Ok guys after a lot of time being here in the ML, I decided to really do
something about this. This is my first fanfic but, I don't want you guys
to be nice just because of that. This is going to be a long series, and
believe me guys this isn't a Ranma gets Nabiki fib, at least not yet ^_^

I owe all this fib to my pre readers, without them I whould have been
chewed alive here for all the spelling and grammar errors.^_^&

Donny, Raistlin, Jason Liao, Emry, Shaun Bedingfield, Thomas Scroggs,
KnightHawke, Bombadil, Myrriden and the rest that didn't make it ^_^ 
Thank you guys, you really made sure that there wasn't almost any error
in the story. 

All Ranma characters are the property of Rumiko Takahashi, first
published by Shogakugan in Japan and brought over to North
America by Viz Communications. I don't owe them so stop asking me to
lend them ok? 
 
The timeline of this story takes place by the half of the Manga 36, that
means just a few weeks after the fiancees trashed the Saotome house. The
fight with Saffron hasn't happened yet. 


***KAZE NO MAI***

By Antonio Flores jflores@foreigner.class.udg.mx

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<> Indicates thoughts
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It was a sunny day in Nerima, but not very warm. The winter was coming
soon and the icy winds were already making the weather cold. Everybody
in Nerima knew that it would snow any day now. Many people were already
wearing their thickest winter clothing.

Nobody knew this better than a certain pigtailed martial artist. He may
have been flying over Nerima at the moment, this amazing sight wasn't
really noticed by the residents of Nerima. They where already used to
all the crazy things that the local martial artists liked to do, and
sending people soaring over the place seemed to be one of their favorite
hobbies.

"BRRR... cold, maybe I should wear my long sleeved shirt," thought the
afore mentioned  martial artist. "What's the problem with that girl?
Every time that I try to be nice to her, she only gets  mad and either
smacks me with her hammer, or pounds me with that gorilla like strength
of hers." This particular thought was stopped when he had to get ready
for the landing. After all it was already too cold, and getting himself
wet wasn't really a good idea right now.

Ranma saw that he was going to land in a very conveniently placed puddle
in the street. <Sometimes I really think that somebody really likes to
make my life miserable> Twisting his body in midair in a way that seemed
impossible. (And probably was illegal in some countries) he managed to
land away of the puddle. Unfortunately, the added momentum of this
maneuvering, made him crash with a near wall. And going through the wall
of one of the squash camps, he fell in a park. "OUCH.... that really
hurt... maybe I'll just lie here for a while."

***********************************************************************************

Akane was fuming outside of Furinkan high school, her left hand was
still raised after the uppercut that sent Ranma flying over Nerima.
"That... BAKA. Why  I put up with that jerk?" Thought Akane out loud. 

"C'mon Akane, don't you think that you were a little harsh with him?" A
brown haired girl next to her spoke. 

"Yes Akane, Sayuri's right. Why did you hit him this time?" Added Yuka,
her other friend. 

Akane glared at her friend. "Why? Didn't you see  that he was making fun
of my cooking?"

Both girls looked each other with big sweat drops. Everybody in Furinkan
knew that Akane's cooking was very toxic. "But... Akane, he tried the...
cake you made in economic class. Right Yuka?" 

"Cake !?! That wasn't cake. It was an okonomiyaki Sayuri, not a cake."
Akane narrowed her eyes as she looked at her friend. "And he was really
making fun of my cooking."

"Well Akane, I don't know if turning blue and making choking sounds
counts as making fun you know."
Commented Yuka.

"You too? I can't believe that you are on his side too!" With that,
Akane turned away from her friends and went muttering angrily to her
house.

Yuka rolled her eyes and commented, "She's really mad this time. Poor
Ranma, sometimes I feel pity for him."

Smiling sourly, Sayuri answered. "Yes, sometimes I just don't understand
Akane. Ranma is one of the cutest guys in Nerima, he's a great martial
artist, he's got a great body, and can be really sweet sometimes."

