School Daze

A Ranma ½ / Batman Fan Fiction

by

Jeremy Harper

Disclaimer – Ranma ½ is the creation of Rumiko Takahashi. Batman is the creation of Bill Finger and Bob Kane. Both are used without permission.

Chapter 5

"When exactly did this start?"

Nabiki swallowed and licked her lips. She looked away from Ranma, staring at the pavement of the alleyway he had marched her into.

"Two weeks after Kuno made that announcement and the morning fights started. I'm a member of the school's photography club, and I'm known to be a pretty good photographer. He approached me and asked if I could get candid shots of Akane for him. I told him 'no', but then he offered me a lot of money."

"How much?"

"10,000 yen per photo, and he was willing to buy everything I could take." She suddenly looked up at Ranma, her eyes wild and desperate. "I didn't take any nudes or anything like that. Just shots of Akane exercising, or doing something that I thought Kuno would think was cute. I didn't..." she paused a moment, ducking her head as she realized just how weak her excuses were. "I didn't compromise her privacy that much," she finished lamely.

Ranma pierced her with an Arctic glare. "No, you just aided and abetted Talia al Ghul in keeping Kuno wound up and helping her put more stress on Akane."

"I didn't know! I didn't know anything about that!"

"That doesn't matter! You were selling photos of your sister to the fool who organized a campaign of sexual harassment that made her life a living hell for three months. Just because you didn't know that a terrorist super-villain was assisting him with it doesn't absolve you of responsibility."

Nabiki bit her lower lip hard, looking down at her shoes. Ranma looked hard at her for a silent moment before drawing a deep, harsh breath. "Is there anything else about this goddamn mess you want to tell me? 'Cause if you think I'm pissed now, if I find out you have any other surprises in store for Akane and me-"

"Nothing. I swear it, nothing. I'm sorry, Ranma. I've been regretting what I did ever since you she got kidnapped. You're right, I should never have worked for Kuno, no matter how much he offered. It just, it just seemed harmless to me. Akane always beat anyone who went after her. Even Kuno wasn't a match for her. I just... didn't think."

Ranma frowned. Nabiki seemed contrite, but he thought perhaps she regretted getting caught more than she regretted her actions, so it did little to ameliorate his anger. "You need to confess to Akane about this," he declared.

The older Tendo cringed slightly but nodded. "Okay," she murmured slightly.

"And you're also going to tell Roy."

Nabiki jerked her head up, her face gone bone-white with panic. "What? No! Ranma, please-"

"I'm not covering for you on this, Nabiki. I wouldn't do so under ordinary circumstances, and I definitely will not lie to one of my best friends for you. Also keep in mind that Roy's friends with Akane and, despite some of the smack I say about him, he's as far from being an idiot as you can get. Even if for some insane reason Akane doesn't tell him what you did, he's going to know something is up."

Nabiki was trembling, eyes brimming with frightened tears. Ranma sighed deeply, suddenly feeling very tired. He did not want to be the one dealing with this, but certain things could not be allowed to go unchallenged, and Nabiki's betrayal of her younger sister was most certainly on that list.

"You confess this to Roy then, yes, he's going to be angry, but you may still have a chance to salvage your relationship with him. But trust me on this, if Akane, or myself, is the one to tell him, then the two of you are going to be done for good."

Nabiki said nothing for a full minute, after which she took a deep, shuddering breath to steady herself and swiped ferociously at her eyes.

"Alright," she said. She inhaled heavily again. "Let's... let's get this over with."

Alfred was in the kitchen preparing some snacks for Akane and Roy when he heard the front door open, indicating that Ranma had arrived, but to the butler's surprise he did not hear his charge announce himself as he usually did. He stepped out of the kitchen to look toward the genkan, just in time to see Ranma and Nabiki come into the foyer. The sight of the two teens immediately put him on alert. While his youngest was containing it well, Alfred's sharp eyes could see that he was absolutely furious. The middle Tendo daughter's emotional state was far more obvious; her face was a sickly white, and while her eyes were dry they were very red, and he could faintly see dried tear tracks on her cheeks.

"Master Ranma, Miss Nabiki, what is wrong? Are you alright?" Alfred asked.

