Ranma Hibiki Origins, The lost seal

I would like to share a tale from the old archives I have kept as personal affairs. My name, well . . .Many call me the grim reaper, others . . .Death and run when I let them see me, but this time I am talking about me . . .This time I reflect about my weakness. You see . . . Everything began like this . . ."

A little boy came to this world bearing gifts of greatness but he was no ordinary child. I met him and we established a friendship of sorts. In the distant future, this child bares another, and this second child will be the keeper of my legacy. His name is Ranma Hibiki, but many know him as Ranma Jr.

Now, in this story I met an unlikely pattern. Ranma Saotome was the unhappy owner of a curse, which turned him into a beautiful redheaded girl. I know what you are thinking . . . Ryoga Hibiki fell for this cursed boy and in essence, that is the truth, but the fanged boy ended up with the same predicament.

Ryoga's female side reflects his male perfectly; the only weakness is his open heart. In so many universes I have traveled, these two are rivals . . . Enemies and sometimes lovers, but I always comeback to this one. In this world, the roles change. The redhead is stuck or falls in love with the bandanna boy, but this story diverts from any other.

The curious thing is the outcome. By logic, Ranma is destined to marry Akane Tendo or any other of his fiancés, but this time he strays from the straight road. Ryoga accepts his feelings for the redhead and yet, his curse ends up as the mother of my protégé . . . Now that is a twist, don't you think? . . . Anyway, they move on and many things happen . . . I could stay here for eternity talking about them, but like I said . . . This is about Ryoga alone and maybe a little bit about his son.

Jr. has the same curse as his father and unlike him, this little boy managed to see through the despair of being a girl from the first time. Thanks to understanding friends and family, he accepted being a girl and even embraced it as "her" new way of life.

Within a few months of existence, this "girl" welcomed love at the early age of fifteen from another boy and that is a story of its own, but . . .We are not talking about her either, well . . .Not as the primary actor on this play . . .We are talking about the first child . . .The little Ryoga Hibiki.

Ranma Jr. felt something missing in her mind. A strange resonance deep in the recess of her subconscious, a voice asked her for assistence. "_Little Ranma . . . I am Death. Please tell no one of this link . . . I need to confess something about your mother . . . She has a secret seal that I did for her own good. I need you to look after her while I'm . . ."Indisposed". . ."_

The girl wanted to share this with Ryoko, her mother, but that same resonance compelled her to stay put until knowing the reason. "_Little one . . . I will take you to "him" and you'll see why I did that to her. Find a place where to rest for now and concentrate on my voice."_

The little girl at the time did as told and found a place where to rest for her mental journey. Her times were dire, but if death herself deemed it, necessary . . . She would comply in a heartbeat. Both girl and the image of a grayed skinned death met in the girl's mind and a tunnel brought them to a familiar house.

"_Wait . . . I know this place . . . This is the Hibiki house in Nerima. What are we doing here?"_ The guide pointed ahead and the shorthaired girl floated to a room where a little boy fixed his eyes at nothing on a wall of the house. It was the second floor, on one of the bedrooms and the tiny man stared . . . Lost on it.

"_What's he doing standing just . . . There?"_ Her female companion nodded slowly and let time run its course. The boy, not older than five or six, turned to every side and after some intent to find his way, the whaling cry escaped his throat. "Wah! . . . Mom! . . . Where are you? . . . I'm lost and I can't find you . . . Where are I? . . ."

The girl found her little mother cute and endearing to a point where an "Aw" escaped her. The girl blushed but death mentioned she rather did the same at the time. From downstairs, an alarmed scream alerted the boy of her existence.

"Ryoga! . . . Don't move honey . . . Stay where you are . . . I'll get there soon . . . I promise . . ." Little Ryoga didn't move but something told him of another intruder in the house. The fanged child stared and began to shake at the sight of two unknown girls.

"Are . . . A-Are you the mean big monster who came a few days ago?" Jr. frowned and Death giggled nervously. "_I did showed up but didn't think he would see me . . .I . . .I came in my regular working suit, with scythe and all. . .Well . . .I think I may have freaked him up . . .A bit."_

The girl gaped at the thought of a little boy seeing a scary, tall being made of bones, a robe and a weapon. "_No wonder he's scared of you _. . ." The girl bent to her knees and waved at the little bundle. "Don't worry little one . . . Mom is almost here and Dea . . . I mean, She is not that other monster . . . She is a friend of mine . . ."

The boy felt the soothing words in the girl calming his nerves, but his mom was still out of the reach. "Mom? . . . Where are you?" Her voice changed from place to place in intensity. When Jr. walked at the stairs, she noticed the older woman running from the kitchen to the living room and back at the kitchen.

"_Don't tell me . . . She has the Hibiki problem?" _Death assented and added to the girl's theory. "_This Family . . . "Your" family gave you many gifts when you were born. Ryoko managed to defeat her direction problem before getting pregnant and none of you got it . . . That was one of the strongest changes in her life." _

From downstairs, an expression of relief told them of the older woman finding the stairs and rushing after her son. "Dear, I'm here! . . . Don't cry any more . . ." Mother and son hugged in a frantic manner. She lifted him and carried the boy after remembering the chores in the kitchen.

Walk after walk . . . Step after step, the result was the same. "No . . . Wait, we just came to the bedroom . . . Ok, I stop here turn left and . . . No . . . The stairs are gone again . . ." The woman recalled the advice given by a friend and she calmed down, touched the wall and never moved her hand from it.