Yuka smiled and said in a teasing tone. "Hey, get a grip girl. Stop
drooling. Besides, Ranma is one of the biggest chauvinistic jerks that
I've ever seen. But he's just too damn sexy sometimes, and lately he's
been trying to be nicer... maybe that's why Akane is so mad at him." 

This particular topic was being discussed a lot among the female
population of Furinkan lately. Ranma seemed to be maturing, and was more
gentle with the girls. He was still arrogant and cocky most of the time,
but his mother influence was starting to show in his character. And this
was getting him more admirers lately.

***********************************************************************************

Ranma was  tired. Worse, he was depressed. He had been in the park
thinking for some time. This alone would have surprised many people that
knew him. After all he was famous for getting in a lot of trouble by
doing things without thinking about them first. 

<I'm getting really tired of all the crazy things that happen around me.
This last year has been both good and bad. I have more friends now than
I've ever has in my whole life.... even if half of them want me dead and
the other half wants me married to them or somebody else> Thought Ranma
bitterly. "Maybe I need to ask somebody who is out of all this heat, or
just take a training trip to the mountains to relax and take a break
from all this."

 He had been thinking about a lot of things laying in the park. All the
misunderstandings, the fiancees, his enemies, his mother and all the
troubles that had been plaguing his life lately. The outcome of all
those reflections was bad for his self-image.

 Most of all those troubles were his own fault, albeit indirectly. He
had been letting the things happen to him without really taking
responsability for them; he had not been trying to fix the situations,
hoping that they would resolve themselves alone. however, just like a
snowball rolling down the hill they had been growing and becoming more
complex and difficult with the time.

 He admitted that he enjoyed some of the attention he recived and all
the training from all those fights had made him one of the best martial
artists of Japan, but now they were becoming too much even for him. He
couldn't just shrug of his shoulders and let the things go on like that
anymore.

He was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he didn't feel the time
passing until he noticed it was becoming late. <I can't believe that I
just spent all the day in the park > At that moment he saw a very
unusual sight for Nerima. A group of four punks were hassling a group of
girls. He saw a  familiar face amongst the girls.

***********************************************************************************

Nabiki Tendo was having a very bad day. Usually this simply meant that
her profits for the day were under the 10,000 Yen mark, but today it was
due something completely different. The day had started as she liked.
That is to say, very profitable. She had sold many pictures of Ranma,
but the funny thing was that lately she had been selling more pictures
of his male form that his female one.

 She liked to think that it was because most of the boys already knew
how Ranma's female form looked like, but she had to admit that since
Ranma got back with her mother he had changed. Yes he still was a self
centered jerk, and he still talked too much, but now when he made a
mistake or he put his foot in his mouth he apologized, or at least tried
to mutter something like that. However, most of his recent popularity
with the girls was Nabiki's fault, and deep down she knew it was her own
doing. And  it started rather innocently of her part. 

All happened when one of the new teachers started teaching drawing
classes. She needed some models to teach the students how to draw
bodies. Getting photos of female bodies was rather easy. Nabiki had a
lot of photos of Ranma-chan with little or almost nothing by of clothes,
but when she was asked about some photos of Ranma's male body, she got
in a little more troubles, they weren't that easy to take. 

Not many girls bought photos of Ranma. Usually they were just for the
fiancees, so she had to take some more tasteful photos of him. After all
the photos initially were to  be used as models of bodies in movement.
She had taken photos of him when he was doing one of his katas. It had
been a long and beautiful kata and he was wearing only his black pants.
He had been so entranced in the flow of the forms that he showed a part
of him that rarely was seen;  he was a more relaxed Ranma whitout his
usual condescending smile or his macho facade, just him inmersed in the
movements of the kata something that he really enjoyed, and it really
showed. 

The photos had been an inmediate success with the teacher who was
actually a very talented drawing. She made some very beautiful sketches
of the pictures. Nabiki was surprised when some of the girls in the
class started asking her for copies of the photos for themselves. All
could have ended there but a couple of weeks later, the teacher had
started showing how to draw faces, and how to express emotions in those
faces.

