Well, here we are, something new. This is what I have been working on for
the longest time. It's my longest story to date (about forty pages) and
I'm proud of it. As with all of my stuff, there are parts that could be
better, but I'm satisfied (for the most part) with it now. Oh, and one
more thing. I have just come across a play and a book that are a must.
The play is called "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead" and the book is
"House of Leaves." I won't accept 'no' for answer; read them at all costs.
((For those who are grammerfreaks, book titles are supposed to be
underlined, but I don't like underlining so there.))
~~~ Explosive Moments ~~~
~~~~~~ Moment One: The Beginning
Akane ran her hands over her face. It had been just one thing after another today. She sighed and stood up, taking her bag with her.
First, she'd gotten to school late after getting in a fight with Ranma and had had to stand in the hall for a while. It wouldn't have been so bad, but Ranma had kept making smart-ass comments. She was absolutely convinced he loved to piss her off.
She sighed again as she made her way down the hall toward the girl's room.
Then, three classes in a row, she discovered she didn't have her homework. She could see it in her mind sitting on her desk. This failure had of course prompted more smart-ass comments.
Akane pushed open the door to the girl's room and walked to the sink. She dropped her bag by her feet. Her reflection stared out at her, tired. No wonder he called her uncute.
Then, she failed a test, and in the next class a pop quiz. Again, she had earned herself more smart-ass comments. Sometimes, she really did hate him. At lunch, she'd had to watch both fiancées hang on Ranma and mock her. She also had to hear gossip bashing her for not being able to handle Ranma as a proper girl could and should.
Akane gripped the edges of the sink and bowed her head to stare at stained porcelain instead of her face. A ragged sigh escaped her and she moved shaky hands to turn on the water.
The last of her classes had been one long blur of incorrect answers on the board and yet more smart-ass comments. Did he never get tired of making her feel like shit after she already felt like a failure?
She plunged her hands under the cold flow and splashed her face. She dried her face with her skirt and looked up.
To make the entire day unbearable, she had woken with the knowledge that soon she'd have to face the day of her mother's death. Having finally, consciously acknowledged this fact, she had relived every memory around her mother's death; her only memories of her mother really. She had few full, happy memories to offset the pain of those other, ugly ones.
Her face still looked tired. She forced it to a more cheerful disposition and kept it there. She picked up her bag and headed out to meet Ranma. He was gone already when she got there and she let her face fall back into its natural tiredness. He was probably at Ucchan's or the Nekohanten. Good. She had been planning to make dinner (the reason for his departure) but now she had no reason to. No one else would eat her cooking and he would purposely be too full. Akane sighed again and squished the little Ranmas in her mind that danced and chanted "Failure!" at her. She didn't need any extra help.
~~~~~~
Ranma leapt down from the wall surrounding the Tendo Dojo and sauntered into the house. He was whistling, cheerful at having escaped Akane's horrible cooking. It was a shock to him to have the smell of Kasumi's cooking hit him. He bounded into the dinning room to see everyone except Akane sitting and eating. He bounded over to his seat, suddenly hungry.
"Hey, where's Akane?" he asked between several bites. He paused as Kasumi gave him a weird look. If he didn't know better, he would have thought it was disgust.
"She wasn't feeling well and is asleep. No one is to bother her." The ice in her voice caused everyone to freeze. Ranma looked at her confused.
"What's, uh, wrong with her?" Ranma ventured, realizing that the look *had* been disgust. He suddenly wasn't hungry.
"I said she wasn't feeling well." Kasumi placed her chopsticks down on the table with deliberate control and left the room. Ranma sank into himself. Slowly, everyone began to eat again, subdued this time. Nabiki sat still for a long moment, and then she turned to Ranma. He looked at her and flinched. Her eyes were dark and hard.
"You. Had. Better. Fix. This," she said slowly, deliberately.
"I don't know what I did," he said plaintively. Nabiki rolled her eyes and left.
"I don't want to be disturbed," she called over her shoulder. Ranma looked at his father. Genma refused to meet his eyes. He looked over at Soun. The older man met his eyes, but said nothing. He looked old to Ranma's eyes for the first time. There were no tears, but instead a deep sadness that he could not place. Ranma tore his gaze away. He sat staring at his bowl. After a while, he set it down on the table and went to the kitchen. He paused in the doorway and watched Kasumi move around the kitchen. She wiped down counters and straightened up appliances in what was a pretense of work. Finally, Kasumi leaned up against the counter, her hands bracing her weight.
"What do you want?" Her voice was hollow and slightly cold.
"I-I--"
"You want to know what you did wrong?" she asked with sarcasm. Ranma was taken aback with this new Kasumi. She was the kindest person he knew. What he had done to make her so angry was beyond him.
"Yes," he answered softly, ashamed that he didn't know. Kasumi turned around to look at him.
"Did you stop once to look at Akane today? To actually LOOK at her?"