Slowly, the house's wall lead her to the path sending them down, the woman set the boy on top of the table in the kitchen and waited for something. "Where is he . . . I swear, if it wasn't for him, we'd be lost forever in our own home . . ."

Little Ryoga didn't care. He stared at those beautiful brown eyes and all his worries vanished from his mind. The little boy gave her the biggest smile he could muster and even his swollen eyes changed into a happy frown.

"Mom? . . . Why do we do this? . . . Is everyone like us?" The beautiful mother giggled at his witty comments and questions and the girl cradled him carefully until a door called for their attention. The knocks sounded urgent, but Mrs. Ami Hibiki encouraged him to slow down.

"Don't worry, we are Ok! . . . For now . . ." The door opened and a man in his late twenties walked into the kitchen carrying a load of ropes on the back. "Ami . . . We're here . . ." Mr. Soun Tendo is an intimate friend of the Hibikis for years. His wife, Hiroko Tendo entered the residence with little Akane by her hand.

"Oh Soun, I'm so glad you came . . . This was the worst time yet. . ." The Hibiki mother pointed at the blushing boy, as he was looking at the floor ashamed by the little girl. "Little Ryoga decided to go on a journey and found the second floor . . . Alone. ."

The man with the moustache smiled and lifted the little boy into the air, making him gasp from the speed and the height. "Little Ryoga-kun . . . You must be strong, remember . . . You are the man of the house until your dad finds his way here . . ."

Everyone saddened at the mention of Kenta Hibiki who, while trying to go check the mail, the man found himself in Russia after turning right in the corner of the house. "He'll be fine, but in the meantime, we need to be careful . . ."

The boy laughed at the speed and that made the little raven-haired girl giggle. Little Ryoga stared back at her and the girl blushed and nodded once. "Yes! . . . I feel great when you laugh . . . You shouldn't cry anymore . . ." Soun and Hiroko blinked and laughed after the two blushing children.

"Well Ami-Chan . . . It seems we'll be family soon enough . . ." They kept laughing while boy and girl stared, lost from the comment. Ryoga looked at the man and his face turned serious from the next words. "Uncle Tendo . . . I saw them again . . . I swear! . . . This time they were two girls . . . One had fangs like me and the other one gray skin . . ."

Ami worried for the idea of two strangers, but the boy mentioned before a dark entity lurking in the shadows of the house. "What do you think Soun? . . . Is he really seeing those "things" . . .?" The old man set the boy down and smiled confidently at his friend. "Oh, don't worry Ami-Chan. . .Little Ryoga is going through that phase. . Let's see . . . Kasumi had that strange little boy who transformed into a girl, what was his name? . . . Oh yeah! Yoshiro . . . And Nabiki? . . . Well . . . Nabiki talked all the time with a giant yen coin floating at her side. I'm guessing she'll be an accountant or something like that . . ."

"Now, Akane-Chan hasn't mentioned any new "imaginary" friend, but soon she'll be talking to someone through her elbows." The little boy felt frustrated when hearing the well-known word "imaginary" and he defended his point in the truest of ways.

"No uncle! . . . I saw them . . . They're even peeking at us right now, over there . . ." The child pointed at the middle of the stairs and forced by instinct, everyone followed the finger. "Well little Ryoga, if they're real . . . Could you introduce us?"

The tiny fanged boy smiled and waved at Jr. and Death and called them to the living room. The females floated close to them, Jr. Felt the stare from the family at her specifically, but Death shook her head from her fear. "_Don't worry . . . No adult can see us if I don't let them . . . Children? . . . Well, they are pure souls . . ."_

"This is . . . Waiting, what's your name?" After some quiet moments, the boy went back to his presentation. "This is Ranma Jr. and her friend is Dea . . . They came today to visit me for the first time and told me about the other big, scary monster. He is not coming anymore . . ." Finished satisfied by his explanation.

Little Akane walked at his side and stared at the two invisible girls, bowed and waved at them. "Hi . . . My name is Akane Tendo." Their parents burst in laughter after the two little liars and kept talking about their own imaginary friends in life.

The little girl stared at the grayed skin one and giggled at her. "You look funny . . . Are you sick?" Death signaled her companion and they waved goodbye at the two little boys. "_Understand this Jr. . .I am death, a high-ranking leader in my own universe and in charge of many others. I don't "do" feelings . . . That are something interfering with my work . . . But, what you see here is the last shred of happiness in that boy."_

Just like when you advance a tape on the recorder, the scenes unraveling before the two travelers fast-forward from view. Ranma Jr. saw how little Ryoga got lost several times a day, even when using the system of ropes designed by Soun.

Still, time kept flowing to a point where the girl witnessed a terrible storm brewing in the distance. Suddenly, the speed of the scenes came to a normal pace and Jr. wondered about death's next lesson. The god of the dead extended her arm again and the Hibiki house lain in darkness.

"_What is it death . . . Why there is no light in the house? . . ." _The immortal being hesitated to continue, but knew this was the reason for the journey in the first place. "_A simple outage turned the tide and set in motion the beginning of his end . . ."_

Jr. floated inside looking for the woman and child, but in the darkness, the only thing she saw was the desperate moves of a scared boy. Lighting and loud noises made little Ryoga panic. The boy ran at the first place to be the safest one . . . His mother's room.

When he opened the door, the boy closed his eyes and ran furiously at the bed, but there was nothing he could grasp resembling one. When Ryoga opened his eyes, there was a strong wind and the whaling bangs of braches hitting debris and trees alike. "I'm . . . I-I'm . . . Outside? . . . But how? . . ." The terrifying scream did not wait and the call reached the right ears.

