life ever caught up with him.
Besides, he really wanted to see his new family’s faces when he showed up looking like an extra for some American Broadway musical.
###
Huddled behind an empty trash bin, keeping to the shadows as much as possible, Genma rubbed his empty aching stomach with one dirt smeared hand.
This was all Ranma’s fault. Ungrateful little brat, after all the sacrifices he’d made to see the boy trained in the art and this was how he repaid him?? Years on the road, facing the constant threat of starvation and the brutal elements, never remaining long in any one place. So maybe he didn’t teach Ranma many of the things other fathers taught their sons; things like manners, proper interaction skills, and how to treat girls. If it didn’t deal with the art it wasn’t something the boy needed to know. The only thing Ranma needed to worry about was running the dojo and keeping Akane satisfied, Genma would take care of everything else; like handling the money. On countless nights he’d dreamed of the time when he didn’t have to do anything more than sit, eat, and count money, of when his only worries were keeping the boy firmly under his control.
So long as Ranma depended on him Genma’s future life of luxury was assured.
That Akane was a violent, highly abusive girl with absolutely no household skills didn’t matter. Kasumi would stay and manage the house whether she wanted to or not thus freeing her youngest sister to produce the next generation of Anything Goes practitioners. Soun, with his weak emotions, posed no threat and would provide Genma with someone to talk to, drink with, and play games with. Nabiki might’ve been a problem with her less than legal desires for money but non martial artists were susceptible to all manner of nasty ‘accidents’ around the house. There’d have been a funeral, a period of mourning and then Genma could sit back and watch all his dreams come true.
Now all his dreams had become nightmares. The arrests of Soun, Akane, and Nabiki had ruined the Tendo schools’ reputation and he had no doubt the police would be after him as soon as they ran his prints. His stomach growled even louder and Genma once more gave thought about going to his wife’s house for sanctuary but again dismissed it. Nodoka would unsheathe that sword of hers and try her best to decapitate him for his ‘failure’ to make Ranma a man among men and his own criminal doings. Maybe he shouldn’t have married the crazy bitch but she was the only one he thought would give up her child if he fed her the right story.
Well, he wasn’t going to find any edible food here. Heaving himself up Genma straitened his filthy clothes and headed towards one of the city’s larger parks. There were several groves of bamboo there if he remembered correctly. It wouldn’t be as filling as Kasumi’s home cooking but it’d keep him alive long enough to think of a way to salvage something from this whole mess.
###
Slamming the paper down onto the old table Nodoka drew her sword and slashed both the paper and the furniture beneath it neatly in half.
This was a total disaster. The Tendo family was in complete public disgrace and now the same dark fate threatened the Saotome family as well. The article in the paper about Genma’s many criminal acts had been run in as many of Japan’s newspapers as it could be supplied to. To make matters worse the story had made its way to the television. Reporters smelling a hot story were even now sniffing around the neighborhood all day in hopes of catching Nodoka for an interview. She was more inclined to take the blade to them than supply the filthy little bloodsuckers with anymore damaging material about her family.
If she ever saw that gluttonous moron who called himself her husband she’d kill the bastard herself and drag his rotting carcass off to the nearest police station. Maybe that would put a halt to the dwindling of clan’s honor.
Little did she know it was already far too late for any attempts to salvage the destroyed honor of the Saotome clan. Nodoka herself would provide the final nail on its coffin lid.
###
“Wake up Inuyasha, supper’s ready.” Shippo shook the sleeping half demon’s shoulder.
Golden eyes opened and focused on the eager little fox demon. “Okay Shippo, just give me a moment.”
Kaede and Miroku’s concern over Inuyasha’s gestation time were indeed well founded. The baby was growing faster than was normal for a human. If the rate of growth didn’t slow the silver haired youth might be ready to deliver in four or five month’s time. Already there was a definite curve to Inuyasha’s formally flat stomach. Thankfully his clothes were large enough to handle his expanded waistline so he remained in his familiar red robes.
The villagers were nervous around the half demon, the males especially leery of his unusual condition. No matter how many times Kaede told them it wasn’t infectious they still feared to come into contact with Inuyasha. Men who had faced demon centipedes and other dark creatures without running scuttled away like frightened rabbits every time the half demon ventured out of the guest house. Thankfully the village women didn’t harbor such fears and rallied around Inuyasha.
They understood the stresses a pregnancy could place on their bodies, how much more so would it be to carry for a male half demon?
Amazingly Inuyasha was very patient with the village women, answering their questions and accepting their advice with a calmnes uncharacteristic to him. His entire attitude towards his pregnancy was shocking to those who knew and lived with his less than gentle personality, especially to Kagome. The future girl was becoming more and more annoyed with Inuyasha. She was frustrated by the stalled mission to retrieve the remaining shards and by her trips back to her own time.
Evidently there this strange teen coming around and helping Grandpa with the temple. She hadn’t met the boy yet but every time she was home all her family could talk about was Ranma this or Ranma did that. Even her own mother was so taken with this mysterious Ranma she barely asked her daughter about her latest trip to the past. When she finally met this Ranma person she’d give him a piece of her mind.
As Inuyasha settled down besides Kirara and accepting the bowl Miroku offered him Kagome shot him a dark glare which the half demon completely ignored in favor of devouring the hearty stew Kaede had cooked. So intent on her anger towards the silver haired boy Kagome completely missed the faint tingle of a shard nearby.
###
The strange wasp whisked through the trees and branches, little mind intent on reaching its master. A small clearing opened up before it shrouded in a thin veil of mist. And there in the middle of the clearing was a figure covered by a thick cloak of white fur and a baboon’s face. One hand rose, fingers outstretched for the winged messenger to alight on. Within moments all that the wasp had seen and heard that day were transferred to its waiting master.
“Most interesting. So Inuyasha is with child. This could prove to be very profitable, very profitable indeed.” Naraku chuckled softly before crushing the wasp to retrieve the tiny shard contained within its body.
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