A Midsummer Night's Beauty
by rkOujirou

Author's note: This story is a continuation on the Ranma 1/2 anime, including the OVA's and movies. Therefore, keep in mind that anything exclusive to the manga hasn't happened in this story.

Disclaimer: Ranma 1/2 is not my idea; it was created by a very talented manga artist named Rumiko Takahashi. The only characters I'll claim are my own OC's that I've added into this story. Just so you know.

A/N: Well, it took over 11 years, but here we are at the end at last.

This was my very first story back in the day and I learned a ton while writing it, both from my own experience and from some constructive reviews left by others, for which I'm very grateful. Big thanks to Ganheim especially, who stuck around throughout basically the entire run of the story and helped to point out some bad writing habits of mine. It was very helpful, so thank you.

To everyone who left comments and sent me PMs and emails with kind words over the years, thank you all so much. I appreciated it more than you'll ever know. Thanks to JC as well for doing the cover art for the story and also for drawing Sakura. I don't think I stopped smiling for a month after I saw that back then.

I know this story went to some places you don't usually see, and there were some lengthy breaks mixed in there over the years, which I'm sorry about. The year and a half it took me to figure out that Akane and Kodachi fight was the grandest of them all. But hopefully you all got some enjoyment out of this story of mine, or at the very least were able to kill some time with it on a rainy day.

With all that said, enjoy the final installment of "A Midsummer Night's Beauty". It's been a pleasure.

Epilogue

Six years later…

On the western side of the Japanese island of Kyushu, two sets of footsteps echoed throughout the third floor of a highly-secured prison. The sound was replaced by the jingling of keys as a guard came to a door in the middle of the hall and unlocked it. Inside, the room was bare aside from two wooden chairs, upon one of which sat a withered Akane Tendo.

Hearing the door open, Akane glanced through a break in the bangs hanging over her eyes. Into the room walked Ryoga Hibiki. Only family was typically permitted to visit prisoners here, but due to Ryoga's role in stopping Akane years earlier, he was granted a special exception. Ryoga's shoulders were broader every time Akane saw him, and his facial features more pronounced. One thing that never changed, though, was that bandana of his.

Akane, seeing that it was Ryoga, lowered her gaze to her lap.

"Sorry, I haven't been able to visit in a while," Ryoga said.

The guard entered the room and locked the door behind him, joining another man already positioned in the corner.

Ryoga took a seat opposite Akane. He'd gotten used to the sight of her over the years: dulled prison uniform, shackles over her wrists and ankles, her body noticeably smaller from lack of exercise. It still made him uneasy, though. He was at least happy to see her hair returning to its normal dark color now, although the tips still had a hint of white to them.

"Hey," Ryoga greeted the girl.

He got no reply.

"How've you been?" he asked.

Again, silence.

Ryoga lightly nodded his head. "Things are fine outside," he said. "We spent a long time in Indonesia over the last year. Ran into some strong martial artists there. It was good training. There were some really kind people who took us in and fed us, too. I miss the rendang already."

"Rendang?" Akane finally spoke, looking up at him.

"It's this slow-cooked, spicy meat dish," Ryoga told her. "Really good."

Akane leaned back in her chair. "Well, that's about as useful as everything else you tell me," she muttered. "Why do you come here, Ryoga?"

"Because you're my friend," Ryoga replied.

"I'm stuck in here for the rest of my life," Akane said to him. "It's a waste of time."

"Not to me, it's not," Ryoga said. "In here or wherever, I'll never give up on bringing out the good I know you still have in your heart."

Scoffing, Akane shook her head. "Get out of here."

Ryoga stood from his seat, and the guard went to let him out. As the door opened, Ryoga looked back over his shoulder.

"I'll come back when I can," he said, taking his leave.

Akane drooped forward, hanging her head. "Go ahead," she said under her breath. "But this was the last time you'll see me."

Outside the prison, a falcon soaring through the sky swooped down and landed on the shoulder area of Meilin's robe. She'd grown her hair out over the years, so much so that it came down to the small of her back now, its white color providing a nice contrast to her crimson-and-black attire.

Hearing the falcon cry, Meilin looked to the prison building, where she spotted Ryoga walking towards her. "Welcome back," she said to him. "How was she?"

"The same as always," Ryoga replied, not sounding thrilled about the visit.

"Figured," Meilin said with a shrug. "I'm still not sure why you bother."

"Meilin…"

"I know, I know…"

Smiling, Meilin wrapped her arm around Ryoga's. "So, where to now?"

"Mmm…I want to spend some time training in the mountains, I think," Ryoga said.

"Oh?" Meilin gave him a knowing look. "Planning on challenging a certain someone again?"