Ami ran downstairs lead by the ropes and gasped when seeing the main door opened. "No! . . . Ryoga! . . ." The woman quickly rushed through it and into the abyss of the storm. A guard managed to see the familiar woman searching for something and, after offering his help; the man moved at his guard station and dialed the Tendo Home.

"Mr. Tendo? . . .Yes, we have a situation . . .Mrs. Hibiki is lost in the city and trying to find her boy . . .I'm going in pursuit but be alerted and gather more citizens please . . ." The man hanged the phone and went on to look for the missing son.

Little Ryoga walked lost and fearful of the nightly sounds. Trees roared back at him in a fury song of destruction and hatred. He kept yelling and moving from place to place where he thought, home was near. Ranma Jr. and Death arrived at the precise moment.

Jr. kept yelling at him concerned with his relentless behavior. "Mom! . . . Wait, stay there and they will come . . ." The little boy heard that word . . . The name of his creator and responsible for his happiness. Ryoga walked towards the voice until stopping near a big tree.

Jr. admitted her name-calling would never make him react at her help, but when lights in the distance not too far from where she floated appeared, she felt calm for the situation. "_Oh . . . If it were that simple . . ."_ Death once again pointed at a big branch taking most of the space on the lower level of the big tree.

Winds picked up and the branch snapped, flying where the gust took it. "_I really hate fate sometimes . . ."_ Ranma followed the tragic path the tree's limb took. The heavy bough hit the back of the boy with such force, that he fell unconscious to the ground and the branch covered his lifeless body.

On the other side of the tree. Ami arrived by sheer motherly instinct, but there were no signs in the dark and windy forest. The woman kept screaming and searching for him without avail and she plummeted down as well.

Jr. rushed and fell at Ryoga's side screaming and grabbing him from the blow. Her hands kept passing through the leaves and stems like a ghost, that's when she realized there was no help for him now. "_Well . . . He didn't die, we all are here and mom is so strong . . . Not even this can put her down . . ."_

"_You would think so dear . . . But this voyage is not over yet . . ."_ The storm kept raging until the next day. Some of the guards found the woman and brought her back into the Tendo Home, but the child could not be found.

The news of her missing child and the cold environment where she fell the prior night took her to the limit. The local doctor checked and administered her dose after dose of tranquilizers and medicine to keep the fever down, but with no word from little Ryoga, her weakness overtook and the woman died the next morning.

The tiredness made Ryoga sleepy, but his need to find his mother forced him to stand up and keep walking, there was nothing more important for him than the only person capable to be at his side. "Mom . . . Where is you mom . . .?"

His disorientation leads him to a small town a few miles away from Nerima. The place received heavy damage by the storm and the people tried to recover their destroyed possessions from the wreck. The little boy muddled through the strangers and kids crying for help.

The devastation not only tested their will or desire to go on in life but their feelings of solidity and loyalty to one another. "Excuse me . . . I'm looking for my mom . . . Have you seen my mother?" The busy villagers shoved the little boy without any concern for his well-being.

Little Ryoga fell to the mud and backed up to his goal. Adults just ignored the cries and procured their own needs first and foremost. Jr. saw the inconformity on the people and disdain when passing for troubling times.

"_Why? . . . Why do they act like that when little children need help . . . That's so "inhuman" . . ."_ Death asserted her feelings and noted the same conclusion dawned when visiting her "candidates"

"_Despair and hatred are sensations I deal most of the time . . .There are a few who accept death as part of life and move on while the rest beg, and even ask for a deal or offer for more life in exchange for another valuables. . ."_

Ryoga was kicked and shoved in a demeaning way so he just lay down and stayed there. Tears threatened to spill but his mother's teachings included never let others influence in his happiness. The little boy bit his lower lip and forced the droplets back.

Night fell and most of the families found shelter from the wreckage. The little lost boy walked close to a small family heating up rice in a made up fire and kettle. The little girl in the family smiled at him and invited him closer, the girl shared some of the rice with the boy, but at the first bite, her father realized of the intruder and shushed him away.

His tummy roared in hungry demand and there was nothing in sight. This seemed to be the last he would see of humanity in a while. The boy kept walking into the wilderness, defeated not only by nature but also by those he hoped they could be good people.

Finally, after so much walking, the child dropped to his knees and accepted his demise. Jr. turned to see Death firmly and kneeled before her. "_Please Death . . . I know you can help mom . . . I beg you . . . She has gone through so much . . ."_

"_I brought you to understand your mother's pain . . . Not to make me "more" human you know? . . ."_ Yet, she gave into the feeling way before the little girl would come in her life. Death waved her hand and on top of a tree near the boy, three apples fell.

Little Ryoga saw the big, round goodness staring daringly back at him and he lunged for the yummy treat. Jr. jumped and hugged the grayed girl, but what made her smile and blush was the little boy looking at her and bowing respectfully. "T-Thank you . . . Dea . . ." The boy ate and fell asleep besides the tree.

The next day, sunlight caught in his eyes, waking him up completely. The little lost child restarted his journey back home, this time though, his resolution changed. The timid, fearful boy began to drown away by the bad luck following everywhere and in its place; the new "Ryoga Hibiki" made his appearance.

It took him six months living in the wilderness and staring at villagers how to hunt from the shadows of the land. Six grueling months where he stole clothing from the local houses and turned into a little savage man, feeding from berries and raw fish.

The time moved forward again, this time the little warrior became eight years old and with that, there were no more childish games. He learned the hard way to survive with the only dream in his mind. To one day, reunite with his mother.