 Then Nabiki found herself taking photos of the different moods of
Ranma, from rage to happiness, from sarcasm to confusion, from
gentleness to rude. It had been really hard to get them, but the most
prominent picture was one of  Ranma sitting with his legs crossed in the
roof of the Tendo dojo. He had some cuts showing and looked like he had
been in another of his infamous fights, but the look of his face was
indeed a very strange one for Ranma. His eyes were melancholy and sad,
and he looked so lonely and tired, the anathema of his usual carefree
and cocky expression. He was looking at the sunset, and the rays of the
sun seemed to play with his features, making his already handsome
features look even more beautiful. 

That picture in particular had been one of the best that Nabiki had ever
taken, but even she was surprised with the sales of that particular
photo. It seemed that the more vulnerable and lonely Ranma looked, the
more romantic he seemed in the eyes of the girls. That photo still sold
from time to time, and little by little the market for the photos had
been growing, even if they were treated like a secret. Many of the girls
still resented the popularity of Akane, and  they would have loved to
get Ranma for themselves, however everybody knew about Akane's short
temper and destructive capabilities not to mention those of the other
suitor's of Ranma, so they preferred to keep the activities more
discrete that that usual. Even so, some of the photos had begun to
spread to other schools.

Yes it had been a nice and profitable day for Nabiki. She went out to a
park in the outskirts of Nerima to sell a full set of photos to some
girls of other schools of Tokyo. They seemed to be very interested in
the apparent tough but sensible guy that the photos showed, and many
rumors were starting to spread in some of those schools from the battle
with the golden pair, the hiryu shouthen ha incident during a phase when
he was supposed to be weak, to his battles with demons, monsters,
perverts and some of the best martial artists in Japan. The high schools
were places were the gossip was practiced from almost everyone, and the
strange events that happened in Nerima were starting to become one of
the most usual topics, even if most of them were treated like
exaggerations. 

She had been just dealing with the aforementioned girls when a group of
punks that seemed to be out of place in that part of the city approached
them. "Hey babe, you seem to be dealing with a lot of money there" said
a tall, gaunt looking guy. 

Smiling evilly one of his companions spoke. "Yes and you don't seem to
really need it that much, so why don't give it to us and we will not
have to hurt that pretty face of yours." 

Looking at them coldly Nabiki answered. "You guys seem to be a little
out of place here, so why don't you get out of here before you truly get
hurt. This is Nerima were some of the best fighters of Japan live and
they don't really like geeks like you guys."

 A very fat and massive one laughed and said. "Martial artists? Don't
make me laugh bitch. I've fought some of those so called martial artists
and they're nothing more that just a couple of fancy kicks and punches,
but when it comes to a real fight they are just a bunch weaklings. Now
give me that money or I and my friends are going to hurt you. The same
goes for you too bimbos. Give us all your money." The last thing was
said to the other girls. 

The tall punk turned and spoke to the shortest member of the gang.  "Hey
Shiro get the  money from them now will' ya. I don't know too much this
part of the city and I don't want to have troubles with the police
here." The short one then approached to the girls and tried to get
Nabiki's bag but since she resisted. The punk pushed her her roughly to
get her bag, and Nabiki fell to a nearby puddle were she slipped in the
mud, twisting her ankle and dirtying her clothes in the process. 

"I can't believe this. This stuff happens to Ranma or Akane, not me.
These idiots will pay dearly for this." Though Nabiki feeling her temper
rising. She hadn't feel this humiliated in a long time. Many people in
Nerima knew that if you mess with one of the martial artist you will get
a one way ticket to the hospital, but if you mess with Nabiki Tendo you
get your life messed up for a long, long time.

"Hehehe.. the broad seems to have gotten what she deserves." Said the
fat one almost laughing at her. "Now stop fooling around and give us the
money." The girls cowered at the sight of the big guy approaching them.

In that moment somebody approached the group and said in a mocking tone.
"What'cha doing boys? You seem to be awfully troubled with all those
girls to handle. Do you want some help? I can call some friends to help
you all." 