Ranma shook his head, words quelled in his throat at the look on her face. He watched Kasumi's eyes unfocus and slicken with tears.
"She walked in here and stood in the doorway. I could feel her; she felt off. When I turned around, she just looked at me. She looked as if she was old. Hurt and exhaustion and pain were written into every line of her body and face. I asked her what was wrong and she sagged to the floor, crying. I have *never* heard anyone cry like that. It was as if she had lived a thousand lifetimes of nothing but pain in one second and was crying because of it. I could do nothing but hold her. She didn't even cling to me like she normally does. She held herself and cried. Her heart was broken, Ranma, and I could do nothing." Her eyes snapped back into focus and lay resting on him. He watched her bring a hand to her face and wipe away tears. He swallowed his own.
"What did I do?" he asked.
"Did you say anything nice to her? Or did you just mock her for failing? She told me about her day." Ranma flinched. He lowered his head and started to leave.
"NO. I'm not done yet." Ranma found himself cowering under Kasumi's anger.
"It would have helped if you had asked if she was okay. Just once. Did you know that the anniversary of our mother's death is half a week away? No? I thought not. Did you know that Akane is the one who has the most memories of our mother's sickness? No? I didn't think so. It's beyond you to care, isn't it?" Ranma's head hung lower at Kasumi's coldness.
"I have watched you, Ranma, for the past year and a half mock Akane and make her lose her temper. I have seen you break her heart more times than I can count. Today was the last straw. Akane deserves someone better than you. As of this moment, Ranma, you are no longer her fiancée. You will treat her with respect and if you cannot, then you will leave this house. I will not allow Akane to suffer this kind of pain." Ranma flinched, and then suddenly he was angry. His pride had been stung and by the one person he thought would never harm him. It hurt.
"How was I supposed to know?" he retorted. Kasumi clenched her fists.
"It was in her face!" she screamed. "All you had to do was LOOK at her and you would have seen it. All you had to do was take a single second to focus on someone who wasn't you and LOOK." Kasumi took several deep breaths and stood stiff and angry. "If you had ever bothered to really look at her, Ranma, you would see so much of her. You would see her hopes, her love, her pain, her sacrifice. Her soul is in her face, but you can't see it. I pity you." She turned her back on him then. Ranma stood in the doorway, staring at the floor. A soft voice called out then.
"'Sumi, are you yelling?" Ranma turned to see Akane walking sleepily toward him. Hesitantly, he looked at her. At first he could see nothing but the angry tomboy who yelled at him. Then, suddenly, she changed. He could see the tiredness in face. He could see the same sadness in her that was in her father. Her eyes met him and he was startled to see a flash of incredible tenderness. To his dismay, it was quickly replaced by hurt and anger. She didn't act on that anger, but instead looked away from him and into the kitchen.
"Kasumi?"
"I'm here, Akane." Akane frowned. Ranma saw worry well up into her eyes. Her own pain was forgotten.
"What's wrong, Kasumi?" She hurried past Ranma and into the kitchen. Ranma turned to follow her with his eyes. Kasumi had sat down at the table. She waved a hand at Akane.
"Nothing's wrong."
"Oh, pooh. You are obviously upset." Ranma watched as her concern grew and sudden shame flitted in around the edges of it. "It's not because of me, is it?" Kasumi laughed. The concern and shame left Akane's eyes to be replaced by relief.
"No, no, Little Akane. How could you ever upset me?" Akane blushed and looked down at her hands.
"I upset you when I get angry and hit Ranma." Kasumi laughed again and pulled Akane into a hug. Akane laid her head on Kasumi's shoulder and closed her eyes. She was feeling better now and Kasumi's laugh and hug helped.
"You don't upset me when you do that, you worry me."
"Why?" Akane asked, shocked.
"I'm afraid your face will freeze in a permanent scowl," she said mockingly. Both of them burst into laughter. Ranma watched fascinated. He had never noticed that intense play of emotion across Akane's face before. There were a few moments forever embedded into his memory, but they were nothing like this open display of, as Kasumi had said, her soul. He started when Akane's eyes opened and focused on him. Again there was that flash of love and again it melted into that hurt that tore at him. He knew then that Kasumi was right. If he had looked, he would have seen it. He couldn't meet her gaze any more and looked down. He turned and left, unable to be near her without crying in shame.
Akane stared after him, confused. That had looked like shame in his eyes. Why? She looked at Kasumi as she pulled from the hug.
"Ranma upset you, didn't he?" Kasumi looked away. Akane was the only one who could ever really pull her veil of serenity away fully. It was unnerving but a relief at the same time to have someone she could show herself to. Akane sighed.
"He did. What did he do?"
"He hurt you." Akane stared at her sister, shocked.
"What do you mean, Kasumi?" Kasumi rubbed her cheek. It was an odd gesture, and Akane did not know what to make of it.
"Kasumi?"