The boy met the two strange girls from time to time, and they talked about Jr. infatuation with a boy and how Death was a nice girl when alive all those millennia ago. Both girls grew accustomed to him and his witty comments over nauseous hugs and kisses between girls and boys in love.

His mind and the imaginary friends were the only constant in the little Hibiki boy's life. After some days of loneliness, another turn took him even lower on his already low existence. The berries looked tasty that morning and the boy found a way to climb the vine-infested tree when a man grabbed him by a leg and pulled him down.

"Look Sai . . . We got us another running child . . . The slavers will pay nicely for this one . . ."

Ryoga fought fiercely but against an opponent that big and strong, his attacks meant nothing. The scavenger laughed at his desperate attempts and tossed him noisily into a cage. "Now . . . Be still and quiet and maybe I won't beat you up as bad . . ." He hit the cage trying to make his point clearer.

Ryoga began to panic after all the places he'd never been and when the caravan began to move away, the boy rattled the cage in fury. The man forced himself to stop the truck and got off from it. "Seems a little demonstration is in order . . ."

The menacing adult walked at him while pulling a thick, short whip made of leather. Ryoga felt the stinging sensations of lacerations across his back and legs until the labored breathing on the man made him stop. The weak boy bowed down and didn't move from that moment on. The unshaved man grabbed the boy's chin and raised it slightly up, where their eyes met.

"Be careful boy . . . You are too cute for your own good and that can bring the wrong people to you . . ." He smiled perversely and his thumb held his swollen cheek up, than let go of him. The fear in his eyes marked a new master in his life. He sat and licked his wounds while the people on the caravan laughed and drink during the expedition.

Ranma flared in ire. The girl felt like burning that man to ashes and she wished for a way to materialize and punish him. Death felt the fear in the boy and that same tear she shed once before, leaked once again. Jr. saw that and she felt like crying as well.

"_Why does she have to go through all this? . . . Mom always fights against fate. .Now I know her mind, but why not fight and escape? . . . She can if she desires." _The grayed girl shook her head and compared little Ryoga to another example.

"_Tell me Ranma . . . What is a packing mule good for? . . . Now tell me this . . . What would happen to that mule if his masters beat him every . . . Single day, for no reason but their amusement. Tell me what will happen to his will . . . To his desire to free himself from the nightmare of his life. . ."_

"_Little Ryoga Hibiki's life is beating him on every single turn . . . And the worse part is not even over . . ."_ The group arrived to a place where children were sold. Men with lustful eyes and full of demeaning jobs stared at the kids and asked a fair price for their souls.

Ryoga was chained and pushed into the stand. The boy looked serious and ready for anything and that made him the central part of the event. Some offered more than others did, but in the end, a woman bought him for a fair price.

Little Hibiki saw his salvation when thinking a woman would be the perfect example of virtue. The least replacement for his estranged mother until he could find her next, but the woman had other ideas in mind. His punishment became even deadlier when she used him for small errands through the lower corridors of a strange city in the dessert.

Everywhere you looked, sand was the resident attraction. The small city contemplated people trafficking stolen goods and humans like normal transactions. Ryoga met men with scars and lost limbs who entered the house full of women and they would laugh and drink until falling asleep. . .Together . . .That never bothered him since he had no idea of the dealings inside the rooms.

He just kept busy and focused on his job. Moving wine caskets here and platters filled with fruits and meat there . . . Never to eat them or pick on them since the punishment usually was painful and excruciating. From eight to nine, Little Ryoga accepted his fate as lost to the world.

All those memories of cozy homes with favorite foods cooked with love and care . . . Those times visited by his uncle and little Akane would never come, and his mother . . . He would never see those adorable caring brown eyes in this existence.

He began to realize one thing from the past. He had an incredible weakness to a woman's eyes. The color and definition told him of the person's soul and intentions. That was his first lesson in life to help him survive.

At nine and a half, the boy saw the depths of hatred his buyer portrayed. The woman bought another boy who used as server for the wine. Both woman and an old man laughed at the silliness of their chat when this boy slipped, bathing the man with the wine bottle.

The man enraged by the clumsy boy, unsheathed his sword and slashed him were he stood. This was the first death in Ryoga's mind and the most gruesome. The little Hibiki's mind clouded by fear and depressions to a level never felt before, he closed his eyes and ran into the sandy ocean, accepting its hot embrace and his demise.

The kid walked for a long time, mostly during the night while the day kept him at bay in small bushes and feeding from critters crawling around. The boy wondered about his bad luck and the reason for his misfortunes, but than, he remembered the poor boy that died before him . . . With no one to call his own or to care for his execution.

Tears refused again to leak and he stood up, staring at the dawn of the day rise. "I will not perish . . . Not today . . ." He reinitiated his journey out of that hell. The world became his home from that moment on; places would welcome him with arms of humiliation and spite.

He learned to beg, run errands for busy merchants and always keep an eye for the less fortunate. That day was a special one. He rushed to the market and helped carry heavy packs to the older female merchants; the women would clap at him and share part of their food and sometimes a few coins.

The boy kept saving those coins and the food was shared with three children as young as him and a little five-year-old girl sitting on a corner, asking for charity. The boy arrived and all the kids called him Oni-Chan, or big brother.

Ryoga divided the food and drink among the boys and girl and he rested besides them. There was a feeling of accomplishment by doing so and his problems faded from his life. Death and Jr. popped again after seeing the little boy's heart in action.

