[Note: This is the in-progress third (and hopefully final) draft of the story. Once I complete it, I'll post it to FF.net and FFML and the like. It's got several empty spaces, indicated by author's notes in brackets -- like this one.]

Seven Years Ago

The tattered old book slid from his suddenly limp fingers. As is often the case in panic situations, his first thought was curiously detached: 'Why wouldn't they put something like that on the first page?' A child's scream pulled his attention back to the pit.

'I'm turning into the Master -- no, worse,' he realized with chilling clarity. 'I'm putting my son through training more insane than his! What am I going to do next? Toss him into a girls' locker room to steal underwear? And that's assuming he survives this idiocy!' He was really seeing what he had become, and he didn't like what he saw. No doubt the Master would have gleefully tried this training on one or both of his disciples; the idea that he could have anything in common with the Master was... appalling.

He was essentially torturing his only son.

With no further thought whatsoever, he leapt into the pit.

------

The world can change with something as simple as the turn of a single page...

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Present Day

Tendou Kasumi placed the final dish back in the cupboard and beamed at another job well done. In fact, all of her work for the night was complete. 'It's so satisfying to have accomplished something good,' she thought. 'This must be how Akane feels after mastering a new kata, or how Nabiki feels when she makes a profit on a new investment.'

Heavy raindrops clattered on the roof and burst against the windows. The constant cadence was remarkably soothing, provided you weren't feeling it against your own body. A timid knock on the front door interrupted her idle imagination. She stepped out to the entryway, wondering who on earth would want to be out in a rainstorm like this.

The redheaded girl she found leaning against the wall outside practically personified the word "bedraggled." She looked as if she'd swum across the Sea of Japan in one night. The girl looked up at Kasumi and asked in a weak voice, "Um... Pardon me for intrudin', but... is this, er... the Tendou home?"

Kasumi's nurturing instincts kicked in at full strength. "Oh, you poor dear, you look simply exhausted! Yes, this is the Tendou home. Come in and warm up a bit." She swiftly ushered the redhead into the family room, dropping her backpack ('Heavy!') and the large wooden sign she held ('My, how strange.') next to the door. "I'm Tendou Kasumi. Here, sit, sit. I'll bring you a towel, a blanket, some tea, and a bite to eat."

The girl was seemingly caught at a loss for words. Kasumi, who had swiftly set off on her mission, soon heard the soft words, "Ah, thank you." She smiled to herself, now imagining what fascinating story her guest must have to tell.

------

"I'm Saotome Ranma. Sorry 'bout this."

"Please, it's no trouble at all. I simply couldn't let you freeze to death, now, could I?"

Ranma smiled and snuggled into the warm blanket Kasumi had wrapped around her. "Guess not, when ya say it like that. Thank you very much." Somehow she found herself very comfortable talking to her. It was a rather unfamiliar feeling. Nice, though. Ranma wondered idly if this was a weaker version of love at first sight. "Like at first sight." It wasn't quite as catchy.

Kasumi set the tea tray down on the table and sat across from Ranma, leaning forward over her own teacup. "Now that you're a little drier and warmer, I'm curious. What brings you to the Tendou home?"

Ranma let out a sigh before replying, "Er, my father, he's Saotome Genma, told me he knows Mr. Tendou. Apparently the two a' them were friends while they were trainin' or somethin'. He sent me here to help... 'unite the schools', he said, but I dunno what he meant. I'm s'posed ta talk ta Mr. Tendou, anyway, an' then Father says I can live here for a few months until he shows up." She coughed and reached for the tea. It was a big speech, for her.

"Oh, my, a family friend? How wonderful! I'll have to bring the rest of the family to meet you!"

Ranma nearly panicked. How large was this family? She wasn't good at all around strangers! Well, non-Kasumi strangers, anyway. "No! No, you don't hafta do that, really!" she exclaimed, waving her empty hand in a warding fashion.

