Crossover With Non-anime Series Fan Fiction / Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ The Wild Stallion and the Drow ❯ The Power of True Love ( Chapter 4 )

Standard disclaimer:  Ranma ½ is from the mind of Rumiko Takahashi, and distributed in the US by Viz.  The elven gods and other visitors from Toril are all from the equally fertile minds of Ed Greenwood and Jeff Grubb as well as all the other writers who work for TSR.  That means I don't own any of them, and are just perverting them for my enjoyment as well as yours, I hope. 

This story is based on Elle ½, an omake by Greg Sharp (AKA Metroanime), based on an idea he found at http://addventure.bast-enterprises.de

That's done, now on with the story

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The Wild Stallion and the Drow

Ranma was so involved with trying to defeat Eilistraee, that all his attention was focused on the drow in front of him, so he wasn't aware of who walked in until he heard his mother's voice over the din of combat.  "Ranma?"  This caused the pig-tailed warrior to divert his attention right as Eilistraee was lunging.  Ranma brought his sword up to block, but wasn't in time to parry her attack.  He caught the tip of the sword in between his ribs and into his right lung.  There was a universal look of shock on everyone's face-but most noticeably on Nodoka's and Eilistraee's.

With a questioning look in his eyes, Ranma slid off the end of his fiancée's bastard sword and slumped to the ground, pink froth coming from his mouth.  Time seemed to slow for everyone, as Ranma lay there, dying. 

Nabiki and Nodoka ran over to the fallen martial artist.  Eilistraee dropped her sword and picked up Ranma, cradling his body, while murmuring softly in Drow.  Nodoka looked at her dying son then at his dark fiancée.  Anger, shock and despair played across her face, as she sought for words.  Nabiki, keeping the knowledge of what her mistress was saying private, knelt by the dying boy.  She held her hand tentatively over the wound.  "Mistress Eilistraee?"  She asked, as hesitant as she felt.

Her question was, however, sufficient to jar her goddess.  "No, Nabiki.  This is beyond your skills, and even beyond my beloved's ability for self-healing," she said, as she placed her hand over his fatal wound.  As she started to speak the words of the healing spell that would bring Ranma back, there was a flash of light, as their auras came in contact and merged.  The frothy blood stopped trickling from Ranma's mouth, as the wounds began to heal and his breathing became stronger and more regular.

Ranma's eyes snapped open and he looked around, as though it was the first time he was seeing the world.  His mother, her face a mask of sorrow and relief; Nabiki, showing the relief that Ranma hadn't died; and Eilistraee, tears running down her face.  "Wha…what happened?"

"You were dead, my love," Eilistraee said quietly.  "You were distracted, and I had hoped that you would have been able to parry my attack.  I did not intend for what happened to happen."  She looked in his blue-gray eyes, and said something that would have shocked any of the gods that knew her.  "All I ask is for your forgiveness."

Ranma placed his hand over his black-skinned fiancée's.  "It was a training accident, that's all."  The pig-tailed martial artist has never been impulsive when it comes to showing affection, so when he leaned forward and kissed his goddess fiancée, there was a massive face fault from the families watching.  But to Ranma, it felt like the right thing to do.

Eilistraee resisted for a moment, until her supposedly suppressed hormones overruled her brain.  She closed her eyes and let her rigidly controlled body trust that the emotions she was both feeling and revealing, the ones she kept bottled up for the past twelve years, were not only the right ones but also reciprocated.  And by the way Ranma was kissing her; she really didn't have to worry about it.

Nodoka looked at her son and his betrothed, and a smile appeared on her face as she began to mentally count the number of grandchildren she hoped she would have to spoil.  Her smile turned to a frown as she looked at Genma, and saw just how nervous he was.  Especially since he kept darting glances at the silk-wrapped bundle on his wife's back, and hoped he wouldn't have to follow through with the seppuku contract.

Both Nabiki and Kasumi looked at the couple and wished nothing but the best for them, even though they were both harboring feelings for the pig-tailed martial artist.  But both older Tendo sisters knew that they wouldn't be able to handle the day-to-day chaos that marked Ranma's life if either of them had been engaged to him.

Akane…The heiress to the Tendo School of Musabetsu Kakutou was green with both envy and jealousy.  She had feelings for the pig-tailed boy, but the way that Kuno and the Horde o' Hentai treated her, she could never reveal her feelings, but at the same time felt that the aquatransexual was hers and hers alone no matter what his feelings were, as though he was one of Akane's stuffed animals.

Nabiki looked over at her little sister and suppressed a smirk.  Serves the little princess of Furinkan High for treating Ranma as a prize to be one.  And when there's a prize, there is always a winner and a loser.  She lost big when Eilistraee arrived to claim him.

The two lovebirds finally broke their kiss.  "Ranma, are you going to introduce me to this person," Nodoka asked.