"_You see Death? . . . Mom has always taught us to protect the weak and the helpless . . . Is this the life of a looser? I don't think so. She will always fight for what she wants . . . No matter what . . ."_ Death admitted that too and the boy's demeanor was the catalyst for her transformation.

There were always hard times in his life, but he never gave up. The afternoon seemed so peaceful and calm. The vendors closed shop and began to leave and little Ryoga's memories flew back in his life. No one at his side, alone in the world and with no place to stay. He walked back to the small corner where the sewer ends up and tucked his little brothers and sister on their raggedy made up tent.

The next day, strange hands woke the screaming kids up. They tried to run and escape the evil men, but everyone was caught and taken away before seven in the morning. Little Ryoga woke up a block and a half away, close to the people walking early to the market.

He arrived to the abandoned place and questioned any witness about his family. The old man throwing the water and sweeping the street told him of uniformed men picking up strayed kids during the morning and the place where they took him.

After all day lost, Ryoga found the place and demanded an explanation, only to be taken as wellin custody. "Young men . . . You are part of a new solution to help the city look more respectful . . . Here, in Japan, we will concern the affairs of lost children to the local authorities and let them decide your future."

Each boy and girl was screened and vaccinated form diseases and put on special places where grown ups would come and invite them over as a family. Ryoga believed that to be a fair deal in comparison with the streets.

His family left to a different building but was assured they were in good hands. In the same block, little Hibiki met a girl. She was lost like him and what was worse; the older kids always bullied her for no reason. Ryoga sat at her side and helped her pick several stomped flowers from the ground.

"Hi . . .My name is Ryoga . . .Ryoga Hibiki . . ." The girl moved back, afraid of a possible attack, but when the smiling boy kept his extended open palm, the girl couldn't contain her tears and ran, hugging him close. Her cries lasted for some time and the boy felt awkward at first, but remembering his mother made him withstand her sad mood.

After a few minutes, the girl stopped and cleaned her face. "M-My . . . My name is . . . Saeko . . . I don't know if I have a last name though . . ." Ryoga laughed goodheartedly and told her he didn't care. They became close friends and went everywhere together.

Bullies tried to pin the girl several times, but an enraged Ryoga would always thwart their efforts and send them packing away. The older girl felt so at peace with him that they became more than friends although they never said it out loud.

Jr. and Death saw how her mom was taking a turn for the better finally, but the grayed skinned girl smiled at that tenacious fate. "_I brought you to this precise moment to witness something unprecedented. . ."_ Ranma Jr. stared intently at how the next series of events developed before the girl.

Ryoga and Saeko walked out of the hospice by permission and they went to the market to get some stuff for dinner. Ryoga saw the market as his second home and people had him in high esteem, so the prices were always favorable.

Little Saeko walked by a lady who always offered a piece of soft, tasty candy at the end of the day. Unless many children were begging for the candy, she would always get it with a few exceptions. Ryoga offered to ask the woman for such a delicacy and he walked at the female vendor.

Jr. felt the impulse to smile at how happy her mom looked and decided to enjoy a romantic date at the age of almost ten. The ghostly image saw when the old woman waved at Ryoga and told him she needed to close and leave fast.

The boy waved back and yelled at her to "toss" the candy . . . That he would catch it without a problem. The woman agreed and threw the big piece of candy into the air. There it was, the precious commodity blinking back at the boy and the girl waiting to enjoy.

Saeko clapped excitedly and the fanged boy felt the candy within his grasp . . . But it wasn't like that . . . Another boy, jumped higher and caught the candy with his opened mouth, swallowing it whole. A loud voice made the young kids turn and see an older man congratulating the small boy on a job well done.

"Good work m'boy! . . . There is nothing escaping us! . . . But you forgot to share some with me . . . You ungrateful son . . ." Ryoga gaped at the cynicism on the old man and the pigtailed boy. He frowned angrily, but the girl held him back.

"Forget him . . . They sometimes come by and when they do, no one else gets any food from the merchants. . ." Ryoga growled defiantly at the little pest and tried to describe him as best as he could. "He is a rat! . . . Who would take food from poor kids and keep it to himself . . . I swear . . . If I ever meet him again, he's paying for his sins . . ."

Saeko giggled at his seriousness and patted his back, trying to calm him down. "Don't be too judgmental. We thought that at first, but people say his father is the miscreant here. He taught him to be like that and even some say, he sold him for rice and a pickle once . . ." Little Ryoga blanched at the kind of father capable to do something like that.

"I guess. … I misjudged him. Poor guy . . . I hope he'll get better in life . . ." The couple shrugged the incident and went back home with the dinner ingredients. Jr. gasped and saw straight at Death. "_Dad? . . . Dad stole from them and he just left like that? . . ."_

"_Little one, Ranma Saotome is what his father made of him. He passed for hard tests of his own, but his attitude is a lot different from Ryoga. In all the other worlds and universes, I never expected to see these two as a couple. One is unrefined but strong and prideful. . ._

"_While the other is goodhearted, but full of problems. Ranma always succeeded to gain Miss Akane Tendo in the end, or one of the other variations. . .In my personal opinion, Ryoga shouldn't have ended up with him . . .Ever . . .It's just not fair for my boy . . ."_

Ranma Jr. realized the kind of affection Death saw in her mother and that made her proud, yet . . . "_Still . . . I thank them for joining in. There is no better mate for my dad than my mom and the same goes for her _. . .," Death laughed in her head when the girl ignored any regard with genders or attractions, but she felt Jr. had the right idea.