Kasumi gave her a winning smile. "Everyone will be happy to meet you, Ranma. There's no need to worry. Nabiki is helping Father with our finances, and Akane should be coming in from the dojo fairly soon. I'll go collect everyone up." With that she left Ranma to her hot tea, her small snack, and her warm blanket.

Maybe it wouldn't be so bad.

------

'Yeah, it wouldn't be so bad if I wasn't so damn tense.' That was the foremost thought in Saotome Ranma's mind. Sitting in the Tendou home, in an unfamiliar room, surrounded by four people she barely knew, she was completely out of her element (that element being "battle"). 'They're prob'ly all nice like Kasumi, but... For crying out loud, Ranma, just don't say somethin' stupid.'

Tendou Soun was easily recognizable from the description Ranma's father had given her. The long black hair and mustache, the angular face, the brown gi were almost familiar. He asked, "So you are really Saotome Ranma?"

"Yes," Ranma replied quietly.

Soun smiled warmly. "The son of my old friend, Saotome Genma?"

"I am," Ranma said, before she caught herself. 'Idiot,' she thought, 'how're ya gonna explain that?'

One of the two girls Ranma hadn't been introduced to yet (she had short brown hair and was wearing a T-shirt and short shorts) leaned over the table and prodded Ranma's chest. "Son? Looks more like a daughter to me."

Ranma could feel her face turning red. "Please don't do that," she whispered.

The girl in the yellow gi (long blue-black hair tied back in a ponytail) slapped the roving hand away. "Stop it, Nabiki!" she exclaimed. "She's our guest, remember?"

"Huh?" Soun looked spectacularly confused. He stared at Ranma, muttering to himself, "But I thought -- Saotome said that -- I assumed that -- Where is your father, anyway?"

"Er, he's back in China right now, workin' off a debt. He... wanted me ta wait for him here."

Finally Soun just sighed and shrugged. "I suppose it doesn't matter. Saotome told me he'd been blessed with a son, that's all. I assumed that his son was a boy."

'Oh, man...' Out loud Ranma said, "Well, um, actually, I can explain that..." She groaned at the pauses and "um"s -- she probably sounded like an idiot. 'At least I don't stutter.'

Nabiki laughed. "Saotome must be pretty dim-witted to mistake this for a boy," she said, accompanying the word "this" with another squeeze at Ranma's chest. Ranma's blush spread farther across her face.

"Nabiki, cut it out! Honestly, you're going to make her think you're a pervert." The girl in the gi grabbed Nabiki's wrist this time, pulling her away from Ranma.

Ranma moaned; this was getting out of hand. 'I gotta just show 'em now. Maybe they won't be too freaked out.' She reached for the teapot --

The girl in the gi turned to Ranma and smiled sweetly. "Sorry about my sister, Ranma. I'm Akane. Would you like me to show you around?"

-- and chickened out. Transfixed by Akane's smile, Ranma could only nod, another blush creeping up. 'Wow, she's cute... Stupid! She wouldn't be interested in you anyway.' She took Akane's outstretched hand and slowly rose. "... Thanks."

------

Ranma was enjoying her tour of the Tendou home. The house itself was nicer than any she could remember staying in, and Akane had shared a few funny memories with her as they stepped through the hallways. Now they were crossing to a large building that sat behind the main house.

Akane slid the door open easily. "... And this is our dojo! I spend a lot of time in here after school practicing."

Ranma smiled. "Oh, so you're a martial artist too?" And wanted to hit herself. 'You moron! Why the hell else would she be wearing a gi?'

Akane didn't seem to notice her self-scolding. "Yeah, I'm a student of the Tendo School of Anything-Goes Martial Arts."

"Anything-Goes? I practice Anything-Goes! Saotome School, a' course."

Akane spun around, a grin on her face. "Really? That's great! You're the first girl martial artist I've known in ages!"

'Ouch.' Ranma had to say something. "Um, look, about that..." And she stopped. She liked Akane. She didn't want to alienate her. Sure, none of the Amazons had had a problem with her -- well, past the initial reaction -- but they lived near the springs. Of course they'd be used to it. Akane had probably never --

"Ranma? You okay?" Ranma eeped as she realized she'd zoned out. Akane poked her in the forehead. "You looked worried for a minute there."