Ranma looked sheepishly at his mother.  "Sorry, Mom.  Mom, one of my other fiancées, Eilistraee, daughter of Corellon Larethian.  Eil-chan, my mom, Nodoka."

Eilistraee bowed to her fiancé's mother.  "My pleasure, Nodoka-san."

Nodoka tittered.  "Please, call me 'Auntie', Eil-chan.  What do you think of my son?  Is he manly enough for you?"

"Of course, Auntie."  Eilistraee looked at her blushing fiancé.  "Ranma is an exceptional warrior; no thanks to his father.  He mastered a number of very difficult training techniques at a young age and has begun incorporating them into his school's martial arts. I…" She flustered for a moment, before regaining her composure.  "I am and have been in love with your son since I met him.  And now I love him regardless of what form he is in; because he remains the same."

Nodoka squinted at the Drow goddess.  Genma began edging away from his wife, towards the gate.  "What do you mean 'regardless of what form he is in'?"

Ranma cleared his throat.  He really didn't want to die twice in one day, but… "Mom, what Eil-chan means is this."  Instead of explaining, he dove into the koi pond.  What went in as a raven-haired boy came out a fiery redhead.  "I turn into a girl whenever I get splashed…"

The solemn moment was interrupted by a particular pervert's cry of "SWEETO".  Ranma was bowled back by the assault of this particular pervert.  "Oh Ranma," Happosai cooed from his perch on his heir's bosom, "I don't know why you don't stay like this.  I could get used to just…erk."  The aged pervert Grandmaster of Musabetsu Kakutou was interrupted by the feel of the tip of a bastard sword in his privates.  He dropped his eyes, then following the sword up towards its owner, did not, for once, feel like fondling a new victim.

"Ranma," Eilistraee said, with all the authority of her position, "who is this…thing?"  Happosai twitched, doing interesting things to Ranma's bosom; which was not lost on his fiancée.

"It's just Happosai.  Unfortunately, he's the grandmaster of the School."  The redheaded martial artist sighed.  "He trained Pops and Mr. Tendo."

"Happosai, you will let go of my fiancé now, and never bother him again, lest you lose that which all men pride themselves of."

The old degenerate thought about it for a moment before letting go of Ranma.  "I'll get you yet, my young apprentice; you and your little fiancée too," Happosai cackled as he leapt over the Dojo walls, intent on reenergizing himself by terrorizing half the population of Tokyo.

The drow goddess tried to walk over to Ranma's mother to explain a number of things, but tripped over…something.  When she got up, she found herself with the adoration of two over-the-hill martial artists for doing something that they had never been able to do before-get rid of the Master.  "If you two call yourselves men," she said at the two fathers bowing and scraping at her feet, "then I can see why Mother is the way she is."  Eilistraee looked at her fiancée for a moment, then at Nodoka.  "If this is manly behavior, then your son is more of a man as a woman than his father is and ever was.

"Genma sold your son.  Not just to my father, but to the families of several other young women, all for food or martial arts training.  That…panda is worse than any slaver I have ever heard about; worse than my own species of elf, the drow.  They would sell just about anybody, but it's usually just once.  He has done it repeatedly, as has that degenerate.  Anyone who would do that does not deserve to be called a man."  With that, she spun on her heel and headed towards the house, but paused when she neared Kasumi. 

"Mistress of this house, I ask leave to use your home to bathe and clean myself after dealing with that…thing."  Sure, Eilistraee may be a goddess, but her honor demands permission to enter another's residence.

Kasumi being Kasumi, replied "Oh, certainly; our home is your home.  I believe Nabiki intends on establishing her chapel here.  The furo is down the hall and to the left."

Eilistraee bowed, her long silver-white hair cascading down.  "Thank you.  I also apologize for my actions the other night.  Your sister forced my hand with her actions…"

Kasumi interrupted, not something one does to a goddess, but it was a gentle interruption.  "Akane is a good girl, Eilistraee, although she tends to be a violent maniac."  She lowered her voice, in a conspiratorial manner, so as not to let the fathers hear.  "Personally, I think you and Ranma make a perfect couple.  He seems more relaxed around you than with any of his other fiancées.  With the others its like they want something from him.  But you're not that way."

"I…I thank you, House-mistress."

"Please, call me Kasumi.  And it's you I thank.  Ranma is like the brother I never had.  With you in love with him, and I think with him returning that love, it makes him seem more…human."  Eilistraee didn't know how to reply, and Kasumi just shushed her into the house for her bath.

*          *          *

Ranma smiled nervously at her mother.  Nodoka looked between the retreating form of Eilistraee, the two prostrate fathers, and her so…daughter.  "Ra…Ranma, is it true about what your father did?  And th…this curse of yours, is it permanent?"  She asked hesitantly.

