Categories > Books > Harry Potter > Life and Times of Harry Hibiki
Life and Times of Harry Hibiki
Author: USA Tiger
Disclaimer: Harry Potter © J. K. Rowling and Ranma 1/2 © Rumiko Takahashi
Author note: Thanks to my beta Blissfull Wulf.
Also, as everyone should have noticed, the name of the fic has been changed from ‘Harry Hibiki the one shot series’ to ‘Life and Times of Harry Hibiki’.
Chapter 6
Ryoga sighed softly and contently as he leaned back on his hands by the campfire, looking up at the star filled sky. Above him and Harry was a full moon, washing the forest around them in a pale light. While he hated being lost and having no choice in his travels, he did love being able to look up at the night sky and see all of the heavens without city lights blocking most of the beauty. He listened to the fire crackle and pop and to the sounds of Harry babbling happily to his stuffed toy beside him.
Grinning Ryoga looked down to his side at Harry, other than a few ups and downs, traveling with the magical toddler had been the best thing that had happened to Ryoga. He wasn’t anywhere near as depressed as he had been in the past and no longer lonely. Harry looked up, feeling his Ryoa’s eyes on him and gave the teen a toothy grin.
“Well Chibi, what do you say? Should we turn in for the night?” Ryoga asked as he gently ran his fingers through Harry’s soft hair.
“No!” Harry said with a laugh and pushed Ryoga’s hand away.
“No huh?” Ryoga asked with a chuckle. “Well… I guess we can stay up for a few more minutes but soon little boys need to go to bed.” Harry giggled and turned back to his stuffed stag. Ryoga’s lips quirked in a slight smile, Harry was just too cute at times, and turned back to look into the fire enjoying the quiet of the night.
But soon it occurred to Ryoga that it was a little too quiet. Camping for years, Ryoga was use to the sound of nocturnal animals rustling in the bushes, of owls fluttering in the trees, of crickets chirping in the night or the sound of a nearby frog croaking. Ryoga blinked and looked around to the outer edges of his and Harry’s campsite as he realized he couldn’t hear any of that now, only the wind blowing through the grass. Unease started to creep over Ryoga as he plucked Harry off the ground and held him to his chest and started to stand up.
“Ryoa?” Harry asked, looking up at his guardian.
“Shhh Harry,” Ryoga whispered. “You need to be quiet, just like we practiced.” Harry pressed his little hands to his mouth, his stag tucked into the crook of his arm. As camping in the wild was dangerous even for a teenager or adult much less a toddler, Ryoga started off as soon as possible to teach Harry a few basic skills. Nothing over the top of course, Harry was only a couple of years old after all, but being quiet and still was one of them. Ryoga knelt down and grabbed his combat umbrella off the ground his eyes darting around into the darkness.
He strained his ears, trying to catch any sound of what might be in the woods. The sound of running feet? Panicked breathing? Ryoga stood just in time as a young man a couple of years older than Ryoga burst into the clearing where he and Harry were camping.
“Bloody hell!” the young man said as he skid to a stop seeing Ryoga. He panted, leaning forward his hands resting on his knees.
“Are you alright?” Ryoga asked, the sense of danger had not passed so something else was out there in the woods.
“Were…wolf…chasing…me…” the young man said as he stood up. “You need to run you fool!”
“Wha? Werewolf?” Ryoga repeated blinking then his eyes widening as his brain caught up to this fact. At the same time his warning sense went off. A snarling howl filled the air as something large and hairy burst out of the shadows. The young man screamed in fright and quickly ran behind Ryoga. Ryoga growled softly as he stared at the werewolf in his camp, the beast was huge with drool dripping from his snarling mouth and golden eyes filled with the need to kill and rip apart the humans in front of him. There was a large patch of gray fur on the werewolf’s back.
“Take my son and go climb up into that tree over there,” Ryoga said over his shoulder, never taking his eyes off the werewolf who was licking his chops.
“What?! Are you mad? We should run!!” The young man said. “You don’t plan on fighting that monster do you? It’ll kill you!”
“I’m stronger than I look just take my son and get him to safety,” Ryoga said. “Up that tree.”
“Why a tree?” The man said with great reluctance as he took Harry who whined.
“Werewolves can’t climb trees,” Ryoga pointed out. The young man’s eyes widened as he realized Ryoga was right, running for the nearest tree at the same time the werewolf lunged at Ryoga. As Ryoga rolled to the side out of the path of the werewolf, the young man took out a wand and used a sticking charm on Harry to keep from dropping the babe then quickly climbed into the upper branches of the tree.
“Groowwwllll,” The werewolf bared his teeth at Ryoga, anger shining in amber toned eyes as this meat sack got in between him and his meal. Ryoga gripped his weapon with both hands, his feet spread apart and ready to move the moment the werewolf did. Letting out a roar like growl, the werewolf leapt at Ryoga again.