"Mmh." Gulp. "Sorry." Cough. "I'm fine." Scratch neck nervously. 'I'm such an idiot.'

Akane looked Ranma up and down. "So... You know kempo, then?"

"A little."

"Well, why don't we have a little match? Y'know, just for fun."

'A match? A kempo match? Finally, something I can do.' Ranma smiled. "I'd like that."

------

Ranma smiled genuinely -- one of the few real smiles Akane had seen on her face so far. "I'd like that."

Akane grinned back and dropped into a battle stance in the middle of the dojo. Ranma stood a few feet in front of her, arms behind her back. "Don't worry," Akane said, "I won't attack you for real."

Akane realized that she'd underestimated her opponent when Ranma nimbly leapt over the first punch she threw. Her next few punches and kicks were again met with nothing but air. Akane kept trying to strike her, putting more and more force into it, but she just leaned from side to side, her thin red ponytail swaying gently behind her. Abruptly one of Ranma's fists shot out, and Akane was barely able to react in time to protect herself. 'She's amazing!'

Soon the two girls were trading punches, faster and faster, blows striking and blows missing, dodges and blocks, back and forth. Akane couldn't shake the feeling, though, that Ranma was letting her get in most of the hits she got, and she was obviously pulling her punches, too. 'Ow! Still stings, though!' She needed to catch her off guard. Instead of deflecting Ranma's next punch, she caught her fist and yanked, pulling her off-balance.

Ranma's grin was in front of Akane for only a moment before she flipped into the air. Before Akane could react, she felt a poke at the back of her head. She spun around to find a smiling Ranma waiting for her to catch up. Akane had to take a moment to catch her breath. "Wow, you're really good!"

Ranma blushed. "Thanks. You too."

"You've gotta be kidding. I could tell you were holding back. Any time you wanted, you could have had me on the ground, right?"

Ranma's blush went redder and deeper. "Well, I guess I coulda done that," she said, "but it wouldn't'a been as fun, right?" She laughed a little, Akane giggled, and then they were both laughing.

"Seriously, though," Akane said. "How on earth did you get so fast?"

"It's the trainin' Father put me through. If you'd been on a trainin' trip for thirteen years, you'd easily be as good as me."

Akane's jaw went slack. "Thirteen years?!" That meant... "You must have been... How old were you when you started training?!"

"Started when I was three. A lot of it wasn't fun, but I'm a better m -- person for it."

"Wow. No wonder you're so good!" Amazing! There must be so much Akane could learn from Ranma, and she was so nice, too. "Say, um, do you think you'll be staying here for a while?"

Ranma tilted her head to consider this. "Father wanted me to wait for 'im, so... prob'ly be here at least a coupla months -- if that's alright with your father, I mean."

"That's great! We can spar together. Maybe you can come to school with me and Nabiki. We'll be friends."

"Friends?" Ranma's posture seemed to lose a large amount of tenseness. She smiled shyly and said, "I'd like that."

"Me too. C'mon, I haven't shown you the koi pond yet." Akane moved to leave the dojo when a thought occurred to her. She chuckled and commented, "I'm sure glad you're a girl."

"W-what?"

Akane turned back to face Ranma. "It's just... I couldn't stand losing to a boy." She smiled a bit.

"Oh."

Had she said something wrong? The tenseness was back. Ranma was oddly silent for the rest of the tour.

------

"Oh, Ranma? I drew a bath for you, if you'd like to take one."

"Really? Thanks, Kasumi."

------

"Hey, Akane. Kasumi says you should take a bath soon."

"Oh, OK. Thanks, Nabiki."

------

Stepping into the changing room, Akane saw Ranma's distinctive red shirt in the clothes hamper. 'Guess she's already in here.' She reached back and untied the yellow bow at the end of her ponytail.

"Ohhhhhh... What'm I gonna do?" Ranma sank down into the hot water of the bath, nose just above the water. 'Should I tell 'em the truth or try ta hide it? Either way there's gonna be trouble.'