"You didn't hear yourself today. Never has anyone cried like that, Akane. It was like you had come home to find everyone you ever knew and cared about dead. No, it was worse than that. Then, when you told me about your day, about how you were having such a hard time, and the memories, I wondered why he didn't say anything to you. I was so angry when you told me that he kept making fun of you." Kasumi looked down at her lap. "All he had to do was pay attention to know you were upset. He couldn't even do that."
"You yelled at him, didn't you?" Kasumi looked up, surprised by the amusement in the younger girl's voice.
"You're amused," she accused. Akane reached out and patted her sister's hand.
"Kasumi, think about what side of you he has always seen." Kasumi did, and she blushed.
"Oh, my. I'm afraid I may have been too hard on him then. I was really mean."
"Oh, Kasumi. What did you say?" Dismay warred with amusement in her voice. Sheepishly, Kasumi looked up at Akane. Shame was in her face.
"Bad things."
"Tell me," Akane demanded.
So, she did. Akane sat there stunned. Finally, she groaned and put her head in her hands.
"Kasumi, that was really mean."
"I was angry, Akane!" she exclaimed. "I may have been mean, but he deserved it. I never want to hear anyone cry that way again. It goes beyond heartache, Akane. You didn't have to hear it."
"No, I had to feel it," Akane said quietly. Kasumi looked away. They sat in silence for a while.
"Why do you put up with it, Akane? He shouldn't treat you like that."
"And I shouldn't treat him like I do, but I do. I put up with it because it's not that bad."
"It was today."
"There were extra things today. If it had been just him, I would have just hurt him severely, come home, cried, and then hurt him severely again." Kasumi smiled.
"I told him that if he treated you like that again, he'd no longer be welcome here." Akane stared at Kasumi. Akane knew she would not back down on this. He had crossed a line today. Finally, Akane bit her lip.
"I need to talk to him."
"Why? He should come to you." Akane sighed.
"You sound like a child, Kasumi." Kasumi glared at her and then sagged.
"I know. I feel like a child. I felt like I was back at the time of Mother's death, only it wasn't just hers, it was everyone's but ours." Akane reached out and hugged Kasumi again.
"Thank you, Kasumi, for being there for me. I'm sorry I brought it to you."
"Don't be, Akane. I love you, and that's what I'm here for."
"I love you too, Kasumi."
"Go."
~~~~~~
Ranma sat on the dojo floor staring morosely out at the pond. He had really blown it today. The worst, and the best, part was that look of love in Akane's eyes. He knew now how she really felt toward him, but damn, was he messing that up. A soft, feminine heat warmed the air next to him, and Ranma turned to see Akane sitting beside him.
"Why are you here?" he asked. She would have gotten angry, but the shame was obvious.
"Kasumi told me what she said."
"Oh." He tried not to cringe away from her, but he failed. Suddenly, he found himself on his back. Akane had him pinned, her hands gripping his upper arms, her legs folded across the bend where his thighs became his hips. He was very aware of her bare feet near his privates. She looked into his eyes. He looked back up at her, shame warring with desire to lift his head and kiss her. She cocked her head to the side.
"You're ashamed? Of what?" He looked away from her.
"Kasumi said what. I never did look at you. I mean I was aware you were there. Hell, I was even aware that there was something wrong with your aura, but I ignored it. I just kept teasing you. I shoulda been payin' attention."
"You're always like that. What's changed?" It stung. He was always like that. She said it as if it was an immutable fact.
"What changed?" she asked again, more gently this time. He realized that she had seen his hurt.
"I looked, like Kasumi said. I-I saw, I really saw how hurt you were. I saw how kind you were, how selfless. I could see your soul in your eyes, just like Kasumi said." He was looking away, so he didn't see her head jerk back, or the tears that filled her eyes.
"I could see how quickly you forgot about your own pain to help Kasumi. I never saw it before. I guess I never wanted to see it. I mean I didn't want to be married. I wanted to have some reason to not be married. I was scared and disgusted with myself. I had fallen in love with you and I didn't know why. I refused to believe it. Then, tonight, it was like I found the reason why. I just never knew I knew it." A hot liquid landed on his cheek. Ranma turned his head to see Akane crying. Before he could say anything, she leaned down and kissed him. He was unaware of what he had just touched in Akane. He had given her the one thing she wanted. He had admitted, through his words and his tone, how beautiful she was, how kind, how much he wanted her. He had admitted how precious she was to him.
Akane shifted to lie on top of Ranma, her feet jumbled together with his, his arms around her, her head under his chin. She closed her eyes and just lay there. His heartbeat was firm and steady, if a little fast. The gentle whoosh of air from his lungs calmed her. The pain of that day melted away as he held her. Finally, he heaved a sigh.
"Akane?"
"Hmm?" She was half-asleep.
"I'm sorry about today. I shouldn't have treated you like that."
"I's okay, Ranma," she murmured as she tried to nestle herself into his arms more. He tightened his grip.
"No, it's not," he whispered. "It's not and I won't ever treat you like that again." She just murmured a soft assent.
