Disclaimer: Ranma ½ and its characters and settings belong to Rumiko Takahashi, Shogakukan, Kitty, and Viz Video. The Wheel of Time and its characters and settings belong to Robert Jordan.

I haven't proofread this or anything, but I typed it up in a couple of hours, so I'm happy. Enjoy.

Chapter Four

Ranma glared dangerously at Kuno as he entered the school grounds the morning after their visit to his grandfather's jungle site. His right arm was in a cast up to the elbow and he wore a sling around his neck to support the broken limb. Oh yes, lots of stress relief involved in getting one's arm broken by an unnaturally skilled swordsman and his equally unnatural wooden sword.

Kuno looked as if he were about to cross the courtyard and speak to his teacher, but the look Ranma was directing at him somehow penetrated to his brain and he thought better of the action. His shoulders slumped and he turned to face a group of kendo club members. He was instructing the group in tactics that they could use to subdue Akane in the upcoming morning fight. Not that Ranma would let them win, but Kuno wanted his fellow idiots to make a halfway decent showing of themselves.

This morning Ranma opted for a simple, but effective glowing fist of Air. It swung back and forth through Akane's attackers, knocking them aside and piling them into two heaps, one on either side of the girl. The funny part was that by the time almost all the boys were finished, Akane was making funny gestures, thinking that they were somehow controlling the arm.

Ranma growled soundlessly and returned to the Oneness as he was jostled about in the hallway, aggravating his broken arm. He wished Healing could be used on one's self. Too bad it didn't work that way, and Arin was a poor Healer. Ranma wasn't about to let Kuno even attempt anything nearly so complex as the weaves involved in healing a broken bone. He shrugged through the questions asked by a few acquaintances about his arm and waved off more than a few concerned girls. At least the break was clean and small. He'd be able to get the cast of in a little over a month, if he was lucky.

"Well now, what have we here?" Ranma recognized the voice as Nabiki's, and he turned around slowly to face her. She still had her camera around her neck from taking pictures of Akane's 'magic' and there was a stray leaf tangled in her hair.

"You mean this?" Ranma pulled the loose side of his coat back to better show his arm. Nabiki nodded. "Training accident. I should’a known better than ask Kuno to stop holding back. Oh well, we gotta learn from our mistakes, eh?"

"Too true. Listen, Ranma," Nabiki began, not really sounding concerned, but somehow coming across as if she were, "Kuno is a buffoon. I know you've been getting along with him so far, but you should be careful around him anyway."

"It really was a mistake, Nabiki. You should have seen his face when he realized he had hurt me. It was pathetic." The last bell for class rang. "That's my cue. Thanks for caring, by the way," he finished, grinning slightly before slipping into the crowd.

Nabiki stared after him, wondering why he thought she cared. Arrogant boy. She had a right to know whether he was going to use his injury to back out of their upcoming date. Saturday nights were some of her sparse free time, and she didn't plan on wasting it by not making any plans if Ranma got himself hospitalized by Kuno.

Ranma got out of doing anything in gym thanks to his condition. It had to have a few perks, after all. He spent the time lounging, mostly, though every so often he would channel a flow of Air and redirect the softball the girls were using to make it look like it dropped out of the air and into Akane's glove or accelerate a kicked soccer ball from the boy's game to a net slashing blur. The boys took the occasional phenomena in good stride, likely assuming that their own skill and strength was involved. The softball team opposing Akane's looked ready to do murder.

"Is it true that you're going out with Nabiki Tendo on Saturday?" asked one of the boys in the locker room. Hiroshi, the boy was a pervert, but not a pervert in a bad way. Ranma had even borrowed some porn from him and Daisuke, his friend.

Ranma shrugged and replied, "Yeah. Why do you care?"

More than one boy looked at Ranma with pity in their eyes and sympathy on their faces. Ranma had heard some stories about the girl, and had seen her in action enough times to know that she was a money grubbing scoundrel, but he was a bit unnerved by the boys' reactions.