“HEY!” Ryoga moved to the side and swung his heavy umbrella, connecting with the surprised werewolf’s head and sending it flying into Ryoga’s camping tent. “Oh kuso,” Ryoga cursed as the werewolf became tangled in the tent, tearing it apart with sharp claws as it fought to get back on his feet. With a mighty rip the tent was torn in two and the werewolf was facing Ryoga again. This time it was a tiny bit hesitant to leap at Ryoga again, the weapon in the human’s hand had hurt when it hit his body.
Harry watched the fight from up in the tree where he was being held by the strange man. He whimpered softly in fright, wondering why this big doggy was attacking his Ryoa!
The werewolf started to circle Ryoga, who turned slightly with it keeping the werewolf in sight at all times. His hands flexed over the handle of the umbrella waiting for the werewolf to make its move. The wolf’s upper lip curled as he growled, showing off an impressive set of yellow fangs, making the young man in the tree squeak in fear. Ryoga smirked slightly, one of his own fangs peeking over a lip.
“Come on you bastard,” He taunted. The werewolf bellowed out a challenging roar and ran at Ryoga, claws sending up a spray of dirt and grass behind him, before he stood up on his hind legs and swung his powerful arm like foreleg down to tear Ryoga in two. Ryoga snapped his umbrella open and used it as a shield, the claws connecting with iron and sending up a shower of sparks in their wake. The werewolf howled in surprise giving Ryoga just the second he needed to twist around planting a fist in the wolf’s stomach.
“Oooommfff!” The werewolf bent in two as the air was knocked out of him by Ryoga’s hit then fell to the ground as Ryoga drove his elbow into the back of its neck then quickly backed away. The werewolf climbed back to his feet, swaying a bit and looking at the so-called prey with a lot more wariness. This human was no simple meal, it was a dangerous creature in its own right. Ryoga wasn’t about to give the werewolf another chance to attack, he quickly gathered his chi to him letting it gather in the cupped center of his hands. As it was anger and rage fueling his chi this time instead of depression, the chi turned a bright angry red instead of killing curse green.
“SHI SHI HOKODAN!” Ryoga roared thrusting his hands out in front of him and sending the ball of red chi at the werewolf. The wolf was so startled by the attack it was unable to dodge and the chi attack landed in the middle of his chest knocking him off his feet and sending him flying several feet into the air. The werewolf landed on his back on the edge of the clearing and quickly scrambled to his feet, turning tail and running back into the night. His prey had become the hunter and he wasn’t sticking around to get killed.
Ryoga stood in the middle of the destroyed camp breathing only slightly hard, the werewolf had been nothing compared to others he had fought over the last year. Hell, he didn’t even break a sweat!
“Bloody hell, that was amazing!” the young man said from the tree.
“Ryoa!” Harry said his little arms reaching out for his guardian.
“Umm… I don’t suppose you can help me down?” The man asked as he was stuck in the tree. Ryoga sighed, leaving his umbrella where he had dropped it on the ground, then jumped up into the branches of the tree. He took Harry, tucking his son against his chest safely, then grabbed the young man by the back of his robes. The man squawked as he was picked up, almost not believing this younger man was so strong that he could be picked up by just one hand, then suddenly found himself on the ground as Ryoga jumped down and landed on light feet. “Whew, thanks mate. You have no idea… that werewolf would have eaten me if you hadn’t…”
“It’s fine,” Ryoga said with a wave of his hand then sighed as he looked at his ruined tent. He was going to have to buy another one. “It was nothing.”
“It was not nothing,” the man protested. “You saved my life! I owe you a life debt!” Ryoga sighed and rolled his eyes skywards. “My name is Alex by the way. Alexander Thomas Leatherwood.”
“Yeah great, my name is Ryoga,” Ryoga said with another sigh as he turned to face Alex. “And this is my son Harry.”
“Then I am in your debt Ryoga,” Alex said with a bow, stumbling over the name slightly.
“No really, you’re not,” Ryoga said with a shake of his head as he shifted Harry to one hip then went over to the tent hoping that his travel pack had survived the carnage. Alex huffed and crossed his arms over his chest as he watched the other man.
“Oh… your tent…” he said as he fully realized the damage the werewolf had done to it while Ryoga fought it.
“Completely destroyed,” Ryoga said as he picked up part of the shredded tent. Harry reached out and grabbed another part, holding it up and grinning at Ryoga, he was helping.
“Then you’re in luck!” Alex said. “If you won’t allow me to give you a life debt, then at least let me pay you back another way. I come from a long line of tent makers, we make the finest magical tents in the world. Let me make you one to replaced the one you had.”
“Magical tent?” Ryoga asked as he turned to face Alex again. Alex’s face went a bit pale, had he just broken the statute of secrecy to a muggle?
“W-wait, you’re not a muggle are you?” He asked. Ryoga sighed slightly and shook his head.
“Non-magical but with creature blood,” he said. “Plus my son here is magical.” He bounced Harry gently who giggled. Alex slumped slightly in relief, just having a magical kid was enough to excuse muggles from the statue since they were allowed to know because of their kids.