~~~~~~
Ukyo fidgeted nervously in her seat as she glanced at Ranma and then Akane. They hadn't had one fight today, and rumor had it that he had walked beside her on the way to school. Not only that but it seemed as if every time she looked at Ranma, he was looking at Akane with this odd look on his face. It made her think he was grateful, but why, she couldn't say. It was getting on her nerves.
At lunch she cornered him.
"I need to talk to you," she said looking him in the eye. He nodded.
"Lead the way." He followed her silently. She wanted to talk to him, but couldn't think of anything to say. Finally, she couldn't take it any more. She whirled to face him.
"What is going on between you and Akane?" He cocked his head at her, his usual frustration not evident.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean you haven't fought at all. You keep *staring* at her. Why?" Ranma sighed.
"I got a swift kick to the butt, Ukyo." The 'Ukyo' froze her. It was a bad sign.
"Did Akane hit you again?" she asked bitterly. To her surprise, Ranma laughed.
"I wish. It would have been less painful."
"What are you talking about?" She was trying not to scream at him.
"Did you notice anything off about Akane yesterday?"
"No. She was fine. Why?" Ranma nodded and sat on the ground, cross- legged as usual. Ukyo followed suit, sitting on her shins.
"See. That's what I thought too. You noticed I didn't hold back with my mocking?" She nodded. "Well, I should have. She was having a bad day. Everything was going wrong for her. That in itself was not so bad, but I kept making it worse by insulting her every chance I got. That she could have handled, and we know how, but what I didn't know was that the anniversary of her mother's death is coming up. I also didn't know that practically the only memories she has of her mother are those of her sickness. So, all day yesterday, she was reliving her mother's sickness and death, wasn't able to do anything right, and was being mocked endlessly and harshly by me." He stopped and looked at Ukyo to see if she understood. Ukyo stared at her hands.
"And no one noticed," she added softly. Ranma nodded.
"Kasumi told me that when she got home, she broke down. I got home at dinner and." Ranma stopped, uneasy with the memory of Kasumi's words.
"And what, Ranchan?" He flinched.
"Kasumi was pissed, Nabiki was also angry, Pop wouldn't look at me, and Mr. Tendo had this incredibly sad look on his face. I didn't understand what happened. Kasumi told me off." Ukyo frowned at Ranma.
"How bad could it have been?" Again, Ranma flinched.
"She, ah, well, she yelled at me."
"What!" Ukyo's mouth dropped open.
"She yelled at me and told me that if I didn't start treating Akane better, she'd kick me out. For good."
"Geez. You didn't deserve that, Ranchan," Ukyo said, trying to be supportive. Ranma shook his head and laughed a little.
"Maybe I did. Hell, even if I didn't, I needed it. Or something like it." He sighed. "Akane and I have a lot of problems to work out between us. A year and a half of bad behavior is gonna take a lot of work, but you know she loves me anyway." Ukyo stiffened. He *was* grateful. He was grateful to be loved by Akane. Ukyo fought the urge to beat the crap out of him.
"You're grateful to her? For what? Grateful that she lowered her standards to love you? Please! She doesn't deserve you." Ranma sat silent for a moment, gritting his teeth. Yes, he was grateful. He was very grateful. After yesterday, Akane had every right to hate him, to give up on him, to find someone who would take the time to concern himself about her. He had concerned himself with her, but mostly when she was kidnapped or some guy was threatening his claim. What sort of care was that? How was that love? Who deserved that kind of love?
"I'm not about to admit that I'm completely at fault, Ukyo. And neither is she. She's well aware of her behavior. I don't appreciate those kinds of comments. I've been treating her like shit and she's been doing the same to me. We love each other anyway." Ukyo savagely fought the sob that was in her chest. He had just said it. He loved Akane. He didn't love Ukyo.
"So, you love her. I suppose it was too much trouble to love me."
"Damn it, Ukyo! I didn't go, 'Hey! I think I'll fall in love with her!' You know it doesn't work that way."
"You could have at least said you didn't love me. I've been here for over a year waiting for you! You knew I loved you! All you had to do was say you didn't."
"Would you have listened?" Ranma growled at her. "I never said I loved you and you convinced yourself that I did. I never treated you like anything other than a friend and you thought of me as more than a friend. Would you have believed me? Would you have accepted it? Will you? You dedicated ten years of your life to finding me. That doesn't speak of one who gives up easily."
"That doesn't mean you couldn't have told me or given me some hint!"
"Damn it, Ukyo. I barely knew I loved her. And you had some hints. You just chose to ignore them."
"What hints?"
"All the times I fought to save her, all the times I refused to give her up to some other guy. I know you know about the time that Mikado tried to kiss her. Why the hell should I care if some random guy kissed her if I didn't care for her? And why would I stop Ryoga from ever getting close to her? Or from sleeping with her?" Ukyo froze at that. Ranma kept on list examples, but she was stuck on that one sentence.