"Um, yeah.  My best friend Ukyo thinks I'm her fiancé, because Pops went and stole her father's yattai, which was her dowry.  Shampoo thinks I'm her husband, thanks to Pop's stomach.  Ask the Old Gho…Cologne about it sometime.  I'm sure she'd love to fill in all the details.

"Then there was this one crazy chick, Kaori.  Real cute and all, but her father thought I was her fiancé because Pops sold me to him for a bowl of rice, fish and two pickles."  Nodoka was visibly twitching, as her hand was reaching around for her katana while her son turned daughter told her tale of woe.

"What about Eilistraee?"

"Pops sold me outright to her father, though for how much and what he did with the money, I'll never know.  But you want to know something, Mom, she hasn't tried to make me do anything against my wishes.  Except for yesterday, when she told me that we were going out on a date tonight.  Well…and accidentally killing me today.  And you know what Mom, I actually want to go out with her…"

Nodoka raised her hand up to halt her daughter.  "Do you love her?  Do you love any of your fiancées?"

Ranma squatted, balancing on the balls of her feet.  "Ukyo is way to much like my sister.  I love her, but like a brother loves his sister.  Marrying her would feel like incest.  Shampoo is way too perky for me, and marrying her would be mean a death sentence for me, since Amazon males aren't allowed to learn any of their advanced techniques, and are relegated to second-class citizens.  Akane-I loved her once, I think.  But this last time, she's lost any chance of reconciliation, especially since she transferred the engagement to Nabiki, because all I did was save her from one of Ryouga's special attacks.

"Eilistraee, though, is different,  She genuinely cares for me.  It's almost as if Pops giving me to Corellon for a year was one of the best things that damned panda ever did for me.

"And yes, I know who I love, and who I'm going to marry.  I've come to recognize True Love.  But before I say who it is, I'm going to take a bath, change genders, and see if Kasumi can fix my shirt."  With that, Ranma stood and headed into the house.

*          *          *

Eilistraee lay in the tub, letting the hot water soak away her muscle fatigue.  As she was lying there, she was humming a tune she'd heard on Toril-about an elf maiden who gave her love to a human.  It was a mistake for a warrior of her stature to get to relaxed-relaxed to the point where she didn't hear the outer door to the furo slide open.  Nor did she hear the rustling of clothes in the changing room.  The inner door slid open, and in walked Ranma.  The aquatransexual martial artist got quite an eyeful of his fiancée, dropped her bathing supplies, turned beet red, and screwed her eyes shut.

Eilistraee also got quite an eyeful of her fiancé's cursed form; enough to tell that Ranma was a natural redhead, before being covered.  "Ranma, why are your eyes closed?"  The drow goddess asked, amusement evident in her voice.

"I didn't see anything, honest."

"Ranma, am I so hideous to look at now?  It's not like you haven't seen me like this before.  Especially while we bathed in that secluded pool in Arvandor."

"Yeah, but I know the drill.  I look, you call me a pervert and proceed to beat me to within an inch of my life."

There was the splashing of water, and Ranma found herself with a pair of muscular arms wrapped around her.  "Ranma, I told you before that I'm not some youngling afraid of her emotions or the way she looks.  And I'm hoping that the kiss you gave me in the courtyard wasn't a fluke.

"You've been around your father for most of your life, and taught that women are weak and frilly; that they are beneath a manly man and that emotions should be kept hidden, bottled up."

As Eilistraee pointed out the problems with his upbringing, Ranma began to relax in her fiancée's arms and opened her eyes.  A smile graced the goddess's face, with the twinkle of amusement still evident in her eyes.  "You know, you're right.  I've only had Oyaji for a traveling companion for most of my life, so a lot of his ideas became my beliefs.  Starting tonight, no more passively listening to my father."

Eilistraee's smile got larger.  "Good.  Now how about we start by letting me wash your back?"

*          *          *

Akane was about to open the door to the furo, when she paused.  She swore she heard two voices coming from inside the bathroom.  Ranma's in there, and I'll bet he's doing something perverted with that kuronin hussy.  With mallet in hand, Akane charged into the bathroom, intent on playing "Pound the Pervert"…and slipped on a conveniently placed bar of soap.  The mallet went flying out of her hand, and embedded itself in the tile floor.

To Akane, it seemed that time and distance lengthen as she slid along the floor with the bar of soap under her foot, her arms windmilling to keep her balance-until she hit the wall at the other end of the bathroom.  "Ooh, look at all the Tweety birds," she said before she passed out.

Eilistraee looked at Ranma.  "What was that all about," she asked.

Ranma looked back at his cute, undemanding fiancée.  "I have no idea."  And with that, Eilistraee snuggled her head on to the chest of her fiancé so that they could continue their mutual soak.