"_I hate to admit it, but you're right . . . They are the perfect couple. . ." _The girl smiled from her won argument and they went back to the real life movie.

Ryoga's life felt like a new hope. There were adults respecting them and even giving them a right place among society and he became sort of a legend thanks to the good deeds in the past with abandoned children. Yes, this would be a story to tell his mom when he'll arrive home.

That was his plan when the director in charge of the hospice found the records of the Family Hibiki living close to the Nerima district. As with most things, the paperwork was never a strong dedication on a run-down, poor building like that one.

The right channels failed to communicate and the poor boy ended up in the ever-looping system Japan had at the time. Ryoga didn't mind much but his family was the goal. "You'll see Saeko-Chan, mom will love you like a daughter and uncle Tendo is amazing . . . He has three daughters too and is an important man in the city."

Most children gathered around the enticing tales of martial artists living on his district and a place where everyone helped each other. The little man promised to visit them and if the director would approve, he would take them home as his guests.

In the afternoon of a rather nice day, both Ryoga and Saeko sat by the old tree admiring the few stars filling the sky. The old and tired sun almost left the day rest from his light and the only reminder the two children had of him were the three shadows, slowly descending over.

The fanged boy turned around and stood up promptly while preparing the incoming assault. The little girl saw how those three kids were a lot older than he was, but that never made him flinch. Little Ryoga never moved away from his duty as protector to those who depended on him.

The kids stomped, kicked and punched their way though his defenses until he couldn't take it any longer and his body reacted on his own, falling to the ground. The girl screamed at them and tried to push them away, but this was no ordinary attack.

One of the boys reached well in the fifteens, he was the mastermind in the bunch and the one calling the shots. "Hold her still . . . This is going to be a lot of fun. . ." The big, round eyes in the girl reflected the boy with intentions as black as her irises. Tears fell and the girl begged for the predator to release her. The struggle the girl offered made the boy feel empowered and that rush was his drive to do the lowest of actions.

Or so he tried when an abated and bloodied fanged fighter rose once again. The sounds of fractured or possible broken bones made his vision blurry from time to time, but the sheer fear he felt when that old man threatened him on the caravan was the same he saw in those girl's eyes.

Despair and depression reign in him, loosing completely in the feeling. A strange bluish glow emanating from within shone bright in the dark sky. The light bathe the dark image of the boys about to pass that line but this was no time to wonder about that. He had to fight them and defeat them for the sake of his friend.

A small step was all he could muster under the pressure of his punishment and he decided to just stand and hope they'll run away, but this was no regular bully. The boy smiled and tilted his head, observing his opponent.

"I am a student in martial arts and even when I haven't seen that weird lightshow before, I know you are too tired to even fight me . . ." He ordered to the other two the continuation on the girl's intimate attack. The bigger boy walked confidently thinking on finishing the fight, and accepting the hero would die soon after it.

Jr. tried to interfere again but Death advised her to stay back. "_This has passed child . . .Let it be and witness the transformation . . ."_ One of the boys ripped the girl's blouse, exposing her personal clothes underneath, yet that was enough for the boy to enrage away from sanity.

"You are hurting my friend! . . . I . . . I-I will never forgive you! . . ." The bully was tired of his boasting and his fist flew at him with determination. Ryoga sensed that strange glow morphing inside of him. The boy's eyes died from the fear and hopelessness in his friend's predicament.

Strength he did not know where it came from filled his foreign body and when the attacker's fist made contact with his face, a loud cracking of bones made the bigger boy scream in agony. The other boys trembled at the sight of an arm dangling from the stronger leader like a rag doll's limb.

The extremity flailed with fury after the vibrations from the blue glow, but the alarmed shout of pain reached some of the adults, far . . . Inside the old building. When they arrived, Ryoga had no idea how to shut the glow off and he stared back at those eyes . . . Those eyes demeaning him and calling names rudely.

"He broke my arm! . . . We found that boy trying to touch her and when I tried to stop him, the "freak" used that strange light against us! . . ." The grown boy cried and pointed at his numb extremity while the angry men took the boy away.

Saeko tried to scream the truth, but the other boys kept her mouth closed faking their help for a traumatized girl. That day, the basement welcomed the visit of a new prisoner. Ranma Jr. kept shaking her head and negating the cruel destiny' hand on her mother.

"_I swear . . . If Fate had anything to do with this . . . She'll pay dearly . . ."_ Death reaffirmed the past memory as just that and told her to bare her judgment until the last scenario played before her. In the dark and damp place, Ryoga smiled and his tears fell from the happiness to see them.

"Ranma! . . . Dea! . . . You're here . . . I-I c-can't hold my tears back any more . . . I-I need . . . I need to . . ." The girl rushed at his side and even when she couldn't touch him, she stayed there, at his side comforting him. "Don't worry little one . . . My brave little one . . . I-I am here . . . I will be at your side . . . A-Always! . . ."

Death forced herself away from the tender scene. There was nothing she could do after the wrenching and painful memory seeping through her defenses. The grayed girl couldn't stop it and a tiny aching whimper left her lips. Jr. smiled and her tears joined Ryoga's in an effort to make him feel better.

It wasn't like that though. Two men entered the place with anger in his blinded minds and ill wishes in their hearts. "You dare attack in that manner she who has been like a sister to you? . . . This building is the safe house for many children and your example will not stain all the good this place has done."

One of the men pulled that old and familiar short and thick whip he became closely acquainted some years ago. The fear and desperation filled his eyes and the men knew of his desire to run away from the stinging pain.