“Alright then, I can work with that,” Alex said. “What I had meant by the magical tents are that they are bigger on the inside but look like a normal tent on the outside. The tents my family makes are custom made, much better quality than the ones you’ll find in places like Diagon Alley, we usually cater to the rich families like the Malfoys or Blacks, but since you saved my life I’ll make one just for you to replace the one the werewolf chasing me destroyed. How does that sound?”
Ryoga considered the offer for a moment, mulling it over.
“Just how much bigger on the inside?” Ryoga asked.
“Well I guess it depends really,” Alex said while rubbing the back of his head. “I can make one that’s got several rooms, a bath, a kitchen or anything really.” Ryoga blinked then gave Alex a fanged grin as an idea came to him.
“I think I’ll take you up on your offer and I know just what I want the inside of the tent to look like,” He said.
****
It would, Alex said, take a couple of days to make up the tent the way Ryoga requested. In that time he offered to let Ryoga and Harry stay in his guest room. Alex did find Ryoga’s habit of wandering around like he was lost a bit strange… but didn’t think too much on it as he had met a number of absent minded witches and wizards over the years. Thankfully for Ryoga as long as Harry was in one place he couldn’t wander too far away from the toddler thanks to the special bracers they both wore.
Ryoga’s idea was pretty straight forward, he wanted Harry to have a house to grow up in even if said house was really a tent. Ryoga had never had the chance to really grow up in a house, while his family did own one Ryoga had spent most of his life living on the road because he was always lost. It wouldn’t have been so bad if one of his parents had been without the Hibiki family curse, leaving someone home to help Ryoga stay there in his younger years but since both of his parents had the same lack of direction as him, Ryoga never got that chance.
He had spent more time living and sleeping in a tent than he ever got to in his family’s house. He didn’t really want that for Harry but didn’t really have a choice in the matter until now. It was a bit like having a mobile home, just something Ryoga could pack up when they were ready to move on then set up when they found a place to camp. Therefore the tent design Ryoga wanted was pretty simple, especially when compared to some of the made-to-order tents Alex or anyone in his family had made for some of their richer clients.
It looked a bit like a traditional, if simple, Japanese house. The main room of the tent was both a living room and dining room with a small kitchen area off to the side. One door led to a simple bedroom Ryoga and Harry would share while another led to a bath with a small round furo. Another door to the side of the bath held the toilet, one of the few things Ryoga went with a western design on as it was so much better than a squat toilet, and a small sink.
Once Alex was finished with the tent, which on the outside looked just like Ryoga’s old tent, it was even the same shade of yellow, Ryoga called Alex’s debt to him paid off. Alex was unable to provide any furniture sadly but Ryoga assured him it was fine and the next time Ryoga was in Japan he bought everything he needed to make his and Harry’s house tent livable. Alex also assured Ryoga that more rooms could be added to the tent as need be, just bring it to either him or at least to someone who truly knew what they were doing when it came to these types of tents.
*****
“Damn,” Ryoga looked up at Ukyo’s curse. His new travel companion was holding up her tent glaring at the rip in the side. “Completely forgot about that, I haven’t used this tent in years.”
“When did that happen?” Ryoga asked as he went back to setting up the camp fire, keeping half an eye on Harry as the young boy ran around with his new puppy playing. It had been roughly 2 years since Ryoga had adopted Harry, and while there had been their share of ups and downs, and the terrible twos for a while, Ryoga had adjusted to fatherhood greatly.
Ukyo narrowed her eyes for a moment as she tried to remember just when her tent had been damaged.
“That last training trip, right after Harry’s second birthday,” she said. “There was a fight and my tent ended up getting a rip in it.”
“Ah,” Ryoga said, he thought he knew which incident Ukyo was talking about. Ranma had gone on a summer training trip and most of the others had followed for one reason or another, including Nabiki and Kasumi for some reason. For once Ryoga hadn’t been involved in what happened as he hadn’t even been there, he believed he had been in New York at the time meeting some people that would become a very good group of friends to him and Harry, he found out about the disaster afterward from Kasumi. A fight had broken out, not unusual for their group, but had gotten really out of hand. Ryoga wasn’t sure what had happened, Kasumi refused to say and there was no way Ryoga was going to pay Nabiki to find out. All he knew was that when Ranma returned he wasn’t speaking to anyone except for Ryoga, and Ryoga knew the only reason he wasn’t on Ranma’s shit-list at the time was because he wasn’t there but off on his own with Harry, and the two older Tendo sister.
This was the same time Ranma had announced he would marry Nabiki to fulfill the Tendo/Saotome promise. To this day Ryoga still wasn’t sure how Shampoo had ended up with Ranma in the end, some sort of deal with Nabiki he was sure. Heck, Ryoga was sure Ranma didn’t really love either of his wives, or wife and mistress legally, but had gone through it to restore both families’ honor and Shampoo’s honor as well. Though given time Ranma could come to really love both women.