Akane slid her gi off of her shoulders, letting it drop into the hamper.

'The Tendous are so nice... I really don't wanna lie to them... Like I could keep 'em from findin' out sooner or later.' Ranma attempted a groan. "Glub..."

Now completely nude, Akane walked over to the door into the inner bathroom. 'I hope Ranma doesn't mind me joining her.'

'Fine, then. I go out as I am. I hope Akane'll still like me.' Satisfied that he was making the right choice, Ranma rose from the bath, quickly, so he wouldn't have any time to lose his nerve.

Of course, that's when Akane opened the door.

Ranma was the first to react. He made a noise that sounded like "ack" and dropped down into the water as far as he could, eyes closed and nose pinched shut.

Akane slammed the door shut, eyes wide. For a second, she had -- no, impossible. She could not have seen what she thought she saw. "Ranma? Is that you?"

Ranma panicked. "No! Uh -- yes!" In a falsetto that wasn't the slightest bit convincing, "Yes!" Finally, "Aaaaahhh... Sort of." 'She's going to kill me.'

"Are you okay? You don't sound quite right."

"Yes! Yes I am!" Last chance desperation attempt: Hiyamizu Tobu! Ranma leapt out of the bath and grabbed the bucket of cold water that (thankfully) sat next to the sink. Before anything else could happen to him, he dunked his head into it.

Akane opened the door a few inches and tentatively peered inside. Ranma sat next to the bath, arms over her chest, shivering. 'Okay, it is Ranma. Well, of course it's Ranma. Who else would it be? I must have gotten steam in my eyes or something.'

When Ranma noticed Akane, she made an "eep" noise and covered her eyes. "Um, can you -- is it -- can I please take my bath alone?"

"Um... Are you... sure you're okay?"

"Yeah! Fine! Just, I, uh... I'm embarrassed! Yeah, about... sharing a bath." 'Please, please, please buy it.' "Never really knew many girls while I was travellin'." 'That's true, at least...' "I'll be quick, I promise."

Akane frowned. "Well, all right, if you insist." She shut the door.

Ranma could hear Akane putting her clothes on. She sighed and slipped back into the bath. "I guess that coulda gone worse," he muttered, "but I can't imagine how."

------

Soun glanced up from his seat across from the koi pond to see Akane standing in the hallway. "Weren't you going to take a bath?" he asked.

"Akane?" Kasumi leaned into the hall. "My goodness, what's the matter?"

Akane shook her head. "That was weird. Ranma was in the bath, and for a second I could have sworn she looked like a boy."

Nabiki stared at her sister. "Um, I think we already established that Ranma's a girl."

"Yeah, by groping her." (This statement was accompanied by a roll of Akane's eyes.) "Anyway, I obviously just imagined it. She seemed really nervous about me being in there, though. She definitely didn't want me to join her in the bath."

"Oh dear," Kasumi said. "I hope she's all right."

The door to the bathroom opened up. "Um, 'scuse me..."

The Tendous turned -- and stared -- in unison.

He was, unmistakably, a boy. But his hair, though black, was tied back in a ponytail identical to Ranma's, and Akane noticed his eyes looked just like Ranma's did. They could easily pass for twins. He wore Ranma's red and black clothes, which actually appeared to fit him better than they'd fit her.

"Who..."

"Who are you?!"

The young man sighed and stared at his feet. "I'm Saotome Ranma," he whispered. "Sorry 'bout this."

------

Within moments, the Tendous all sat staring at the boy claiming to be Saotome Ranma. He was visibly uncomfortable with the attention, fidgeting slightly under the quartet of gazes. For some reason, he had obtained a glass of cold water and placed it on the table.

'So I did see a boy in the bath. And he saw me! That pervert... I should...' Akane didn't know what she should do, but she imagined it would involve liberal amounts of pain and hitting.

Kasumi spoke up first. "Are you really her? I mean, are you Ranma? The girl we met before?"