"He's so brave."

"Must be rich, too."

"She is hot, but it's not worth it."

Those and several other comments came from all over the room. Daisuke pulled his shirt on and said, “We’re just looking out for you, that's all. No one in our class has ever gone out with her, but we've all heard the stories. Hundred-thousand-yen credit card bills, that kind of thing. One guy had to sale his car to make the payments from one date. And whatever you do, don't let her loan you money. Two hundred percent interest rates are evil."

It seemed that everyone had a piece of advice to give him, and Ranma accepted it all gratefully, fearing that he may have gotten in over his head. He couldn't cancel the date now, not without looking like a chicken, but Saturday was looking a lot less friendly by the minute. In exchange for the help, Ranma said, “Thanks a lot, you guys. Since we're on the subject, I can warn you all about Sara. She looks harmless, but she has whips, and she likes to use them." From that point on the conversation degenerated into a cesspool of perversion that made even Ranma shake his head in disbelief. Hiroshi and Daisuke were simply in a class of their own.

"I really think I'm beginning to get control of it, Nabiki," Akane cheerfully informed her sister as they walked home from school. "I almost had it today. Once I can make the magic do what I want, I should be able to use it for more than just beating up boys and embarrassing myself. Isn't that great?" Akane as a thumb-sized piece of quartz hanging on a chain around her neck, along with a dozen beaded necklaces that were supposed to focus her powers, or so an old book she'd found in the library said.

"You've been saying that for weeks, sis." Nabiki had managed to accept Akane's newest displays easily enough. Just something else her sister could do that she couldn't. It all balanced out, really. Nabiki knew she had the brains in the family; she didn't begrudge Akane the muscle.

Akane 'humphed', but didn't lose her cheer. "Soon, you'll see." She pulled a small, leather-bound book from her school bag and began to flip through it until she found her place and started reading. Nabiki caught the words 'tantra and power' but not enough to make out what the subject of the book was really about, though she knew of tantra well enough.

Walking along in silence, Nabiki tried to decide how much she should bet on whether or not her date with Ranma would be a failure, or if she should even bet at all. A few feet from the gate to their home, she deiced to just wait and see how the polls were on Friday. If she stood to gain enough, a small sacrifice like ruining a single evening out with a boy she didn't even know wouldn't be very difficult to make.

She was glad that Akane was too preoccupied with her studies of the esoteric to pay much attention to the rumors and gossip that floated around the school. It had been a mistake on the part of one of her less talented factors that released the news of the date, and the last thing she needed was for her sister to tell their father that she was going out with the very boy he wanted her or one of her sisters to marry. Fool man that he was, he'd likely take it for a sign of her acceptance of fate, or something like that.

Gosunkugi gazed fondly at Akane. She was so perfect. Beautiful. Fierce. Strong. She could do magic. Just thinking about what he saw her do every morning made the boy shiver in delight. Somehow he had to convince her to teach him the secrets of true magic. The thought of flinging bolts of lighting from his hands and raining down fire and brimstone on his enemies was one of the few reasons he had left to live. Of course there was the hope that an attractive nymphomaniac would fall head over heels in love with him, but magic was the more realistic of the two dreams, so he would go after it first.

He snapped off as many pictures as he had left on the roll from the picture session from the day before and loaded another roll into the camera in a smooth, practiced motion. He had a lot of practice with that camera. He went through that roll in a little over a minute and decided that was enough for the day. He didn't want to risk Akane detecting him with her magic. He shuffled around the corner and towards home, but then remembered that he was running low on the chemicals he needed to develop his latest pictures. A quick stop by Stalkers Inc. and he was on his way home.

"Ranma, you're just in time to celebrate with me," Arin said as Ranma climbed down the crooked stone steps into the bowl-like area where the Portal Stone rested. His balance was slightly off because of the arm strapped to his chest, so it was slow going.