“Well I can just camp outside until I either get this one repairs or get a new tent,” Ukyo said with a sigh as she rolled the tent back up. Ryoga looked up into the sky and judged the clouds then shook his head.
“It’s going to rain tonight,” He said.
“How can ya tell?” Ukyo asked.
“The clouds look rain heavy, learned to read the sky while camping. It became even more important after I was cursed,” Ryoga said, making an ‘oof’ sound as Harry climbed up onto his back with a shriek of laughter then two little paws braced against his back as Oreo, Harry’s puppy, chased after his master. Ryoga reached up and pulled Harry around so the toddler was sitting in his lap. “You can just stay in the tent with us,” Ryoga offered jerking his head at the yellow tent behind him.
“Wouldn’t that be a tight fit? Your tent is kinda small sugar,” Ukyo said as she eyed the tent.
“Nah, it’ll be fine. Just go ahead and dump your stuff in there, I’ll start us something to eat,” Ryoga said absently as he tickled Harry who laughed and tried to wiggle out of his daddy’s lap.
“If you’re sure…” Ukyo said in a doubtful tone. She didn’t really think it would be a comfortable fit with two adults, a toddler and a dog… but then again she really didn’t want to sleep outside while it was raining. And it was just for one night, Ukyo could lead them to the nearest town tomorrow and get herself a new tent.
Picking up her pack and smiling at the cute sight of Ryoga playing with Harry, Ukyo walked over to the tent and entered it. Once inside her mouth dropped open as she was standing in a small house-like tent, with more than enough room for her to stand up straight.
“I-it…i-it…” her pack dropped from her hand to the floor as she slowly took the inside of the tent in. Ukyo spun on her heel and raced back out, turning around to look at the tent. It looked like the same tent she had always seen Ryoga use, one just big enough for one person, maybe two in a pinch. She walked around it, making sure there wasn’t a trick, but she didn’t run into any hidden walls. Ukyo ducked back inside the tent, yep house sized again.
Ryoga watched all this in amusement, it reminded him of something he’d seen on an American’s TV one time…. Or was that some British person’s TV? About a man who had a blue police box that was bigger on the inside and how people reacted to it. What was the name of that show? Ryoga couldn’t remember, something about time travel he knew that.
“I-it’s bigger on the inside!” Ukyo said as she came out again.
“Is it?” Ryoga said in fake innocents. Ukyo glowered at him and hit Ryoga on the back of his head.
“Don’t make fun of me you jackass,” She said. “How? I mean…. Just how?”
“Magic, what else?” Ryoga said. When Ukyo gave him another ‘look’ he laughed. “I’m telling the truth. A couple of years ago I saved this guy from being mauled by a werewolf. Yes a werewolf, not the most unbelievable thing that has happen to any of us.”
“Ok… I’ll give you that one,” Ukyo agreed.
“Well he was a wizard and since I saved his life, he said he owed me a ‘Life Debt’. I have no idea just what that means but he came from a family of magical tent makers. Since mine got completely destroyed during the fight with the werewolf he offered to make me a new one instead and call it even,” Ryoga continued. “I saw it as a chance to give Harry, and me, something of a normal home life. At the very least we’ve got some sorta home instead of just living in a tent.”
“That’s…. really smart,” Ukyo said seeing his point. “Like a mobile home you can carry on your back.”
“Yeah,” Ryoga agreed. He slung Harry over his shoulder, the little boy giggling as he hung upside down from his daddy’s shoulder while Ryoga followed Ukyo back into the tent. Ryoga looked around, the tent wasn’t too barren looking like it had been when he first got it. He had a traditional low Japanese table, a kotatsu, on one side of the main room. It was a modern one that ran off an electric heater on the underside of the table. The heater, as well as the other few electronics in the tent, ran off of two small generators he bought.
Unlike the magical of the European world, the American and Asian magical communities had gone out of their way to invent ways for electronics to work with magic. Not so much as working on magic itself, but able to work in magical areas unless it was a really high concentration of magic such as Hogwarts. The kitchen area was typical looking with a small stove/oven, some counter space and a college dorm fridge.
“This is… actually very cozy,” Ukyo said as she looked around. “So what happens to all the stuff in here when the tent is taken down?”
Ryoga shrugged his shoulders and set Harry down on the floor. The boy raced off with Oreo on his heels, going over to a box with his toys in the corner.
“Don’t know, I don’t have a clue how it works. I just know that nothing seems to move when the tent is packed up. When I first got it, I left a glass of water out to see if it would be knocked over or anything. It hadn’t moved at all when the tent was set back up,” he said.
“Neat…” Ukyo said. “Well beats the hell out of sleeping on the hard ground.”
“Aunt Ucc, come see me and daddy’s room!” Harry said as he grabbed Ukyo’s hand and pulled her to the small bedroom on the other side of the tent. Ukyo smiled and let herself be pulled along, Ryoga laughing as he followed.