"I am," the boy responded quietly.

"I knew Saotome had a son!" Soun laughed. He quickly turned serious. "But how is this possible?"

"Look, pal, you're not Ranma. I don't care how good you are with disguises," Nabiki pointed out. "Same hairstyle, yeah, and your faces look alike, but you're a few inches taller than her. What are you really, Ranma's twin brother or something?"

The boy sighed. "No, no, I'm... I am Ranma. I turn inta the girl, 'cause of a curse."

"A curse." Nabiki gave off multiple signs of being very not convinced.

"Yeah." He picked up the glass of water. "My father and I were on our trainin' trip, see, and we went to this cursed trainin' ground in China called Jusenkyou. If ya fall inta one a' the springs there, ya get cursed ta turn inta somethin'. Cold water turns ya inta whatever drowned in the spring, then hot water turns ya back ta normal. Long story short, I got knocked inta the 'Spring of Drowned Girl'. So every time I get splashed with cold water, I... become a girl." He tipped the glass over himself and let the water pour down his head.

Kasumi blinked at just the wrong moment and missed the change. Nabiki stared, rubbed her eyes, stared, then rubbed her eyes again. Akane's mouth hung slightly open. Soun almost fainted. Ranma pushed her wet red hair back and waited nervously for the reactions of the various Tendous.

Kasumi was the first to speak. "Oh, my... He's... a she again."

"I don't believe it. That absurd story was actually the truth," Nabiki muttered.

Akane couldn't hold it in any longer. She slammed her hand down on the table and shouted, "You pervert! You saw me naked in the bath!"

Ranma winced and gave Akane a hurt look, bowing her head and glancing up through her bangs. "I didn't mean to. Sorry."

Akane was ready to pound Ranma, but the prompt -- and as far as she could see, genuine -- apology deflated her anger. 'She -- he's sorry. And he did cover his eyes when I came in...'

Soun stood up and gestured to Ranma. "So you say hot water returns you to your regular form?"

"Er... Yeah, pretty much if it's above room temperature."

"I see. Please, come with me. I'll heat up some water for you."

------

"Incredible," Soun murmured as he filled a teapot with water. "Cursed springs... I never imagined such a thing was possible."

"Me neither. We didn't know about it 'til we showed up at the trainin' grounds."

A mildly disturbing thought occurred to Soun. "Does... Saotome become female as well?" He set the teapot on the stove to heat.

"No, Father fell into a different spring. He turns inta a giant panda."

"A panda, you say? That must be difficult for him."

"Well, it ain't that bad. He don't exactly like it, but he says there're some good points. He likes bamboo a lot."

The absurdity of the conversation finally got to Soun. He groaned. "I'm sorry, Ranma, but this is a lot to take in at once."

"You think you're havin' trouble? Try livin' it," Ranma replied, a bit sadly. "We spent a week just sparrin' nonstop ta try an' relieve our stress."

[continuation of the conversation -- give the sisters time for their scene]

"Perfect! We can continue with the arrangement as planned."

"Arrangement?"

Soun frowned. "Saotome didn't tell you about it?"

"Well..." Ranma thought back a bit. "He said he wanted me to 'unite the schools', but he didn't say what he meant. So I dunno what I'm s'posed to do here, t' be honest."

"That's quite alright," Soun said with a laugh. "I'll explain the arrangement to you and to my daughters at the same time. Come along, my dear boy."

------

[the sisters have time to think about the curse before the men return]

"Look!" Soun put his arm around Ranma's shoulders and gestured at his daughters, one by one.

"My eldest daughter, Kasumi. She's nineteen." Kasumi looked a bit worried. "My second daughter, Nabiki. She's seventeen." Nabiki frowned and wondered where this was leading. "And my youngest daughter, Akane. She's sixteen." Akane glanced up as attention was focused on her.

Soun smiled and finished up his speech. "Pick any girl you want. She'll be your fiancée."

About to speak, Ranma elected instead to choke. Akane practically shrieked, "WHAT?!" while Nabiki asked archly, "What on earth is this, Father?"