Looking back to the newcomer the punks face darkened. The tall one said.
"Great, just what we needed! One of those heroic type of morons. Look
pretty boy, get lost or we'll going to kick your ass." 

The smirk on Ranma's face became then a full smile. "Look guys, I'm not
in the mood for this today, so get lost while you still can." And to
accentuate this he cracked his knuckles. 

The big one then stepped forward smiling and he seemed to be aching for
a fight. "So the big bad martial artist it's going to teach us a lesson?
Well teach me this!" and he threw a punch at Ranma. He was really
surprised  when the pigtailed guy caught the punch like as if it were
nothing, and with a twist of his wrist, forced the punk to the ground.
The punks were surprised to see their leader being subdued that easily.
He was supposed to be one of the strongest guys it their own territory,
and yet the pigtailed guy seemed to be much more stronger. 

At that moment Ranma relased the fist of the other guy, put a foot over
a nearby head sized rock and said in a more serious tone. "Do you bakas
see this stone? Think of  it as your heads if you don't scram now." Then
he shattered the stone with seeming ease. Everybody except Nabiki were
shocked too see that display of power. The punks decided that they liked
their heads too much as they were, and wisely started running away.

Turning back to the girls Ranma asked in a more concerned tone. "Are you
all right girls?" But the girls were just staring at him with those love
starved looks that he knew too well. Feeling a little uneasy he tried to
help the girl that was down, and was really surprised when he saw who
was in the floor.  "Nabiki?" Then looking at the state of the girl he
smirked at her. "What happened to you?" 

Giving him a glare that seemed more  fitting for Akane than her she
said. "Not a single word of this Saotome or you are going to regret it." 

Putting  his hands in a  in front of him in a defensive posture he
answered. "Woah !! Easy Nabiki, don't get too worked up. Here let me
help you stand up." 

He offered his hand to her and started to pull her to her feet, but she
made an exclamation of pain. "Ow! Stop! I think that I twisted my ankle.
" 

Taking a look at her feet he said. "Hmmmm... let me check it out... well
it doesn't seem  to be too badly twisted. You just need to rest for a
while."

"And since when do you know so much about medicine?" Asked Nabiki not
trusting in him that much.

 Looking at her with a more thoughtful look he answered. "Well when you
get hurt so often as I do you learn a couple of things about this kind
of stuff." Looking back at the girls he noted that they were still
ogling at him and they looked even more love struck. He decided that it
was time to get going. "Hmmmm... well Nabiki, if you are done here I can
help you to get back to the dojo." 

Seeing that Ranma was getting rather uncomfortable whit the looks that
the girls were giving at him, she composed herself and said. "Ok just
let me fix a couple things and we can go back." Getting the hint, Ranma
walked away from them. After he had moved away from them, Nabiki told to
the girls in the group. "Ok girls I don't want a single word of this to
get out, okay. If you want to do more deals later you know were to find
me." 

***********************************************************************************

Ranma was feeling rather uneasy, even if he was out of earshot. He could
still see the expressions of the girls while they were talking with
Nabiki. He really was surprised, Nabiki was in her all business mode
completely forgetting about the ankle. Even though he knew that it was
nothing serious, it must hurt a lot.

After a couple of minutes the girls seemed to finish talking. Nabiki
sent an. <Ok you can come back now> look to Ranma. Nabiki smiled. He
seemed to be a little intimidated by the girls. For someone who had a
lot of admirers Ranma could be very shy around large groups of girls.

Ranma approached the group of girls and then turning to look at Nabiki,
he made motions to carry her in his arms. "What are you doing Saotome?"
Said Nabiki glaring at him. 

"What do you think I'm doing? I'm going to carry you back to the dojo,
or do you want a piggy back ride?"

The girls started to whisper amongst themselves after hearing this.
Ranma felt his cheeks reddening as he heard some of the comments that
the girls were making. To make the things worse Nabiki seemed to be in a
very bad mood at the moment. So, opting for a quick exit, he scooped
Nabiki into his arms, and muttering a good-bye to the girls, he jumped
to the roof of the nearest building.