Author: USA Tiger
Disclaimer: Harry Potter © J. K. Rowling and Ranma 1/2 © Rumiko Takahashi
Author note: Thanks to my beta Blissfull Wulf.
Also, as everyone should have noticed, the name of the fic has been changed from ‘Harry Hibiki the one shot series’ to ‘Life and Times of Harry Hibiki’.
Chapter 6
Ryoga sighed softly and contently as he leaned back on his hands by the campfire, looking up at the star filled sky. Above him and Harry was a full moon, washing the forest around them in a pale light. While he hated being lost and having no choice in his travels, he did love being able to look up at the night sky and see all of the heavens without city lights blocking most of the beauty. He listened to the fire crackle and pop and to the sounds of Harry babbling happily to his stuffed toy beside him.
Grinning Ryoga looked down to his side at Harry, other than a few ups and downs, traveling with the magical toddler had been the best thing that had happened to Ryoga. He wasn’t anywhere near as depressed as he had been in the past and no longer lonely. Harry looked up, feeling his Ryoa’s eyes on him and gave the teen a toothy grin.
“Well Chibi, what do you say? Should we turn in for the night?” Ryoga asked as he gently ran his fingers through Harry’s soft hair.
“No!” Harry said with a laugh and pushed Ryoga’s hand away.
“No huh?” Ryoga asked with a chuckle. “Well… I guess we can stay up for a few more minutes but soon little boys need to go to bed.” Harry giggled and turned back to his stuffed stag. Ryoga’s lips quirked in a slight smile, Harry was just too cute at times, and turned back to look into the fire enjoying the quiet of the night.
But soon it occurred to Ryoga that it was a little too quiet. Camping for years, Ryoga was use to the sound of nocturnal animals rustling in the bushes, of owls fluttering in the trees, of crickets chirping in the night or the sound of a nearby frog croaking. Ryoga blinked and looked around to the outer edges of his and Harry’s campsite as he realized he couldn’t hear any of that now, only the wind blowing through the grass. Unease started to creep over Ryoga as he plucked Harry off the ground and held him to his chest and started to stand up.
“Ryoa?” Harry asked, looking up at his guardian.
“Shhh Harry,” Ryoga whispered. “You need to be quiet, just like we practiced.” Harry pressed his little hands to his mouth, his stag tucked into the crook of his arm. As camping in the wild was dangerous even for a teenager or adult much less a toddler, Ryoga started off as soon as possible to teach Harry a few basic skills. Nothing over the top of course, Harry was only a couple of years old after all, but being quiet and still was one of them. Ryoga knelt down and grabbed his combat umbrella off the ground his eyes darting around into the darkness.
He strained his ears, trying to catch any sound of what might be in the woods. The sound of running feet? Panicked breathing? Ryoga stood just in time as a young man a couple of years older than Ryoga burst into the clearing where he and Harry were camping.
“Bloody hell!” the young man said as he skid to a stop seeing Ryoga. He panted, leaning forward his hands resting on his knees.
“Are you alright?” Ryoga asked, the sense of danger had not passed so something else was out there in the woods.
“Were…wolf…chasing…me…” the young man said as he stood up. “You need to run you fool!”
“Wha? Werewolf?” Ryoga repeated blinking then his eyes widening as his brain caught up to this fact. At the same time his warning sense went off. A snarling howl filled the air as something large and hairy burst out of the shadows. The young man screamed in fright and quickly ran behind Ryoga. Ryoga growled softly as he stared at the werewolf in his camp, the beast was huge with drool dripping from his snarling mouth and golden eyes filled with the need to kill and rip apart the humans in front of him. There was a large patch of gray fur on the werewolf’s back.
“Take my son and go climb up into that tree over there,” Ryoga said over his shoulder, never taking his eyes off the werewolf who was licking his chops.
“What?! Are you mad? We should run!!” The young man said. “You don’t plan on fighting that monster do you? It’ll kill you!”
“I’m stronger than I look just take my son and get him to safety,” Ryoga said. “Up that tree.”
“Why a tree?” The man said with great reluctance as he took Harry who whined.
“Werewolves can’t climb trees,” Ryoga pointed out. The young man’s eyes widened as he realized Ryoga was right, running for the nearest tree at the same time the werewolf lunged at Ryoga. As Ryoga rolled to the side out of the path of the werewolf, the young man took out a wand and used a sticking charm on Harry to keep from dropping the babe then quickly climbed into the upper branches of the tree.
“Groowwwllll,” The werewolf bared his teeth at Ryoga, anger shining in amber toned eyes as this meat sack got in between him and his meal. Ryoga gripped his weapon with both hands, his feet spread apart and ready to move the moment the werewolf did. Letting out a roar like growl, the werewolf leapt at Ryoga again.