Ryoga averted his eyes from her. She always could see right through him.

"I get it," Meilin said, chuckling. "All right, let's go, honey."

Two days later, in the early hours of the morning, a series of explosions rocked the prison. There were no casualties, not even minor injuries—only some property damage, and a single missing prisoner. Guards and law enforcement used dogs to track the prisoner all the way to the sea, where the trail ended.

And so, one month passed…

By May, spring was in full effect in the Nerima Ward of Tokyo. After years of rebuilding and repairing, traces of the battle that once took place there were few and far between.

Within the city, seated on a bench overlooking a neighborhood playground, was Shampoo.

Her long hair shifting in the breeze, Shampoo brushed it away from her face. She was still getting used to being back in this place. Up until recently, she'd spent a long time away from it. Much of that time was spent traveling. Some of it was spent in China, helping Aroma and the others to restore their Amazon village to what it once was. But that was all settled now. For the time being, her traveling days were at an end.

Shampoo smiled as she watched some children play on the monkey bars. For her, this was the beginning of a different sort of journey altogether.

Over at the Tendo residence, inside of the rebuilt Tendo Dojo, two men stood before the shrine high up on the wall with their hands folded in prayer.

Lowering his hands to his sides, Genma Saotome opened his eyes. "The day's finally come, eh, Tendo?"

"That it has, Saotome," Soun replied. "It's been quite a while since our families got together. And this will be the first time with the grandkids."

While time hadn't changed Genma's appearance much, Soun's hair had grayed considerably due to the stress over his youngest daughter's actions. Thankfully, that stress was something he'd found a way to cope with.

"That grandson of yours sure is well-mannered, as expected of a kid raised by Kasumi and Tofu," Genma said.

"I'm just thankful he's taken an interest in martial arts," Soun replied. "Being able to train that boy and start anew…I truly believe it's saved me. I'm sure the Master would be happy to know his teachings are being passed on to the next generation as well."

Genma offered him a questioning look. "You think?"

Soun's brow furrowed. "Good point. Never assume anything when it comes to the Master."

With a wistful sigh, Genma again looked upon the shrine. "It's just a shame we weren't able to join our schools together," he said. "But you know, Tendo…maybe now we could-"

"Saotome?" Soun gave his friend a stern glance.

"I'm kidding! Kidding!" Genma said, laughing. "We learned our lesson last time. You never know, though, Tendo. Maybe they'll find their way together even without our help."

Met with that thought, Soun allowed his lips to curve upward.

"Wouldn't that be something."

On the other side of the world, in Las Vegas, Nevada of the United States of America, it was already deep into the evening. Inside of a packed arena, fans gathered for a World Championship Gymnastics event clapped and cheered, making all sorts of noise in anticipation of the night's main event.

Backstage, near the curtain leading to the ring, Kodachi "The Black Rose" Kuno stood with her back against the wall, ready and waiting. A long, leather coat with a sparkling rose design on the back hid her leotard from view.

Beside Kodachi, her second for the night, Sakura "Heavy Metal" Okazaki, had the sleeves of her leather jacket rolled up in preparation for the impending match. "Man, listen to 'em out there. They're totally hyped."

Kodachi, not overly concerned about the crowd, said nothing.

"Guess that's the power of the 'greatest rivalry in history,' " Sakura said.

"Is that what they are calling it now?" Kodachi asked.

"Lots of 'em," Sakura replied. "How many times have you and Priscilla gone at it now?"

The Kuno girl thought it over. "Not counting tonight, eight," she said. "Thus far we are even."

"And that there is exactly why," Sakura pointed out. "Y'know, Cat Five might've been the greatest champion of all time, but she never had a real rival. This thing you and Priscilla got going is somethin' special. I'm actually kinda jealous."

Kodachi glanced over at her second, her eye twitching. "I do not want to hear things like that from someone who has become a part-timer."

"Ouch!" Sakura laughed at the barb. "Hey, me and my band have a responsibility to spread the greatness that is rock and roll, too. Besides, it ain't my fault nobody's as fun as Cat Five was. Just rememberin' that match…the pain, the violence…oh, god…"

Sakura wrapped her arms around herself, shivering with delight.

"Ah, yes, the 'Bloodbath of Chicago,' " Kodachi grumbled. "They could not even salvage the ring mat because of what you two did to it."

"I know! It was awesome!" Sakura gushed. Abruptly, her demeanor turned serious. "I wanna do it again."

"And how do you plan on going about that?" Kodachi inquired. "Master is retired."

"I'll call her out and drag her out of retirement!" Sakura declared. "She won't be able to ignore it! She'll come for sure!"

Kodachi let out a sigh. "Do as you wish," she said. "Just try not to get beaten half to death this time. I did not enjoy having to nurse you back to health."