"What do you mean sleep with her?" Ranma stopped his litany and looked at her. Suddenly, his eyes widened.
"Opps."
"What are you talking about? What do you mean he's sleeping with Akane?"
"Ahh. I can't say. He swore me to secrecy."
"Swore you to secrecy? Ranma, what are you talking about?" Ranma made a face at her. Right. He couldn't tell her. So, she would have to figure it out. Ryoga was sleeping with Akane. But how could that be? Akane wouldn't let Ranma even touch her or at least she used to not let him touch her. Ukyo shook her head. Best not to think of that now. So, if she wouldn't let Ranma touch her, why would she sleep with Ryoga? She wouldn't, not unless she didn't know she was sleeping with him. Again, how could that be? The only one she slept with was P-Chan. Several scenes flashed through Ukyo's mind. Scenes of Ranma calling Ryoga names. Her mouth dropped open.
"Ohh. Oh, man. That's bad. That's real bad."
"Yeah, it is." Ranma's face was grim. His gaze locked on her in a way that made her twitch.
"What?"
"Would you tell her for me? I've been looking for a way to tell her without telling her. I didn't even tell you, so he can't accuse me of tellin' anyone. Please? He's dishonoring her and I *hate* knowing he's in there sleeping with her and seein' her change." Suddenly, Ranma snapped his mouth shut. He turned his face away from Ukyo, his cheeks as red as his shirt. Ukyo couldn't decide if she wanted to laugh or cry. It amused her that he was jealous of a pig, even if it was Ryoga, but it also hurt that he had, in a roundabout way, just admitted that he wanted to see Akane naked. She understood one thing. Akane deserved to know the truth about her pet. If Ryoga had done that to her, she'd have kicked his ass. To make it worse, Ukyo knew that Akane considered Ryoga a friend. She trusted both forms and both were betraying her. Ukyo sighed.
"Ranma? I'll tell her. Just not today. I-I need some time...." Her voice trailed off and she climbed to her feet. She looked down at Ranma.
"I do love you, you know," she said and then she was gone.
~~~~~~
Kasumi stood outside the dojo and took a deep breath. Steeling herself, she pushed open the door and entered the dojo, carrying a tray of tea. One for her and one for Ranma. She stood in the doorway and watched as Akane sparred with Ranma, or tried to.
Ranma twisted away from Akane, laughing, and caught sight of Kasumi. He froze and was hit hard in the jaw by Akane. She gasped as he went flying. Akane ran after him, falling to her knees beside him.
"Oh, Ranma. I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to hit you. Hey, you stupid baka, why'd you stop?" Akane finally realized that he was staring at something behind her and turned. Her eyes landed on Kasumi and widened. Kasumi cleared her throat.
"Akane, would you please excuse Ranma and me? I need to discuss something with him in private." Akane hastily climbed to her feet.
"Of course. I'll go take a bath." She closed the door behind her. Kasumi lowered herself and the tea tray to the ground. Swallowing hard and summoning her courage, she gestured to the floor across from her.
"Won't you join me, Ranma?" He complied silently. She poured him tea and he accepted the cup. When she looked up at him, his gaze was lowered to the floor. Kasumi sighed. He winced.
"Ranma, I want to apologize. I was overly harsh the other night. I said things that weren't true and that I shouldn't have said. Please, forgive me." Ranma lifted his gaze to hers. After a while, he sighed.
"Of course, I'll forgive you, Kasumi. I do have to admit that, while it hurt, it did, ah, knock some sense into me. It was helpful."
"Helpful?" Kasumi frowned at him. He blushed and ducked his head. He fiddled with the teacup in his hand.
"Yeah, I, uh, I mean, we, heh, I told Akane that I loved her." Kasumi's mouth dropped open.
"You did?"
Ranma nodded, his blush growing deeper. Kasumi smiled and leaned across the tray to hug him.
"That's great, Ranma. I'm so happy for you both." She pulled back. Ranma grinned at her.
"It is great. I didn't think I'd ever be so comfortable around her." His cheeks were still red, but he had a pleased grin on his face.
"So, are you two planning on getting married soon?" Ranma dropped the cup in his hand. It hit the tray, but didn't break. He looked absolutely terrified.
"No! We are both way too young, and I don't just mean, physically. We both have a lot of growin' up to do." Ranma sighed. "Oh, hey, that reminds me. Can you not say anything? To Pop and all. She and I both know we got things to work out and we don't need no one pestering us to get married while we're not ready." Kasumi smiled and nodded.
"Of course. That's very wise of you both. Are you going to tell anyone else?"
"Well, I already told Ukyo. I wanna tell Mom, but I need to talk to Akane first. I think that once Mom knows, I can get her to help with Pop and your dad." Ranma grinned at Kasumi and hopped to his feet.
"I'm gonna go see if Akane's done with her bath and then go take my own." Kasumi stood and nodded. Ranma hesitated and then reached out to hug her again.
"Thanks, Kasumi."