“HEY!” Ryoga moved to the side and swung his heavy umbrella, connecting with the surprised werewolf’s head and sending it flying into Ryoga’s camping tent. “Oh kuso,” Ryoga cursed as the werewolf became tangled in the tent, tearing it apart with sharp claws as it fought to get back on his feet. With a mighty rip the tent was torn in two and the werewolf was facing Ryoga again. This time it was a tiny bit hesitant to leap at Ryoga again, the weapon in the human’s hand had hurt when it hit his body.
Harry watched the fight from up in the tree where he was being held by the strange man. He whimpered softly in fright, wondering why this big doggy was attacking his Ryoa!
The werewolf started to circle Ryoga, who turned slightly with it keeping the werewolf in sight at all times. His hands flexed over the handle of the umbrella waiting for the werewolf to make its move. The wolf’s upper lip curled as he growled, showing off an impressive set of yellow fangs, making the young man in the tree squeak in fear. Ryoga smirked slightly, one of his own fangs peeking over a lip.
“Come on you bastard,” He taunted. The werewolf bellowed out a challenging roar and ran at Ryoga, claws sending up a spray of dirt and grass behind him, before he stood up on his hind legs and swung his powerful arm like foreleg down to tear Ryoga in two. Ryoga snapped his umbrella open and used it as a shield, the claws connecting with iron and sending up a shower of sparks in their wake. The werewolf howled in surprise giving Ryoga just the second he needed to twist around planting a fist in the wolf’s stomach.
“Oooommfff!” The werewolf bent in two as the air was knocked out of him by Ryoga’s hit then fell to the ground as Ryoga drove his elbow into the back of its neck then quickly backed away. The werewolf climbed back to his feet, swaying a bit and looking at the so-called prey with a lot more wariness. This human was no simple meal, it was a dangerous creature in its own right. Ryoga wasn’t about to give the werewolf another chance to attack, he quickly gathered his chi to him letting it gather in the cupped center of his hands. As it was anger and rage fueling his chi this time instead of depression, the chi turned a bright angry red instead of killing curse green.
“SHI SHI HOKODAN!” Ryoga roared thrusting his hands out in front of him and sending the ball of red chi at the werewolf. The wolf was so startled by the attack it was unable to dodge and the chi attack landed in the middle of his chest knocking him off his feet and sending him flying several feet into the air. The werewolf landed on his back on the edge of the clearing and quickly scrambled to his feet, turning tail and running back into the night. His prey had become the hunter and he wasn’t sticking around to get killed.
Ryoga stood in the middle of the destroyed camp breathing only slightly hard, the werewolf had been nothing compared to others he had fought over the last year. Hell, he didn’t even break a sweat!
“Bloody hell, that was amazing!” the young man said from the tree.
“Ryoa!” Harry said his little arms reaching out for his guardian.
“Umm… I don’t suppose you can help me down?” The man asked as he was stuck in the tree. Ryoga sighed, leaving his umbrella where he had dropped it on the ground, then jumped up into the branches of the tree. He took Harry, tucking his son against his chest safely, then grabbed the young man by the back of his robes. The man squawked as he was picked up, almost not believing this younger man was so strong that he could be picked up by just one hand, then suddenly found himself on the ground as Ryoga jumped down and landed on light feet. “Whew, thanks mate. You have no idea… that werewolf would have eaten me if you hadn’t…”
“It’s fine,” Ryoga said with a wave of his hand then sighed as he looked at his ruined tent. He was going to have to buy another one. “It was nothing.”
“It was not nothing,” the man protested. “You saved my life! I owe you a life debt!” Ryoga sighed and rolled his eyes skywards. “My name is Alex by the way. Alexander Thomas Leatherwood.”
“Yeah great, my name is Ryoga,” Ryoga said with another sigh as he turned to face Alex. “And this is my son Harry.”
“Then I am in your debt Ryoga,” Alex said with a bow, stumbling over the name slightly.
“No really, you’re not,” Ryoga said with a shake of his head as he shifted Harry to one hip then went over to the tent hoping that his travel pack had survived the carnage. Alex huffed and crossed his arms over his chest as he watched the other man.
“Oh… your tent…” he said as he fully realized the damage the werewolf had done to it while Ryoga fought it.
“Completely destroyed,” Ryoga said as he picked up part of the shredded tent. Harry reached out and grabbed another part, holding it up and grinning at Ryoga, he was helping.
“Then you’re in luck!” Alex said. “If you won’t allow me to give you a life debt, then at least let me pay you back another way. I come from a long line of tent makers, we make the finest magical tents in the world. Let me make you one to replaced the one you had.”
“Magical tent?” Ryoga asked as he turned to face Alex again. Alex’s face went a bit pale, had he just broken the statute of secrecy to a muggle?
“W-wait, you’re not a muggle are you?” He asked. Ryoga sighed slightly and shook his head.
“Non-magical but with creature blood,” he said. “Plus my son here is magical.” He bounced Harry gently who giggled. Alex slumped slightly in relief, just having a magical kid was enough to excuse muggles from the statue since they were allowed to know because of their kids.