At that moment, a referee came up to them. "One minute, Miss Kuno," she said, to which Kodachi nodded in acknowledgement.

Sakura smacked a fist against her palm. "All right! Here we go!" she exclaimed. Then, something caught her eye. "Oh, check it out."

Looking to where Sakura was pointing, Kodachi saw Alysse Winters and Ringo Saotome at the edge of a hallway. With her regal, golden robe shimmering in the light, Alysse had her forehead pressed to Ringo's in concentration, the WCG Championship fastened around her waist.

"Looks like they're ready," Sakura said.

"No matter," Kodachi replied, facing the curtain. "Tonight is the night that championship comes back to where it belongs."

West of Tokyo, on the northern end of the city of Nagano, a paved path led up into the tree-covered hills. Along that path sat a building with the banner of Ucchan's Okonomiyaki displayed above its entrance.

Over the last six years, the business had been spotted in over a dozen places from Hokkaido all the way down to Okinawa as its owner worked to perfect her craft all across the country. Its fleeting availability gave the restaurant an almost mystical quality among those who spoke of it.

Inside, Ukyo Kuonji took advantage of the downtime between the usual lunch and dinner hours to clean her utensils. There weren't any customers at the moment, but she knew those looking for an early dinner would be arriving soon enough.

Right on cue, the restaurant's door slid open.

"Welcome!" Ukyo called out.

As the customer closed the door behind them, Ukyo gave them a curious look. They were draped in a weathered jacket and grimy shorts, their arms and legs covered in dirt. Did they work outdoors, Ukyo wondered?

Their jacket's hood pulled over their head, the customer took a seat at the counter.

"What can I get y-" Ukyo began to ask, only to be cut off by the clack of a piece of wood.

Beneath the customer's hand, Ukyo saw the "HELP WANTED" sign that had been hanging outside. She was always looking for a helping hand, but her previous employees never lasted long as none were willing to relocate with her.

The customer reached up and grabbed their hood. "You're hard to find, you know that?"

Their voice made Ukyo's heart skip a beat. As the customer pulled their hood away, Ukyo staggered back, crashing up against the wall behind the counter.

"Aka…ne…?"

"Hey," Akane Tendo replied weakly.

Akane was nothing like the intimidating presence Ukyo remembered when she last saw her. Now, she just looked…exhausted.

Face-to-face with her old friend after so long, Ukyo shook her head in disbelief. "H-how? Weren't you in prison?"

Akane batted her sleep-deprived eyes. "They didn't announce that I escaped?" she asked. "Guess they didn't want their failure to get out. Or maybe they just didn't want everyone to panic."

"But…y-your magic…" Ukyo stammered. "I thought…"

"It's gone. Well, it is now," Akane clarified. "Thanks to someone, my body lost its ability to generate magical power. It didn't get rid of the little I still had in me, though. So I held onto it and waited until the guards became lax with me, and then I broke out of that place. I used the last bit of my magic to get to the coast, send my uniform blowing across the sea, and cover my tracks. By now, they probably think I drowned trying to escape to China."

Akane held her thin hands up for Ukyo to see. "I couldn't hurt a fly now, even if I wanted to," she said, chuckling at her own expense.

While Ukyo tried to find the words she wanted to say, Akane set her hands back down, her face taking on an earnest look.

"Let me work here," Akane said.

"What?" Ukyo shrieked, giving her an incredulous stare. "Why? Why here?"

"Because…" Akane spoke softly, "you're the only one I want to see right now."

Ukyo paused momentarily, wondering just what the girl meant by that. "And if I say no?"

"I'll leave and never bother you again," Akane replied without hesitation. "Maybe find a mountain to live on somewhere or something. It would get cold in the winters, but I guess I probably deserve that much."

One peek at Ukyo and Akane could see how much the chef was struggling internally with the request.

Akane couldn't handle it anymore. Looking upon that face for the first time in what felt like an eternity, her composure was starting to crack.

"Look, I don't know how long it would last," Akane told her. "Maybe they figure things out and come for me. If that happens, you can just tell them I forced you to hide me, okay?"

The Tendo girl rubbed at her eyes, fighting to hold back her tears.

"I know what I did," she continued. "I know I deserve to rot in a cell for the rest of my life. But…I guess I'm just selfish. I spent so much time in there. After a while, I didn't care about Ranma or Shampoo or revenge or the world or anything anymore. All I could think about was how I just wanted to spend some time with you."

Ukyo looked on as Akane failed to keep back those tears, openly sobbing in front of her. "Akane…"

"If you want to call the police and have them take me back, that's fine," Akane said, lowering her head. "There's no point in being out if you don't want me around anyway. I just…I had to at least try."