"I'm sorry kid . . . I really am . . . We were told of the slavery you went through and we tried to reform you, but we failed . . . If beatings are what make you understand . . . So be it." The whip felt strangely harder and the slashes stung even more. Perhaps were the old wounds acting up? Or maybe his mind making the comparison.

But no, the boy saw glimpses of water in them. Little Ryoga bared his teeth and closed his eyes at the misery of a wet whip hitting his body. His screams resounded all over the walls on the upper levels. Many of the children wept from the vibrations and muffled whimpers from their protector.

Saeko stared at the two boys guarding any attempts to alert the grown ups of their treachery, and the girl dropped her crying eyes to the floor . . . The only place she could beg for her weakness. Ranma Jr. wanted to look away, but scream after scream slapped her face back into place.

The girl saw how a little boy was traumatized by adults who thought they were doing the right thing. Her eyes turned slightly gray . . . Like the now dead ones Ryoga ported. "_I really hope there is a reason for all this . . . I feel sick to my stomach and I want to let go of my hidden power . . . Come here and erase them from existence."_

"_I need you to see this for what will happen soon in his life . . .I want a witness to my actions . . .I feel dirty for what I did and I may need redemption . . ."_ Death finally confessed her sin. The god of the dead admitted her flaw and needed a counseling friend at her side.

After the merciless beating ended, the men stared amazed at the will on the boy. Blood and what they swear were very tiny chunks of flesh decorated the walls in the basement, but that child was no more. It looked like a hollowed body with no soul inside.

The nurse came by after his correction and moved the palm of her hand against her lips. She tried to be as careful from his wounds as possible, but even when she dropped some of the alcohol on his open back, there was no response . . . Just lying there, mute and staring into the nothingness of the dark.

The next day, some officers in dark blue took the boy away in a wagon. His sentence? A special institution for delinquents. At that point, Ryoga Hibiki died from any attention but the slim image of a tender mother welcoming home in his mind.

Nothing else moved him. There were kids of all ages in that place and they were tougher than most . . .He sure wanted to believe a ten year old boy wouldn't fit amongst them, but he knew bullies and beatings were born in that place.

As a matter of fact, the beatings and the humiliation from the older young ones were a typical pass time for younger children like him, although he was the youngest that never stopped the rest from going "all out" with him.

One of those painful days came with a different outcome. The nurse from that old building visited with the director who was shedding tear after tear. The man kneeled down at his level and bowed his head down. "Little Hibiki . . .I-I'm sorry . . .We never gave you the chance to explain your side of the truth . . .Little Saeko came all bruised up and with her clothes ripped apart."

The next part of the explanation made him tilt his head in disconcerting wonder. The man's voice left the room and only his muted mouth described the atrocities his friend went through because he wasn't there. The pain was still there. .. He could feel his soul shattering and falling to pieces, but there was no more tears . . . He felt empty.

The man apologized profusely and took the boy away from that place telling the other adults of his innocence. Ryoga arrived to the old building and learned about those bullies leaving the place for good, afraid of the law and the wet whip.

Little Saeko-Chan received him back and lead him to that old tree, where the two sat silently like an old couple waiting for their deaths. Time ruled back in their lives and the only constant he had, was his mother waiting patiently for him and his friend.

Days turned to a year and at eleven, Ryoga Hibiki graduated from the old building and into Nerima. The boy finally figured the location of the hospice . . . It was in a city call Hokkaido, in an island far from home. Both boy and girl hugged each other and the little fighter promised to convince his parents to adopt her as soon as he arrived home.

Days felt long and slowing by the second . . . The boat arrived shortly at the bay area and a small car took him into the outskirts of Nerima District. Ryoga rushed out the door and fell some times while trying to ace the right path home.

Everything seemed in the long past. All those miserable incidents were nothing but forgettable memories in his feeble mind . . .There was only one constant . . .There was "Always" that rule . . .Get home and hugged her . . .Hugged her like his life depended on it.

At the entrance of the Hibiki Residence, Soun Tendo awaited anxious for the boy. Ryoga ran at his arms and didn't care if he was his real uncle or not . . . He was his family. "Where's mom! . . . I have a great surprise for her . . . Just wait here uncle and you'll see the amazing news I have. . ."

He could barely breathe and tried to stop his ranting. The boy stared back at an older girl with her dark, blue hair all the way down to her shoulders. The girl smiled when seeing his smile and nodded, satisfied for his happiness.

Soun never let go of the boy and tried to keep his attention from the house. "Ryoga-Chan! . . . You should be this thrilled . . . From now on, you will live with us! . . . We have a Dojo where you can learn our art and Akane-Chan will be your sister . . . Wait and you'll see how everything will be better. . ."

The boy, Ranma Jr. and Death stared at the failed intents on the Tendo father with disappointment. Little Ryoga changed into a serious demeanor and he bowed quietly at his uncle. "Uncle Tendo . . . Where's mom? . . . And… Dad?"

The father tried to keep the answer buried and forgotten, but his expression made him doubt of the child's younger mind. "They're dead aren't they? . . . Mom had to die after loosing me and dad, by hearing my mom's tragedy? . . ."

Soun felt terrible and wondered how the boy managed to described the loss with so "grown up" words. Still, he tried to cheer him up and offered him salvation from his hell. Little Ryoga's eyes turned that gray hue tone and the only escape from this nightmare called him away.

The guard leading him here from Hokkaido fell to the ground when trying to reach for the running boy. Soun saw how he shrunk away . . . Again into the wilderness of the town. "I-I'm sorry Ryoga-Chan . . . I really am . . ." His tears flowed and Akane knew she lost someone special.