“Alright then, I can work with that,” Alex said. “What I had meant by the magical tents are that they are bigger on the inside but look like a normal tent on the outside. The tents my family makes are custom made, much better quality than the ones you’ll find in places like Diagon Alley, we usually cater to the rich families like the Malfoys or Blacks, but since you saved my life I’ll make one just for you to replace the one the werewolf chasing me destroyed. How does that sound?”
Ryoga considered the offer for a moment, mulling it over.
“Just how much bigger on the inside?” Ryoga asked.
“Well I guess it depends really,” Alex said while rubbing the back of his head. “I can make one that’s got several rooms, a bath, a kitchen or anything really.” Ryoga blinked then gave Alex a fanged grin as an idea came to him.
“I think I’ll take you up on your offer and I know just what I want the inside of the tent to look like,” He said.
****
It would, Alex said, take a couple of days to make up the tent the way Ryoga requested. In that time he offered to let Ryoga and Harry stay in his guest room. Alex did find Ryoga’s habit of wandering around like he was lost a bit strange… but didn’t think too much on it as he had met a number of absent minded witches and wizards over the years. Thankfully for Ryoga as long as Harry was in one place he couldn’t wander too far away from the toddler thanks to the special bracers they both wore.
Ryoga’s idea was pretty straight forward, he wanted Harry to have a house to grow up in even if said house was really a tent. Ryoga had never had the chance to really grow up in a house, while his family did own one Ryoga had spent most of his life living on the road because he was always lost. It wouldn’t have been so bad if one of his parents had been without the Hibiki family curse, leaving someone home to help Ryoga stay there in his younger years but since both of his parents had the same lack of direction as him, Ryoga never got that chance.
He had spent more time living and sleeping in a tent than he ever got to in his family’s house. He didn’t really want that for Harry but didn’t really have a choice in the matter until now. It was a bit like having a mobile home, just something Ryoga could pack up when they were ready to move on then set up when they found a place to camp. Therefore the tent design Ryoga wanted was pretty simple, especially when compared to some of the made-to-order tents Alex or anyone in his family had made for some of their richer clients.
It looked a bit like a traditional, if simple, Japanese house. The main room of the tent was both a living room and dining room with a small kitchen area off to the side. One door led to a simple bedroom Ryoga and Harry would share while another led to a bath with a small round furo. Another door to the side of the bath held the toilet, one of the few things Ryoga went with a western design on as it was so much better than a squat toilet, and a small sink.
Once Alex was finished with the tent, which on the outside looked just like Ryoga’s old tent, it was even the same shade of yellow, Ryoga called Alex’s debt to him paid off. Alex was unable to provide any furniture sadly but Ryoga assured him it was fine and the next time Ryoga was in Japan he bought everything he needed to make his and Harry’s house tent livable. Alex also assured Ryoga that more rooms could be added to the tent as need be, just bring it to either him or at least to someone who truly knew what they were doing when it came to these types of tents.
*****
“Damn,” Ryoga looked up at Ukyo’s curse. His new travel companion was holding up her tent glaring at the rip in the side. “Completely forgot about that, I haven’t used this tent in years.”
“When did that happen?” Ryoga asked as he went back to setting up the camp fire, keeping half an eye on Harry as the young boy ran around with his new puppy playing. It had been roughly 2 years since Ryoga had adopted Harry, and while there had been their share of ups and downs, and the terrible twos for a while, Ryoga had adjusted to fatherhood greatly.
Ukyo narrowed her eyes for a moment as she tried to remember just when her tent had been damaged.
“That last training trip, right after Harry’s second birthday,” she said. “There was a fight and my tent ended up getting a rip in it.”
“Ah,” Ryoga said, he thought he knew which incident Ukyo was talking about. Ranma had gone on a summer training trip and most of the others had followed for one reason or another, including Nabiki and Kasumi for some reason. For once Ryoga hadn’t been involved in what happened as he hadn’t even been there, he believed he had been in New York at the time meeting some people that would become a very good group of friends to him and Harry, he found out about the disaster afterward from Kasumi. A fight had broken out, not unusual for their group, but had gotten really out of hand. Ryoga wasn’t sure what had happened, Kasumi refused to say and there was no way Ryoga was going to pay Nabiki to find out. All he knew was that when Ranma returned he wasn’t speaking to anyone except for Ryoga, and Ryoga knew the only reason he wasn’t on Ranma’s shit-list at the time was because he wasn’t there but off on his own with Harry, and the two older Tendo sister.
This was the same time Ranma had announced he would marry Nabiki to fulfill the Tendo/Saotome promise. To this day Ryoga still wasn’t sure how Shampoo had ended up with Ranma in the end, some sort of deal with Nabiki he was sure. Heck, Ryoga was sure Ranma didn’t really love either of his wives, or wife and mistress legally, but had gone through it to restore both families’ honor and Shampoo’s honor as well. Though given time Ranma could come to really love both women.