She hugged him back.
"Thank you, Ranma."
~~~~~~
Akane brushed at her skirt and tried her hardest to stand still. Ranma looked over at her and chuckled slightly. He reached out and took her hand.
"Why are you more nervous than I am?" he asked. She shot him an angry look and gave his hand a vicious squeeze. He whimpered and tried to pull his hand back. She refused to let go.
"Why aren't you more nervous? She is your mom, after all."
"Yeah, well, she's been rooting for you all along, so I know she's gonna be happy." Akane dropped his hand and spun on him.
"You knew she was going to be happy and you saw no reason to tell me? Saotome Ranma, I'm going to hurt you!" He jumped back, grinning.
"Aw, come on, Akane. It ain't that bad."
"Not that bad?" she cried. "I've been worried sick about how she'd take this and then I find out I had no reason to worry and you tell me it's not that bad? Die, Ranma!"
"Now, Akane. I don't know how you can marry my son if he's dead." Akane froze as Nadoka's soft voice reached her ears. The girl spun and hastily smoothed her skirt.
"Auntie! I didn't hear you coming. How are you?" She elbowed Ranma hard in the gut when he started to laugh. When Nadoka started to laugh, all she could do was stand there and glower at them. Finally, Nadoka calmed and she waved Ranma and Akane into her house. As the three headed to the dinning room, Nadoka watched Ranma reach out and catch Akane's hand again. She looked up at him, and he smiled reassuringly. Akane smiled back and inched closer to him. Nadoka smiled to herself. She had a feeling she was going to like what they were going to say.
~~
She did like what they had to say. She was also surprised by how adult her son sounded. She knew her son was immature, and she partly blamed Genma for it. Apparently, Akane was a maturing influence on him, which was weird to Nadoka's mind, because Akane was not that mature either. She peered closely at her son and sighed.
"All right. I will help you. I have to say that I am surprised at the maturity behind this decision. May I ask where it came from?" Both Ranma and Akane blushed. Akane fidgeted uneasily. Ranma glanced at her and then looked at his mother.
"A lot of things. Mostly, ah, Kasumi."
"Oh. Well, that makes sense. What happened?" Akane's face took on an unhappy expression, and Ranma's became guilty. Nadoka looked between them and sighed.
"If you would rather keep it between you, I understand." Ranma hesitated and then nodded.
"I would, thank you." Nadoka looked again between her son and his fiancée. They did look comfortable together, and happy. She had been startled at first when she had opened the door to find them fighting and then she'd noticed the easy way Ranma was smiling. Even with her angry with him, Ranma was able to smile at Akane as if she was the greatest thing to happen to him. Nadoka smiled and listened as they began to tell her how she could help.
~~~~~~
Ranma laughed and stuck his tongue out at Akane. She growled and began to chase after him. Crowds of students parted for them; it was business as usual. Kuno appeared at the edge of the crowd, bokken in hand. He watched Akane chase after Ranma, shouting for him to come and take his punishment like a man. He heaved a sigh.
"Oh, how the heavens weep at the fair Tendo Akane's demise. I must free this lovely nymph and the lively red-haired sprite from the foul sorcerer's spells." Suddenly, Ranma appeared before Kuno causing him to fall back a step. Akane ran into Ranma from behind, and, without thinking, she wrapped her arms around his waist--and didn't let go. Neither of them noticed the crowd's startled silence. Nor did either of them hear the rumors that immediately began to circulate. They were focused on Kuno. He was not taking the comfortable stance very well. Tears flowed down his face.
"Oh, my poor, beloved Akane. What spell is this that I see forcing you to embrace the foul Saotome Ranma?" Akane blushed and shoved Ranma away from her. He stumbled to the ground.
"Hey! What was that for? I didn't tell you to grab me!" Akane ignored him and glared at Kuno.
"It isn't a spell, Kuno. If I grabbed *you*, it'd be a spell."
"A spell of love," Kuno cried. Akane gagged. Ranma climbed to his feet, looking rather angry.
"I'll have you know, Akane hugged me because she wanted to."
"Ranma!" He turned to her. She glared at him angrily. He threw up his hands.
"What?" Then, it hit him. He looked around at the student body gathered around them. His cheeks flared red at the intense inspection he realized he was under.
"Oh. Opps." Excited whispers broke out among their audience. Kuno shouted for silence. He raised his bokken.
"I, Kuno Tatewaki, the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High, challenge you, Saotome Ranma, to a duel." He attacked, lashing out with his bokken. Ranma dodged it easily. He grinned lazily and sent a kick at Kuno's face. The older boy disappeared into the horizon.
"Hopefully, he won't be coming back," Ranma said, satisfied. Akane snorted, disgusted.
"You are hopeless, Ranma."
"What?" he asked. She shook her head and continued into the building. Ranma trailed after her trying to figure out what she was talking about. She led him into the building and down the stairs into a quiet part of the school. It took Ranma a while to figure out that he didn't know this part of the school. He stopped in the middle of the hallway.