Ranma Jr. Saw how the young boy fell to that tree where her mother lain sick during the storm. He patted the ground and, after gathering some leaves, he lay down at the spot's side . . . A smile sneaking on his face.

The girl sat at his side and ran her ethereal fingers through his hair. Death's eyelids blinked rapidly as tears filled her eyes and she too, sat on the other side of the sleeping boy. "_Poor mom . . . This is so unfair. I-I feel the weight of her life and I want to cry and fall asleep in her arms . . . I want to talk to her and beg for her love . . . I. . .Want to make her happy and never cause her any trouble. . ."_

"_Funny you mention that . . . My pledge sounds something like that . . ."_ The Hibiki girl and Death saw how a big creature walked close by and stared at the boy. The past image of a robed and skeletal Death holding a scythe presented at the boy.

"Little Ryoga Hibiki . . . Your time is . . ." The enormous being drove his empty hand at the inside of the hood, where his face would be and cleaned something from his eyes. A sniff made the girl giggle and talk back at the grayed skinned girl.

"_Mom made you cry even back then? . . . The mighty grim reaper whimpering from my mother's troubles . . . Now I've seen everything."_ The giant extended his arms and his new form changed into the now prettier and curvy teenage girl with skimpy clothes.

"_Shut up . . . You have no idea how hard is to ignore humanity's turmoil and unhappiness. Ryoga woke me up from my heart's slumber, and now comes his reward."_ Jr. and the futuristic Death gazed upon the old image talking to the dormant child.

"I … I cannot take you with me. Not after all the terrible things in your tiny life. You made me feel again and for that, I will reward you young child." The girl waved her scythe and a green glowing sign appeared on the little boy's forehead.

The sign slowly passed through his skull and rested in his mind. "This seal will protect you from all these memories and will let you live peacefully from your past . . . I, Death . . . Am requesting the permanent erasing of memories from those who knew this child. . ."

"No one will know you and you won't remember a thing, but I'll find a place where good memories stay in your mind. Your mom will be with you always and that place where you grew up happily will exist too. The Hibiki residence will stand witness to your sacrifice and protection for the innocent and the weak."

The Death from the future and Ranma Jr. warped ahead one year. The now young Ryoga Hibiki age almost twelve, waved at his foster mother . . . Ami's sister and owner of a less profound directionless problem. Her husband Ittou had the belief; the boy was their right son and moved into Ami's house after her death.

Ryoga always felt a sensation of sadness when remembering his aunt Ami and the terrible accident from a storm where she lost her only child and eventually died from complications. This time, everything seemed strange. He ran on his dark blue uniform to school where he had no friends for some reason and most of them were afraid at his superior, unnatural strength.

That day particularly, he met another strange soul who liked to jump on the head of the students to reach the ever food thrown after recess. He felt a certain connection and even though he felt like knowing him from somewhere, he scoffed the feeling away, but kept the boy as his next goal in life.

Something called him to that pigtailed boy and his yapping father. The time came for them to match wits and fight honorably for supremacy. Ryoga had his feelings of friendship and the desire to be as good as he did. Most people in town talked about the boy's prowess in the art and that became his most guarded wish.

The time came and after several days, he found that dreaded empty lot. Of course it was empty . . . The boy didn't need weak boys unable to give him a fair fight, but that didn't do. He left this honorable duel and that had to be resolved. Ryoga Hibiki ran for several hours until reaching his home. The boy packed everything he thought it would be helpful in his dad's old backpack and went after the only boy he considered important for some reason.

Death and Jr. stared at the younger Death appearing before the Hibikis and waving her scythe at them. Ami's sister frowned at the place and felt out of it. "Honey? . . . Do you know why are we living in my sister's house? . . ."

The man looked disconcerted at the sight and wondered the same. "I thought we visited for a time, but there is nothing in here for us . . .We should go back to Hokkaido and finish that family we've been planning for so long. . ."

Ranma Jr. gaped and looked at her companion. "_You made them forget mom? Why . . .?"_ The girl shrugged her shoulders and smiled nervously. "_They played an important part in Ryoga's life, but they have their own lives . . . I just "Borrowed" them from their existence."_

"_But what about mom's contacts with my grandparents?"_ The grayed skinned girl giggled and her voice changed into a lower, male's tone. "_I left a piece of paper with an inexistent phone. … He called me every other day during his life and only once when your dad faked being his little sister Yoiko . . . I have always been at his side, even if he doesn't remember me . . ."_

The girl hugged her and whispered words of gratitude in her ear. "_I think is time for you to go back at your own time . . .Hope the last surprise won't hurt you much . . ."_ The girl frowned at the comment but when she moved back to that place, she watched her mother, Ryoko Hibiki loose the most important part in her life.

She enjoyed the company of her dad in female form when their enemies found a way to kill him. Ryoko refused the severed link to the point where a strange seal flashed in front of her, breaking apart and forcing a rush of dreadful memories she never had before.

In that moment, little Ryoga replaced her in a crying state and the girl extended her arms at him, trying to reach for the broken boy. The nightmare ended when the girl woke up and her father, Ranma Saotome stared afraid at her.

"Ryoga! . . . Ryoga! . . ." The girl tried to reach for someone but she slowly put her arms down and began to cry. "_Mom . . . I don't know what are you going through or why Ranma Saotome dies in your arms, but this voyage will remain in my soul forever . . . I love you . . . Mother . . ." _


End file.