"It's very simple, Nabiki," Soun replied. "Back when my good friend Genma and I were training under... the Master... we promised each other that we would join our schools by the hands of our children, thus ensuring the future of the Anything-Goes School of Martial Arts."

Kasumi swallowed. "An arranged marriage? Oh, dear..."

Akane was still trying to decide if she was mad at Ranma. She didn't need this too! "I am not going to marry him!" she shouted.

"Father, I'd been hoping that -- well, I had had someone in mind already."

"I can't believe you'd do this to us!"

"Now, I think you may be overreacting just a bit."

"Overreacting? We're talking about the rest of our lives!"

"You can't expect one of us to marry a half-girl, can you?"

"We hardly even know him, Father. And he hardly knows us."

"Why should we have to do this, anyway?!"

"It's a matter of family honor, dear. Now, Ranma, who -- where are you going?"

Ranma, who had almost managed to sneak out of the room unnoticed, flinched and turned. Smiling weakly, he merely said, "Sorry... for bein' so much trouble." With that, he hurried out.

The Tendous were silent for a few moments. Nabiki glanced outside and muttered, "Surely he isn't planning on..."

------

"I don't guess that coulda gone much worse." Outside the house, Ranma tugged at the straps of her backpack absently. "So much for stickin' around here. Guess I'd better get movin'." She stared up into the rain, shivering.

"Ranma! Where are you going?"

"Back to China," she mumbled. "I'm gonna help my father; maybe the Amazons'll let him go early. After that... I guess I'll... try to find a cure for the curse." Ranma started to leave, but Kasumi's hand on her arm stopped her.

Kasumi pulled Ranma under the overhang, where she and Soun already stood. "Ranma... wait. I know your introduction was a little eventful, but it's only been one night. Why don't you... stay here to wait for your father, as he asked? We don't mind, really. None of us do."

Ranma was so surprised she could hardly speak. "Do... do you really... want me to stay?"

"Of course we do, Ranma," Soun put in. "You don't need to worry that you're imposing on us. I can tell that you're a good... er, a good man, yes... and we'd all like to get to know you better. We can finalize the engagement tomorrow."

"Father."

Soun coughed and smiled, a bit nervously. "Okay, in a week, then. After you're settled in and --"

"Father." Ranma was amazed at the force Kasumi was able to put into that single word. "This is too much. Look at what poor Ranma's been through! She does not need to be engaged to someone she hardly knows on top of it."

"He."

Kasumi looked to Ranma. "I'm sorry?"

"Would you... call me 'he'? I'm a boy, even when I don't look like one."

"Oh! Of course, Ranma. I apologize."

[just a couple paragraphs of Kasumi wearing Soun down]

Ranma's nervous expression slowly shifted into a warm smile. "Thank you. Thank you both," she said. "You don't know how much I appreciate this."

"Really, Ranma, it's our pleasure. Now you go on and get dried off." Kasumi led Ranma back into the house. "I'll clear out the guest room for you, if you'll give me your backpack."

"Okay, I'll do that." Ranma smiled meekly and turned her backpack over to Kasumi (who stumbled a bit, despite being ready for it). "Thanks again, Kasumi." She went to find the towel she'd used earlier that night.

Soun sighed and muttered, "At this rate the families may never be joined."

Kasumi tugged at the backpack's straps -- and blinked, her forehead wrinkling as something occurred to her. "Did Ranma... just say something about Amazons?"

------

Akane threw herself into bed

[Akane sort of fights with herself -- Ranma: nice guy or pervert?]

At least some of the weirdness of the night made sense now. She remembered that he had tensed in the dojo when she'd said she was glad he wasn't a boy. Of course he'd have been uneasy about --

She sat up in bed as a delayed realization struck with a vengeance. 'Oh, god, he's a boy... and he beat me... I can't let him find out about Kunou!'

------

Ranma stretched out on his bedroll and stared up at the ceiling. It was a rather nice ceiling, actually.

[last part that needs completing -- Ranma looks to the future]

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