"Where are we?" he asked. Akane grinned at him.
"Here."
"Okay. Why?"
"So, I can do this," she said, and reached out and grabbed him. Ranma found himself sandwiched between the wall and Akane, her lips on his. It took him a moment to recover from the shock, and then he wrapped his arms around Akane's waist, pulling her tight against him. She melted into him. An involuntary moan escaped him. The only conscious part of his mind wondered why it had taken him so long to admit he loved her. It also marveled at how warm and soft Akane was. He was used to seeing her in his mind as a living fire, brilliant with life and energy, but here she was, soft and compliant in his arms. That same part of his mind noted the affect having her thus was having on him. It became embarrassed while the rest of him concentrated on the woman causing the reaction. Soon, that part of his mind succumbed to the rest of his mind, drowning in the pleasure of his fiancée.
Akane pressed her hands flat against the wall behind Ranma's head and pressed herself more firmly against him. Her mind was screaming at her angrily, demanding to know when she had begun to consider this kind of behavior acceptable. If she stumbled onto a couple making out like she and Ranma were, she'd give them a piece of her mind. Well, maybe not anymore. This was definitely something she could get used to. She was actually surprised that she'd had the guts to make a move on Ranma. 'Oh, hell, why not?' she though. 'I might just do it more often.' It was then that she became aware of the affect she was having on Ranma. 'Oh. Oh, wow,' she thought. Then, 'Wait. This can't be good. In fact, this could be trouble. But he's my fiancée.' Her mind quieted for a moment, a moment in which Ranma moved his lips from hers and down to her neck. She moaned and then pulled away from him. Losing the heat he had become suffused in snapped him back to awareness. He stared at Akane, his cheeks slowly reddening.
"Ahh...." he began.
"Sorry, sorry," she gasped, trying to clear her brain. "We're at school." He stared at her. What did that mean? Did she mean that if they weren't at school, he'd have been able to...whoa. His mind short-circuited and Ranma found his mouth hanging open. For some reason, his eyes were having a very hard time not focusing on Akane's breasts, which were heaving up and down with her heavy breathing. Finally, he spun around and stared at the wall.
"Um, Akane?"
"Yeah?" She sounded as if she were having a hard time with her emotions as well.
"I think, uh, that we, uh, shouldn't be doing this."
"No, we shouldn't. Not until we're married." Ranma nodded and studied the wall. After a long moment of silence, he sighed.
"Man, I didn't think it'd be like that."
"Like what?" Akane asked. She moved to sit leaning against the wall. He hesitated and then sat beside her.
"So...well, hard to stop. I mean, part of being a martial artist is control, ya know. I just gave up control willingly." He paused, musing. Beside him, Akane sighed. She reached over and took his hand.
"Ranma?" She sounded hesitant and as if she knew she shouldn't be saying what she was about to say, but she was going to say it anyway.
"What?"
"I, uh, I think that we should get married. I don't mean tomorrow or anything, but sooner than we planned."
"Like when?" he asked.
"After we graduate. Not immediately but before we go to college. Oh, that's something else. Are you planning on going to college, Ranma?"
"If you are, then I am. I don't really wanna be away from you."
Akane smiled up at him, and leaned against his shoulder.
"So, you mean in not more than a year?" Akane nodded. Ranma considered this as he studied the wall across form him.
"Yeah," he said slowly. "I think we should get married before we go to college." He smiled down at her. She returned his smile and kissed him softly.
~~~~~~
Ryoga looked around him. Nothing was familiar.
"Damn it. Damn Ranma. I just know he's to blame for this." He sighed and sat down, leaning against the wall of a restaurant. He looked up at the cloudless sky and sighed again. Visions of a dark haired dream danced before him.
"Oh, Akane. I will come and protect you from Ranma's womanizing as quickly as I can."
"Who's womanizing?" Ryoga looked up and jumped to his feet. Ranma stood in front of him, smirking.
"Prepare to die, Ranma." Ranma's smirk widened.
"I don't think it's Ranma who's gonna die, Ryoga." The young directionally challenged martial artist spun at the new voice. Ukyo stood in the doorway of her restaurant, glaring at him.
"Oh, Ukyo. It's you."
"Yeah, it's me, and if I were you, I'd worry about me." Ryoga frowned at her.
"What do you mean?"
"What I mean, P-Chan, is that I know your dirty, little secret." Ryoga paled. He spun to turn on Ranma.
"Saotome Ranma, you swore!" Suddenly, Ukyo was between Ryoga and Ranma.
"He didn't tell me. I figured it out myself. You have some things to explain, Ryoga, and not to me." Ryoga stared at her, not comprehending at first. Then, slowly, he paled.
"You wouldn't."
"I would. You. Are. Using. Her. I may not be very fond of her, but no one deserves being treated like that." Before he could take off, Ukyo reached out and took hold of Ryoga's arm. She turned to Ranma.