"No, we're not," Ranma bit out. He grimaced and nodded his head apologetically. "Are Akane and Roy here? There's something they need to know."

"They're in the den," said Alfred. "Is there an active situation, Master Ranma? Should I contact Master Bruce?"

"No, but this does concern what Akane went through because of Kuno. Come on, Nabiki."

"Ranma," she said in a pleading whine, looking completely terrified.

"Now, Nabiki," he commanded in a tone that was a match for Batman's at his most menacing. Nabiki winced sharply and reluctantly made for the den, Ranma on her heels. Alfred paused a moment, wondering what fresh hell had manifested before following them.

Akane was laughing when they entered the den, obviously enjoying whatever story Roy was telling her. They looked up as Ranma and Nabiki stepped in, their smiles vanishing at the sight of their emotional state.

"Baby, what's wrong?" Roy asked, jumping out of his seat and approaching Nabiki.

"Sis?" said Akane, getting up herself, deeply alarmed by her sister's distress.

Ranma held up a hand, checking Roy. "Akane, Nabiki has something she needs to tell you."

"Nabiki?" Akane said, brow knitting in concern.

Roy gave Ranma a sharp look. "What's going on?"

Ranma shook his head and stepped to one side. "Not for me to tell."

Akane glanced at Ranma and back to Nabiki. "Nabiki?" she repeated.

"What's going on, babe?" asked Roy, a feeling of foreboding settling on him.

Nabiki tried to speak a couple of times and failed. She licked her lips, swallowed then took a deep breath to steady herself, her hands balling into fists at her side, clenched so tight that her knuckles turned bone-white.

"Akane... I... I..." She took another deep breath, air rasping in her throat, and she closed her eyes. "I was selling pictures of you to Kuno."

Akane did not react for a second, blinking as if she did not understand what her sister just said. Then her eyes went wide and she went nearly as white as Nabiki.

"Wha... what?" she stuttered.

"Wait a minute. Kuno?" Roy said, his own eyes narrowing. "Isn't he the jackass responsible for harassing Akane for her entire first semester at high school?" Ranma nodded grimly in confirmation.

"You were selling him pictures of me?" asked Akane, her voice distant and incredulous, growing louder and more shrill as she continued. "What pictures? What sort of pictures?"

"Just... just of you working out in your gi, or jogging. That's all. I swear it, that's all."

"That's all," Akane repeated faintly, rubbing at her cheek. Tears started to well in her eyes. "Why did you do this, Nabiki? You knew what I was going through because of him. Why did you throw... throw gasoline on a fire by doing something like that?"

"Because... because he offered me a lot of money for them."

Akane's harsh, bitter laugh made Roy start and Ranma suck in his breath. The boys exchanged worried glances and looked at her with deep concern.

"Well, I'm glad someone benefited from the hell I went through," she said, wiping at her eyes with the heel of a hand, voice cracking. She glared ferociously at her sister, face flushed with rage. "You know, you're going to make a great pimp someday, Nabiki."

Despite her shame Nabiki flushed angrily at the jibe. "How dare you -"

Akane shouted her down. "Why not? That's what you did – pimp me out to that pervert. Giving him... selling pictures to the boy who thought I was his property. Who kidnapped me and tried to fucking rape me."

Nabiki's defiance crumbled before her younger sister's rage. She hunched over, wrapping her arms around her stomach and started to cry. "Akane... Akane please. I'm sorry-"

"No you're not! You do something to hurt me then you say you're sorry and then you go and hurt me again and if you really were sorry you would stop it and at least try to act like you cared for me!" Akane shuddered and sobbed. "I don't want to deal with you right now. I don't even want to fucking look at you." She pushed past Nabiki, nearly knocking her down as she stormed out of the den.

Nabiki watched Akane leave, her expression one of pained despair, then turned towards Roy. The young man's face was stony, his lips pressed in a tight frown. An angry, dangerous fire was starting to kindle in his narrowed green eyes. Nabiki flinched at the sight, her crying becoming harder.

"Roy... Roy baby, please... please believe me. I'm sorry. I'm really, truly sorry. I am. Please."

Roy did not answer, simply stared at her with a look that could shatter granite. He took a deep, hard breath through his nose before speaking.