When they were a few blocks away from the park Ranma asked to Nabiki.
"Do you want to go at Doctor Tofu's clinic to get your ankle checked?" 

Looking at him a little more calmly, Nabiki answered. "No, I just want
to go back and change my clothes. I can't believe this. I just bought
this skirt. Why didn't you beat those punks Ranma?" She added in a low
tone. 

Looking at her with his cocky smile said. "Those guy's didn't even know
how to fight properly. Why should I try to beat them when just scaring
them would do the job?" 

He looked little more thoughtful, jumping to a nearby roof before
continuing. "Besides you shouldn't be too mad. After all it's just a
skirt you can buy a new one tomorrow." 

Sounding mad again, Nabiki told him. "Humph... typical of you to think
that it's that easy to get the money." Looking directly at his face
Nabiki noted that Ranma seemed to be thinking for a second, and then
looking apologetic.

He told her. "Ok, let's make a deal. I will take you to the place where
I go to calm down when I'm really mad, and you will tell me why are you
so mercenary."

Nabiki was about to give him a piece of her mind when Ranma went faster
and she had to grip him even more tightly. <Hmmmm. he smells nice>
thought Nabiki as she pressed to him. <But what am I thinking!! This
jerk just called me a mercenary..... but damn, he really smells good>

Suppressing that particular line of thought, she raised her head from
Ranma's chest and tried to see where Ranma was taking her.

He sure wasn't taking the direct route to the dojo. In fact, he seemed
to be heading away from the usual places that he liked to visit.

Ranma felt relief. Nabiki seemed to be calming down a little and trying
to enjoy the view. <Now I just hope that no one sees us. The last thing
I need is a horde of crazy martial artists after
me>                                       

<Hmmmm.... he seems to be heading for the industrial side of Nerima>
Nabiki was still wondering just where was their destination, when Ranma
gave a very big jump to a nearby chimney, and then to another, and from
there to a water container that was one of the highest places of
Nerima.  

Looking around Nabiki couldn't help but gasp. The view from there was
great. You could see half of Nerima, and a good part of Tokyo. Looking
at Ranma in awe Nabiki asked. "Nice view Saotome. Do you come here
often?"

Nabiki noticed that Ranma's face saddened for a second, before he
answered with his usual confident smile. "Nope, I just come here when I
feel that I'm about to explode." And then pointing at the sun he
continued. "Just wait a few seconds."

The sun was starting to set at that moment, looking like it was melting
in the mountains. "Sometimes when I feel like I can't go on, I come to
this place to see the sunset. It's so beautiful and peaceful here, that
I can't help but feel that my own troubles are small and insignificant
compared with the rest of the world."

After a few minutes of staring at the view Ranma continued. "Some time
ago an old lady told me that the best things of the life are free." 

Looking a little more cold and using a sarcastic tone Nabiki answered.
"Yes, but unfortunately even a beautiful view like this, isn't going to
pay the bill's or give you some food you know."

Nabiki was really surprised at Ranma. She was very good at reading
people and he seemed to be much more thoughtful. She saw other emotions
pass across his face at that moment. Emotions he usually displayed in
other situations. She could see anger, shame, sadness, depression and
some other emotions, in his eyes. 

One of the most prominent features of Ranma were his eyes. They
displayed his emotions very well. You could easily tell what mood he was
in just by looking at his eyes. Nabiki couldn't help but remember one
thing that one of the girls said in their drawing class. "Whoever said
that the eyes are the window of the soul must had someone like Ranma in
mind. Just looking at those blue-grey pools of emotion is enough to make
your knees go weak." 

Lowering his face Ranma answered with calm and somewhat distant voice.
"Yes Nabiki, I know that it must be hard  for you to pay all those bills
to keep the dojo afloat." 

Nabiki looked at him in shock "You know?" She gasped.

Ranma seemed a little disappointed by this and said. "Aww c'mon Nabiki,
I'm not that dense. I've noticed that you are the one that pays all the
expenses of the dojo."