Slowly walking up to the counter, Ukyo reached out and cupped her hand over Akane's cheek, brushing some of the dirt away from the girl's weary face. "You look like hell."

"…That's helpful," Akane muttered, sniffling.

Ukyo took a long breath and stepped back. "First thing you need is a bath," she said. "We'll need to get you some new clothes, something that hides as much of you as possible. A mask, too—one that covers your hair and everything. No one can ever recognize you or it's all over, got it?"

Listening to Ukyo's words, Akane had a hopeful look about her.

"Cleaning, dishwashing, and waiting tables," Ukyo said. "That's what I'm expecting of you, that's what I'll show you how to do. And if you think I'm letting you anywhere near the grill, think again."

Akane rolled her eyes at the comment. "You're never going to let the cooking thing go, are you?"

"No," Ukyo replied flatly.

The two of them sharing a look, Ukyo cracked up, as did Akane, and they both burst into a genuine laughter.

Once they settled down, Ukyo extended her hand. "Welcome aboard."

Akane, drying her teary eyes, accepted it.

"I'm at your service…boss."

Far from Japan, within a desolate wasteland in northern China, a man stood before the middle of three large stones laid out on the ground. It was his first visit to this place since he was brought here for battle what felt like so long ago now.

He knelt down and brushed the dust away from the stone, uncovering the name "Li" etched upon it.

"Yo," Ranma Saotome spoke solemnly. "Took me longer than it should have, but I finally came to see ya."

Being in this place, memories of the day he fought Li came flooding back to him.

"I wish…things turned out different," he said. "Meilin told me once she didn't hold a grudge against me. Knowin' you, you'd probably say the same thing. Even so…I'm sorry for what happened."

After some reflection, Ranma got up, stepping over to the stone to the right. This one had the name "Jynn" on it.

"Sorry for what happened to you, too," he said. "I guess you weren't that bad of a guy. I'm glad you found your way back to Li in the end."

Ranma moved over to the leftmost stone and cleaned it off. It read "Jukai."

"If you knew I was here, you'd probably tell me to get lost," he said, laughing to himself. "I heard what ya did for Ryoga and Meilin. I'm sure ya don't give a damn about my thanks, but you're gettin' it anyway. I appreciate it."

His business finished, Ranma stepped back, looking upon the three stones one last time. "I got someone waitin' for me, so I gotta get goin'," he said. "But…I hope you guys are at peace."

Ranma lowered himself down, placing his palm against the ground. A bright light formed beneath him.

"Shift."

In a flash, Ranma was gone.

Back in Japan, Shampoo was staring out at the playground when she heard some startled gasps behind her. Looking back, she saw Ranma rising to his feet.

"Ranma!"

She jumped over the bench and gave him a quick hug.

"I'm back," Ranma said, returning the embrace.

Shampoo loosened her grip on him. "How it go?" she asked.

"I feel…better," Ranma replied.

Hearing that brought a smile to Shampoo's face. "Shampoo glad."

"Papa!"

All of a sudden, a young girl with dark violet hair down to her waist leaped up into Ranma's arms.

"Hey! There's my little Cologne!" Ranma grinned, holding the child up in front of him. "Did ya have fun?"

"Uh-huh!" Cologne replied cheerfully.

"She go down slide so many times, Shampoo lose count," her mother said.

"Oh! You like the slide, huh?" Ranma asked the girl.

"It's big!" Cologne told him.

"Is it?" Ranma chortled over his daughter's excitement. "We'll come back again sometime, but right now we're gonna go visit some friends of ours, 'kay?"

"Okay!"

Ranma put Cologne up on his shoulders and, taking Shampoo's hand, the three of them walked together down the road.

"Ranma know who going be there?" Shampoo asked.

"Let's see…Mom and Pop, for sure," Ranma answered. "And I think Nabiki made room in her schedule to show up."

"That mean Kuno invite self again?"

"Nah, think Kodachi had a big match he was flyin' out to see. Oh, but Kasumi and Tofu are comin'. I ain't seen their kid since he was born. Can't wait to see how Mr. Tendo's trainin' has been goin' for him."

"Is only one year older than Cologne, too," Shampoo said, a sly look in her eyes. "Maybe someday they marry and join Anything-Goes school together, yes?"

"D-don't even joke about that!" Ranma snapped. "You'll give Pop and Mr. Tendo ideas!"

Cologne, having been listening in, tapped her father on his head. "Papa, what 'marry' mean?"

With Shampoo snickering beside him, Ranma grimaced at the question.

"I'll…explain it when you're older, kiddo. But for now, I'm just gonna tell ya one thing," he said to her. "When you grow up, you marry whoever the heck ya want."

The End