"Are you honestly sorry, Nabiki?" he asked her, his deep, quiet tone seemingly cutting her to the bone. "Or are you just sorry you got caught?"

He looked at Ranma, shook his head with an angry hiss, and left the room, not even sparing Nabiki a glance. She stared after him, lips quivering, tears streaming from her eyes, then dropped her face into her hands and wept, harsh, ugly sobs wracking her body.

After a few minutes her crying subsided. She scrubbed at her eyes with the back of a hand then got a handkerchief from her purse, wiping her face and blowing her nose. She blinked, looking around owlishly and saw that Ranma was still in the den, leaning against a wall with arms folded, staring out a window.

"Well," she croaked. "You satisfied? You happy now, Saotome?"

"No, I'm not happy," Ranma growled, turning his head to look at Nabiki. "You think I wanted to see my fiancée and my best friend get hurt like that? Like hell. Don't you try to turn this around on me. You're the one who did this and you got to pay the consequences. Maybe you're not used to dealing with them, but I don't give a damn."

"Yeah, and I was just a piece of low-hanging fruit you couldn't help but pluck," Nabiki retorted caustically. "A helpless girl with no way to fight back against you."

Ranma pushed off the wall with a mirthless laugh, impervious to Nabiki's attempt to make him feel guilty. "Yeah, right. I've told Lex Luthor to fuck off right to his face. You've heard of him, right? Billionaire genius mad scientist, former President of the United States, picks fights with Superman for shits and giggles?" He scowled at her. "The only person responsible for this mess is you, Tendo. You manage to comprehend that, then maybe you'll be able to clean it up."

He left the den, leaving Nabiki alone with her guilt and grief. He found Alfred waiting for him in the hallway.

"Miss Akane is in the bathroom," he said without preamble. "I'm certain she does not want company at this time. Master Roy went outside. I believe he's still in front of the house."

"Thanks, Alfred," said Ranma. He vented a sigh, grimacing, and went to talk to his best friend.

Roy was at the foot of the driveway, back to the house, head tilted back slightly as he looked at the sky. His body was drawn as taut as one of his bowstrings, shoulders hunched slightly, his fists clenched so tight the tendons in his forearms were standing out in stark relief.

"Roy," said Ranma.

"Don't talk to me," Roy snapped, holding up a hand. He did not turn around. He breathed in deeply, shoulders rising with the action, and let it out loudly. "I'm pissed right now. I'm pissed at Nabiki and I'm pissed at you."

"Roy!" Ranma repeated in protest, feeling slightly hurt.

"I know," Roy cut him off. "It's not right and it's not fair to you, but I can't help it. You did what you thought was right. Hell, I would have done the same thing. It's just..." He slumped, bowing his head. "I like her. I like her a lot. She's funny, she's sharp, and she's hot. I like her attitude and I like her snark. Finding out she pulled something like this is a sucker punch."

"I know," said Ranma. Personally he did not understand why Roy was so fond of Nabiki – even before finding out about her dealings with Kuno, the middle Tendo daughter's behavior had soured him toward her – but he knew that his friend's enthusiasm for her was honest and this revelation had badly hurt him. "I'm sorry about this."

"Yeah. So am I. I just hope Nabiki's sorry about this, too." Roy looked over his shoulder at Ranma, his smile crooked and sour. "Just... Just give me some time to get over myself, alright?"

"Alright," said Ranma, nodded. "Will you and Dig still be coming to the housewarming?"

Roy thought for a moment and nodded. "Of course." He sighed again, walked up to Ranma and gave him a friendly slap on the shoulder. His smile was still crooked, but it was now more sad than sour. "This sucks, but I know you're just trying to watch out for me and Akane. You're my brother, for whatever that's worth."

"It's worth a whole damn lot to me," said Ranma, giving him a slap on the shoulder in return. "See you Saturday."

Roy nodded and walked off down the street, hands thrust in the pockets of his jeans. Ranma watched him go. He heard the front door open and footsteps on the pavement. Nabiki walked past him, scowling, with her face flushed and tear tracks staining her cheeks. She refused to look at him, but she did see Roy walking away. She opened her mouth to call out, but did not. Her face crumpled and she covered it with her hands, turning to head off in the opposite direction. Ranma sighed, rubbing his eyes with forefinger and thumb before returning to the house.