Something was nagging Nabiki. When Ranma first came to live at the dojo
he didn't like her to take photos of him/her to sell, but after a 
little time he stopped complaining and seemed like he didn't care about
them. Now she understood that Ranma had tried to help her in his own
clumsy and prideful way. He just withstood the trouble that the photos
caused whitout complaint.
    
"So that's why you never said anything about the photos." Said Nabiki
grinning a little.

Ranma looked flustered when he answered. "Well... yes I had never liked
to freeload, and since it seemed to be the easiest way to help you..."

"But it has gotten you in a lot of trouble. You really like troubles,
isn't that so?" Said  Nabiki, still grinning.

Rolling his eyes Ranma answered. "Of course not ... I admit that it's a
good training sometimes, but lately it has become a real pain. All my
problems have become bigger. Sometimes I wish I was as intelligent as
you, that would keep me out of many trouble." Ranma was smiling a little
when he said this.

Nabiki couldn't help but laugh at this. "What? Why are you laughing at
me?" Asked  Ranma in a defensive tone.

"Sorry Ranma, but this is so much fun. The great Ranma Saotome is
envious of somebody else." Answered Nabiki, and then added in a quieter
voice. "Besides sometimes I couldn't help but get a little jealous."

This time it was Ranma who seemed confused. "You jealous? Why?"

Nabiki had a cold expression her face as she continued. "Why? C'mon
Ranma, you are always the center of the attention. You have too many
people after you, both male and female. Even Akane, who seems to hate
boys has lot's of them begging for a chance to go out with her." Then in
a more bitter voice she asked him. "Do you have any idea when the last
time was that one guy invited me to a date just to be with me? Not to
make some deal, or to try to get me to speak to Akane for them... or
whitout a little extortion on my part."

Looking surprised Ranma said. "But...  you don't know?"

"Know what?" Asked Nabiki.         

 Ranma started fiddling with his pigtail and spoke nervously. "Well you
see, many of the guys at school want to invite you out, but they are
afraid. You see, Akane is... well, sort of cute. She's like a challenge
to many of them... but you're different. You are cold and beautiful,
just like a diamond... besides you are one of the most intelligent
people in Nerima. Many of the guys just don't know what to say to a girl
like you. Hmmm, well you know you have class, and you can make life a
living hell of  for them if they do something stupid and anger you."

Frowning a little Nabiki said. "Are you trying to tell me that I haven't
got a single suitor all this time because I intimidate them?"

A sweat drop appeared in Ranma's head when he answered. "Well... yes.
You should loosen up a little. There's no need to be so ruthless and
cold. If you were a little nicer to them you would have more suitors
that you can handle." And then he added in a more joking tone. "I can
even lend you a couple of mine to train with them."      
  
Nabiki was grinning as well as she answered. "But I'm not the nice kind
of girl you know."

"C'mon Nabiki. I still remember when you were supposed to be my fiancee.
You treated me nicely and you were a good fiancee... I know that you can
be really nice when you want to." Ranma seemed to remember something and
added in a sarcastic tone. "When you weren't selling me to the other
girls that is."    

To this Nabiki said in a more businesslike voice. "Well in that case if
you think that I can be more nice let's make a deal. You can give me
pointers on being nicer, and I can help you with that big mouth of
yours."

Ranma looked very funny with a surprised expression. "Me? Give you 
pointers on how to be nicer? I'm the one who was voted the most
inconsiderate, insensitive jerk of the school five times in a row."

"Well yes, but you also are the most popular guy in the school." and
grinning mischievelousy, Nabiki added. ."And the most popular girl too." 
   
Ranma's expression changed from a surprised one to a frown. Nabiki felt
like laughing at this. He looked too funny. <I should had brought my
camera> "Besides." Nabiki continued. "I need someone who can see things
from another perspective and it has to be a trusted person. I don't want
everyone to find out about this, and if there is one thing that you can
do well it's to keep your word and don't speak about this."