"Good news?" Ranma asked when he finally reached the bottom.

"I've finally found the set of symbols that control time differences and stasis. There are some rather strange time increments programmed into them, but the larger ones will serve our purposes well enough. Nothing worth breaking out the champagne over, but it's a small step." Ranma agreed and left his grandfather to his work. He didn't know why the man continued to map the stone if he already had the information he needed.

There were fewer people about the ruins than the night before. A few younger people were carting away rubble and some were brushing dirt away from half-buried objects with tiny little brushes. Ranma could have done all of that in a blink of his eye, but Arin had forbidden it, so he didn't bring it up again. Pathways between the wire grids led around various structures, some intact, but most collapsed. Ranma took his time browsing among them, noticing subtle hints that the Power had been used here for more than activating a Portal Stone.

Stone walls that curved unnaturally, though almost imperceptibly, were common, as well as Power-joined-and-shaped building blocks. Some of the stones must have weighed a dozen tons or more, but all were fitted together perfectly, the blocks fitted together so well that no mortar had been needed. Ranma reached out with tendrils of Earth, nodding to himself when he felt the internally joined stones. Someone with the ability to channel— saidin or saidar, he couldn't discern— had fused the blocks together, possibly even set them in place. The results were man-made, Power-wrought stone walls that were completely solid and in some cases nearly indestructible.

"What are you doing in here?" someone snapped from behind Ranma. He hadn't heard the young man's approach with all the sounds of broken stone being shifted outside.

"Just looking around. Interesting place." Ranma turned away from the older man and resumed his study of the walls.

"Are you authorized to be here?" the same man asked. He hadn't left and he didn't sound happy.

"I don't know. Probably not. My grandfather is the guy in charge around here, though, so he probably doesn't mind." Instead of doing something petty— he saved that all up for Akane— Ranma just went back to examining the wall, completely ignoring the irritating man until he heard him stomp off somewhere. Heh, a less physical version of Akane. Maybe he should have done something petty after all.

"He had powers, Tendo, strange and frightening powers. That crazy grandfather of his, Arin, taught them to the boy. Brainwashed him, too. He gave up the martial arts, Tendo! Can you believe it?" Genma sobbed. "I couldn't even teach him the error of his ways. How was I supposed to fight the boy if he hit me with a bolt of lightning every time I tried to discipline him?"

Soun's formerly tear-streaked face became almost euphoric. "Well, Saotome, you're problem doesn't sound all that bad, really. Why, my little Akane seems to be learning magic of her own. Nabiki sold me a video from school and Akane was making lightning just like your Ranma." He waited for a few moments for the idea to sink in. "It's perfect, old friend. They were made for one another. And if Akane becomes powerful enough, she can make Ranma learn the Art once again."

Genma's manly sobs ceased immediately. "Tendo, you're an absolute genius!"

"The only difficulty I can foresee is getting Akane to agree to the engagement. She has always been a stubborn, strong-willed girl, not unlike her mother. I know; I'll have Kasumi speak to her. That always works!" Soun sobered up some when he saw Genma's happy face crumble, to be replaced by depression once again.

"It's no use. The boy's run away from home. Nodoka made the mistake of showing him that seppuku contract I told you about. He wasn't happy about it. He's living with Arin now, in America. He uses his powers to get to school everyday, but I know he's actually living in America."

"We must catch him off guard while he attends Furinkan, then," Soun stated boldly. Genma wanted to protest. He was sure their efforts would be both painful and futile. He had to try, though, for the sake of his school and his honor, he had to try.

"That was uncalled for," Ranma heard a boy say as he watched Akane battling her morning opponents. To everyone it looked like Akane had purposely thrown a fireball into an unconscious boy's crotch, but the truth was that Ranma had sneezed and momentarily lost control of his weave. Sneeze wasn't really the proper word. For something to make someone feel a sneeze from within the Oneness, it had to be closer to a rib cracking spasm. Ranma silently cursed his father and Soun Tendo.