He found Alfred waiting for him in the kitchen. The older man had set a plate of cookies and tea on the table. "Some refreshment, Master Ranma?"

"Thank you," he said gratefully, but did not sit down right away. He thought for a moment, then looked earnestly at the man he considered his grandfather and one of the wisest, kindest people he knew. "Did I do the right thing, Alfred?"

"Why do you ask, Master Ranma?"

"I... I'm just wondering. I don't like Nabiki that much. I like her even less right now. But..." he hesitated, searching for the right way to express his concern. "Did I make her confess to Akane and Roy for the right reasons, or did I do it because of my dislike for her?"

Alfred pondered the question and asked one of his own. "Did you enjoy what you just did?"

Ranma shook his head vigorously. "No. I hated seeing Akane and Roy get hurt like this. Akane loves her sister and Roy likes Nabiki a lot. It was awful, seeing how this effected them. And even though I don't like her, I didn't make Nabiki tell just to be cruel. It... it wouldn't have been right for Roy and Akane not to know."

Alfred nodded and laid an affectionate hand on his charge's shoulder. "You did the right thing, for the right reasons, Master Ranma. A secret like this is dangerous, and the later it came out the more harm and pain it would have caused. Best to get such a thing out now than let it fester. I also know that you're a kind, if occasionally overly-rambunctious, young man." He smiled wryly, and Ranma snorted, relaxing slightly. "Despite how hot your temper runs and the violence you're forced to practice and participate in, the truth is you don't want to hurt anyone. You're a fine lad, Ranma my boy."

Ranma smiled gratefully. "Thanks, ojiisan." Alfred nodded and smiled reassuringly before leaving the kitchen. Ranma let out a breath at sat down.

He had eaten a couple of cookies, brooding over what had happened, when he heard a step on the floor. He looked up and saw Akane standing in the entry, and he stood with alacrity. She was very pale, her eyes red-rimmed from crying, her mouth puckered in a wavering frown, her shoulders down in a defeated, dejected slump.

"Are you -" Ranma began, but quickly checked himself with a grimace. "No, that'd be a stupid question. You're obviously not alright."

Akane let out a little huff. "No, I'm not," she said in a hoarse voice. She sniffed, impatiently rubbing at her eyes with the back of her hand as tears welled in them. "I... I just don't get it, Ranma. We're sisters. I care for her, love her. I've always been willing to help her out whenever she needs it. So why does she do these things to me? Why... why does she... hate me so much?"

Her face crumpled and her shoulders began to quake as another storm of crying threatened to overwhelm her. Ranma froze momentarily, his eyes going wide with panic, before he caught her up in a hug. He hoped he was doing the right thing – Donna and Zee always seemed to appreciate getting hugs when something upset them, but he also had been friends with them for years, whereas his friendship with Akane was not even a month old. He held his breath when he felt her stiffen, but then relaxed as she relaxed, nestling into his embrace.

He held her for a minute, rubbing her back with a soothing motion before speaking. "I'm sorry, Akane. I wish I could have spared you this, but I couldn't let it go. What Nabiki did, you needed to know about."

He felt her nod against his chest. "Yeah. I just wish this didn't hurt so much." She pulled away from him and looked up at him with a weak but sincere smile. "Thank you for being a good friend, Ranma."

He glanced away, scratching the back of his head, feeling a little abashed. "I try my best." He sighed and looked back at her, returning her smile. "You feel like some cookies?" Then thinking again of Donna and Zee when they were upset, "or maybe I can get you a tub of ice cream?"

Her smile grew a little. "I would like that a lot."

Author's Note – Zee, if you're wondering, is Zatanna. I haven't watched Young Justice, where I understand she's a contemporary of Dick Grayson instead of Bruce Wayne, but I have seen the new DC Superhero Girls cartoon and very much enjoy her portrayal in that show. She's a reserve Titan like Omen and Beast Boy, but she lives in Gotham with her father Zatara, one of Bruce's mentors and friends, so Ranma gets to see her often.

Thanks again to the wondrous Pursemonger for her pre-reading and support.