Ranma still didn't seemed too convinced with the argument so Nabiki keep
talking. "And I know that you can be nice too, you just have to watch
that mouth of yours." 

Suddenly Ranma looked depressed again when he answered. "I know but...
sometime it's really hard to not say anything back. I'm always being
accused of things that aren't my fault."

"I didn't say that you should just shut up. Just try to think before
answering, and if you are going to say something that you know it's
going to make somebody mad it's better to not say anything... or at
least try to say it politely."

Ranma seemed to be really thoughtful at this. Nabiki decided that he
needed sometime to think, so she gave all her attention to the sunset.
They had been talking for quite sometime and the sun was almost set. The
view was even more beautiful. She felt herself more calm and relaxed
that she had been in a long time.

>From that point Nabiki could see almost all of Nerima. She could see
Furinkan High school, The Dojo, The Nekohanten, and even a obscure red
haired girl in a school uniform, chased by a futuristic looking airplane
and a short haired blonde girl near that new restaurant called Akie's.  

After the sunset, Ranma got up and said. "Let's go Nabiki it's getting
late and cold. If we don't hurry back they're going to start worrying
about us." He then offered her his hand to help her stand up.

Nodding her head Nabiki spoke. "Yes, you are probably right but I still
have one question." Looking directly into his eyes she asked. "Why are
you doing all this? I mean bringing me here and talking about all this.
Why are you trying to be nice all of sudden?"

Ranma seemed to be getting nervous. He started to scratch his head, and
looking down at her he said. "Well, you see... I've been talking with my
mother and ...well... stuff you know, and she has told me that being
nicer doesn't make me any less manly, but actually even more."

Ranma felt a lot of pressure looking at Nabiki. He knew that she wasn't
believing a single word of what he was saying. He seemed to deflate and
then he sighed before continuing. "Well you see it was just that you
seemed mad and out of your normal cool exterior, about to explode, I
felt like helping you. When I'm about to explode I come here... besides,
I wanted to talk with you. After all, you are the most intelligent girl
I know."

Nabiki's eyes grew cold for a second but they seemed to be more friendly
as she answered. "Flattering me will take you to nowhere Saotome and
besides, if you want my advice you know that it has some price." 

Nabiki was surprised when Ranma had confessed that he had some ulterior
motives to take her there. She felt her anger rising, but she only had
to look at his eyes to see that he wasn't trying to get in her good
side. Ranma was too honest for his own good. 

No he wasn't asking something from her. She could see that in his eyes
that he seemed to be offering something instead, and she had a very good
idea of what it was. She just needed to see the reaction to what she
said to know the truth. When she saw the disappointed look of his eyes
at her answer, she knew that he was in his own clumsy way, offering her
his friendship.

<But why?> Nabiki thought. He has a lot of people who would gladly do
anything for him. <And yet he's lonely, just like you> another part of
her answered. Nabiki knew that even when he was the center of all the
chaos that happened around him, he didn't really had a friend to talk
and really open up. The closest thing that he had to a friend was Ukyo
one of his fiancees. She remembered one thing that she once heard.
"There isn't a lonelier person than one that is always around people and
yet they are still lonely."

While she was thinking all this she could see Ranma's expression. First
disappointed, then sad, and then confusion when he saw that she was
still smiling at him. Yet he just did what he usually did in those
situations. Reaching down at his wallet he said. "Ok, Nabiki how much?"

Nabiki's smile just broadened.  "I just want a friendship too." Ranma
seemed to be in shock from the surprise. Even then Nabiki continued
thinking about the reasons of his offer. <And why me? We're too
different. He's just interested in all his martial arts and I... well,
I'm the only almost normal person in the family>  Then another part of
her answered <Maybe that's the reason why he wants this, he needs
another point of view, or he just knows that you are lonely too...> 

Ranma was speechless. He knew that Nabiki was good at reading people,
but to discover all of this even before he really told her. She was to
intelligent. He just felt the smile creeping all over his face. "Then
you knew?"