“Well I can just camp outside until I either get this one repairs or get a new tent,” Ukyo said with a sigh as she rolled the tent back up. Ryoga looked up into the sky and judged the clouds then shook his head.
“It’s going to rain tonight,” He said.
“How can ya tell?” Ukyo asked.
“The clouds look rain heavy, learned to read the sky while camping. It became even more important after I was cursed,” Ryoga said, making an ‘oof’ sound as Harry climbed up onto his back with a shriek of laughter then two little paws braced against his back as Oreo, Harry’s puppy, chased after his master. Ryoga reached up and pulled Harry around so the toddler was sitting in his lap. “You can just stay in the tent with us,” Ryoga offered jerking his head at the yellow tent behind him.
“Wouldn’t that be a tight fit? Your tent is kinda small sugar,” Ukyo said as she eyed the tent.
“Nah, it’ll be fine. Just go ahead and dump your stuff in there, I’ll start us something to eat,” Ryoga said absently as he tickled Harry who laughed and tried to wiggle out of his daddy’s lap.
“If you’re sure…” Ukyo said in a doubtful tone. She didn’t really think it would be a comfortable fit with two adults, a toddler and a dog… but then again she really didn’t want to sleep outside while it was raining. And it was just for one night, Ukyo could lead them to the nearest town tomorrow and get herself a new tent.
Picking up her pack and smiling at the cute sight of Ryoga playing with Harry, Ukyo walked over to the tent and entered it. Once inside her mouth dropped open as she was standing in a small house-like tent, with more than enough room for her to stand up straight.
“I-it…i-it…” her pack dropped from her hand to the floor as she slowly took the inside of the tent in. Ukyo spun on her heel and raced back out, turning around to look at the tent. It looked like the same tent she had always seen Ryoga use, one just big enough for one person, maybe two in a pinch. She walked around it, making sure there wasn’t a trick, but she didn’t run into any hidden walls. Ukyo ducked back inside the tent, yep house sized again.
Ryoga watched all this in amusement, it reminded him of something he’d seen on an American’s TV one time…. Or was that some British person’s TV? About a man who had a blue police box that was bigger on the inside and how people reacted to it. What was the name of that show? Ryoga couldn’t remember, something about time travel he knew that.
“I-it’s bigger on the inside!” Ukyo said as she came out again.
“Is it?” Ryoga said in fake innocents. Ukyo glowered at him and hit Ryoga on the back of his head.
“Don’t make fun of me you jackass,” She said. “How? I mean…. Just how?”
“Magic, what else?” Ryoga said. When Ukyo gave him another ‘look’ he laughed. “I’m telling the truth. A couple of years ago I saved this guy from being mauled by a werewolf. Yes a werewolf, not the most unbelievable thing that has happen to any of us.”
“Ok… I’ll give you that one,” Ukyo agreed.
“Well he was a wizard and since I saved his life, he said he owed me a ‘Life Debt’. I have no idea just what that means but he came from a family of magical tent makers. Since mine got completely destroyed during the fight with the werewolf he offered to make me a new one instead and call it even,” Ryoga continued. “I saw it as a chance to give Harry, and me, something of a normal home life. At the very least we’ve got some sorta home instead of just living in a tent.”
“That’s…. really smart,” Ukyo said seeing his point. “Like a mobile home you can carry on your back.”
“Yeah,” Ryoga agreed. He slung Harry over his shoulder, the little boy giggling as he hung upside down from his daddy’s shoulder while Ryoga followed Ukyo back into the tent. Ryoga looked around, the tent wasn’t too barren looking like it had been when he first got it. He had a traditional low Japanese table, a kotatsu, on one side of the main room. It was a modern one that ran off an electric heater on the underside of the table. The heater, as well as the other few electronics in the tent, ran off of two small generators he bought.
Unlike the magical of the European world, the American and Asian magical communities had gone out of their way to invent ways for electronics to work with magic. Not so much as working on magic itself, but able to work in magical areas unless it was a really high concentration of magic such as Hogwarts. The kitchen area was typical looking with a small stove/oven, some counter space and a college dorm fridge.
“This is… actually very cozy,” Ukyo said as she looked around. “So what happens to all the stuff in here when the tent is taken down?”
Ryoga shrugged his shoulders and set Harry down on the floor. The boy raced off with Oreo on his heels, going over to a box with his toys in the corner.
“Don’t know, I don’t have a clue how it works. I just know that nothing seems to move when the tent is packed up. When I first got it, I left a glass of water out to see if it would be knocked over or anything. It hadn’t moved at all when the tent was set back up,” he said.
“Neat…” Ukyo said. “Well beats the hell out of sleeping on the hard ground.”
“Aunt Ucc, come see me and daddy’s room!” Harry said as he grabbed Ukyo’s hand and pulled her to the small bedroom on the other side of the tent. Ukyo smiled and let herself be pulled along, Ryoga laughing as he followed.
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