They had tried to grab him a few yards from the gate. Of course the attempted kidnapping was laughable in its stupidity, and easily handled in most situations, but Ranma had overreacted and ended up exploding a good-sized piece of sidewalk. Genma and Soun probably needed to visit a hospital to have their burns looked at, but Ranma was more concerned with the small cloud of concrete dust he had breathed in by mistake.

The fireball wouldn't do much more than singe, despite its deadly appearance, so Ranma wasn't concerned. "She's a man hater. What can you expect?" Ranma asked.

"Yeah, that's obvious, but there are some lines that should just not be crossed," came the reply. Ranma guessed the boy had probably been down there in that mob of boys on more than one occasion. Hell, it had probably been Akane's 'magic' that had frightened him off. Ranma's interference had surprisingly lowered the overall number of injuries among the male students. Fewer participated every day and Ranma was able to give the appearance of boys being blasted to hell and back when they were in truth getting pushed around and knocked out. Akane wasn't nearly so discerning when she had been physical about the fights.

"Ooooooh," came a collective gasp as Akane quite purposefully stepped on another boy's groin and ground her foot into the concrete beneath her. The high-pitched shriek reached the classroom easily. Ranma winced and sent a web of Spirit into the boy's mind to numb the pain. Several students, boys and girls, looked a little green in the face, and one particularly sensitive girl had to make a mad dash to the restroom to empty her stomach. Akane was an evil bitch, Ranma decided. Maybe a day or two without any channeling to help her would teach her a lesson. Or maybe not. It was worth a try. He'd give her a couple days before he stopped interfering.

"Someone wanna tell the nurse to call the hospital just in case she ruptured something?" Ranma called out to the class. The teacher arrived before anyone could volunteer. Everyone grudgingly left the window and returned to their seats moments before the final bell rang for class to begin.

"Akane, I got a letter from your school today," Soun announced a few days later. The man looked half mummified from the bandages that covered a significant portion of his body. Most of the burns weren't serious, but they were still painful and a risk of infection. The cracked pelvis was agonizing, though, so Soun didn't try to get up from his position on the futon.

"What's it about, Daddy?" Akane asked curiously. She was rearranging her ever-growing collection of necklaces and bracelets.

"It seems that you were overly brutal with one of the boys that accosts you every morning. The doctors that looked after him had to remove one of his testicles and his penis may never function properly again. What do you have to say for yourself, young lady?" Soun looked displeased, but that could have just been the pain involved in moving his lips.

Akane looked down at the floor, a slight flush suffusing her cheeks. "Uh… Sorry, I guess. I just got carried away… and he is a pervert boy, you know? I didn't mean to do THAT to him. I guess I should apologize to him, huh?"

Soun attempted to smile, but it came out as a sort of half smirk, half grimace. "Not at all. He wants you to teach him magic. I don't know if that's the most reasonable thing to do for someone you've maimed for life, but the school is threatening to expel you if he or his parents choose to further pursue the matter. Here." he handed her a slip of paper with an address on it. "That's where he stays and his phone number. It's up to you to work out an agreement with him."

"Hmmm, Gosunkugi Hikaru… That name seems familiar. I can't quite place it, though. Oh well, if he wants to learn magic, I can't blame him." Akane put on her best happy face and maintained it until she was out of her father's presence. What was she going to do?! She couldn't teach a boy magic!!! What if he decided to use it against her once he had the secret? Or worse, taught the other perverted boys at school and they all used it against her? Maybe she could scare him so badly that he wouldn't want to learn… Yes, that had to work.

To be continued.

Author's notes: Yay, another chapter. Nothing really happened in this one, but the next few should be more active. Everyone clap for iMesh. I can use it to download anime and porn and stuff now even though my evil school tries to block all the file transfer stuff. Anyone ever seen Cool Devices?

Webmaster: Larry F
Last revision: May 21, 2007