"Ranma, Ranma, you should know that you are like a open book to me."
Nabiki smiled. She offered him her hand in a gesture to stand up and
then continued. "And tell me what's the other thing that you wanted me
to help you with."

Ranma's face became more serious when he answered. "You see, I want to
fix all the troubles that are raging around me. I had been watching all
the problems, and doing nothing expecting them to resolve themselves,
but they've just been growing worse an worse. I can't just let them
grow. I need to do something,  but I don't know were to start."

"Are you really that afraid to get married?" asked Nabiki.

"Afraid me? I'm not afraid of nothing... it's just that I'm too young to
be married." Answered Ranma in a defensive tone. 

"Yeah, sure Ranma. You aren't afraid of anything." Smirking she
continued "Look Ranma you need sometime alone to think about this, and
decide what do you really want to do. Go on a trip or something like
that. Just don't rush things, or you are just going to make the things
even worse."

Smiling in his usual way he said in a playful tone. "Ok boss, lets go
back to the dojo or we are going to
get chewed out by the others." And then as he scooped her in his arms he
told her. "By the way are you afraid of heights or high speeds?"

"Not really Ranma why?"

"Because this is going to be a fast ride." Then he jumped from the tower
to the nearest roof that was several yards away from him.

Nabiki felt her heart racing. The speed that Ranma was traveling at
while he was jumping from one roof to another was incredible. It was by
sheer will alone that she hadn't yelled. <You will pay for this Saotome>
She thought. But then she saw an expression of pure bliss on his face.
He really seemed to enjoy the speed and the freedom of their race across
the roofs of Nerima.

Feeling the first rush of adrenaline pass and calming herself,  Nabiki
even started to enjoy the ride. She knew that Ranma would rather get
hurt than let her fall, and the excitement of the ride was making her
feel more alive that she ever remembered. <No wonder why he likes to do
this so much > 

After a few more minutes of running, they came to the garden of the
Tendo dojo. Ranma let go of Nabiki just in time to hear a very angry
Akane. "What were you doing with my sister you pervert?"

Ranma seemed like a deer caught in headlights of a truck and before he
even could form a comprensible answer a smiling Nabiki spoke up. "Thanks
Ranma, I had a lovely time. We have to do that sometime soon. " <Payback
time Saotome>

And as if they were summoned, the rest of the gang appeared.

"What Ranma and Mercenary girl doing all day?" Said a purple haired
beauty from the new hole... err door in the wall.

"Ranma-honey you'd better have a good excuse for this." A voice with a
kansai accent from a brown haired spatula wielding beauty continued.

"RANMAAA!!! How can you dare to cheat Akane like this!! Prepare to
DIEEE!!" A fanged warrior yelled.

"HOHOHOHO, Ranma-Sama forget all about those commoners and come with
me." This came from a dark haired gymnast.    

"Ranma my boy, it's not nice to sneak off with the sister of your
fiancee, but don't worry. Just wear this bra for me and I will forgive
you." Said a little old man

"SAOTOME, you cur! Don't tell me that you plan to slave the fair Nabiki
Tendo with your black arts." Said a boy with a bokken.

"GROUF" Said the panda.

"Saotome, for your crimes against my lovely Shampoo you will die." Said
one long haired boy as he attacked with chains. 

"Oh my that's a tree." Said other voice.

The chaos ensued with a confused looking Ranma in the middle of it. "But
I'm telling you guys it's not what it looks like." Just like always
nobody paid attention to him.

Looking on from the sidelines Nabiki said in an amused tone "Poor Ranma.
He'll need to learn to think faster if he wants to live much longer.
Sometimes I feel sorry for him."

*SPLASH* 

"PIGTAIL GIRL!!! Come to me."

"And sometimes I don't. Helping him out of this is going to be a
reeeaaal challenge." Continued Nabiki as she walked into the house.

End of prologue. 

Tony 

Well this is it, what do you think good, bad, worse?
send comments ok even if it's to say, "Hey I liked it" ^_^ 
C&C, Flames, MSTs, Death Treats, Marriage propositions
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