"I think that perhaps tonight will be the night, Ranma. I'll keep an eye on Ryoga." Ranma nodded.
"I'll go tell Kasumi we'll be having two extra guests for dinner. Oh, and hey, could you tell him about me and Akane?" Ukyo looked away from Ranma and nodded. Ryoga frowned at her reaction and tried to ignore the sinking of his heart. Deep inside, he knew already what Ukyo was going to say. He followed her silently inside.
~~~~~~
~~~ Explosive Moments ~~~
~~~~~~ Moment One: The Beginning
Akane ran her hands over her face. It had been just one thing after another today. She sighed and stood up, taking her bag with her.
First, she'd gotten to school late after getting in a fight with Ranma and had had to stand in the hall for a while. It wouldn't have been so bad, but Ranma had kept making smart-ass comments. She was absolutely convinced he loved to piss her off.
She sighed again as she made her way down the hall toward the girl's room.
Then, three classes in a row, she discovered she didn't have her homework. She could see it in her mind sitting on her desk. This failure had of course prompted more smart-ass comments.
Akane pushed open the door to the girl's room and walked to the sink. She dropped her bag by her feet. Her reflection stared out at her, tired. No wonder he called her uncute.
Then, she failed a test, and in the next class a pop quiz. Again, she had earned herself more smart-ass comments. Sometimes, she really did hate him. At lunch, she'd had to watch both fiancées hang on Ranma and mock her. She also had to hear gossip bashing her for not being able to handle Ranma as a proper girl could and should.
Akane gripped the edges of the sink and bowed her head to stare at stained porcelain instead of her face. A ragged sigh escaped her and she moved shaky hands to turn on the water.
The last of her classes had been one long blur of incorrect answers on the board and yet more smart-ass comments. Did he never get tired of making her feel like shit after she already felt like a failure?
She plunged her hands under the cold flow and splashed her face. She dried her face with her skirt and looked up.
To make the entire day unbearable, she had woken with the knowledge that soon she'd have to face the day of her mother's death. Having finally, consciously acknowledged this fact, she had relived every memory around her mother's death; her only memories of her mother really. She had few full, happy memories to offset the pain of those other, ugly ones.
Her face still looked tired. She forced it to a more cheerful disposition and kept it there. She picked up her bag and headed out to meet Ranma. He was gone already when she got there and she let her face fall back into its natural tiredness. He was probably at Ucchan's or the Nekohanten. Good. She had been planning to make dinner (the reason for his departure) but now she had no reason to. No one else would eat her cooking and he would purposely be too full. Akane sighed again and squished the little Ranmas in her mind that danced and chanted "Failure!" at her. She didn't need any extra help.
~~~~~~
Ranma leapt down from the wall surrounding the Tendo Dojo and sauntered into the house. He was whistling, cheerful at having escaped Akane's horrible cooking. It was a shock to him to have the smell of Kasumi's cooking hit him. He bounded into the dinning room to see everyone except Akane sitting and eating. He bounded over to his seat, suddenly hungry.
"Hey, where's Akane?" he asked between several bites. He paused as Kasumi gave him a weird look. If he didn't know better, he would have thought it was disgust.
"She wasn't feeling well and is asleep. No one is to bother her." The ice in her voice caused everyone to freeze. Ranma looked at her confused.
"What's, uh, wrong with her?" Ranma ventured, realizing that the look *had* been disgust. He suddenly wasn't hungry.
"I said she wasn't feeling well." Kasumi placed her chopsticks down on the table with deliberate control and left the room. Ranma sank into himself. Slowly, everyone began to eat again, subdued this time. Nabiki sat still for a long moment, and then she turned to Ranma. He looked at her and flinched. Her eyes were dark and hard.
"You. Had. Better. Fix. This," she said slowly, deliberately.
"I don't know what I did," he said plaintively. Nabiki rolled her eyes and left.
"I don't want to be disturbed," she called over her shoulder. Ranma looked at his father. Genma refused to meet his eyes. He looked over at Soun. The older man met his eyes, but said nothing. He looked old to Ranma's eyes for the first time. There were no tears, but instead a deep sadness that he could not place. Ranma tore his gaze away. He sat staring at his bowl. After a while, he set it down on the table and went to the kitchen. He paused in the doorway and watched Kasumi move around the kitchen. She wiped down counters and straightened up appliances in what was a pretense of work. Finally, Kasumi leaned up against the counter, her hands bracing her weight.
"What do you want?" Her voice was hollow and slightly cold.
"I-I--"
"You want to know what you did wrong?" she asked with sarcasm. Ranma was taken aback with this new Kasumi. She was the kindest person he knew. What he had done to make her so angry was beyond him.
"Yes," he answered softly, ashamed that he didn't know. Kasumi turned around to look at him.
"Did you stop once to look at Akane today? To actually LOOK at her?"
Ranma shook his head, words quelled in his throat at the look on her face. He watched Kasumi's eyes unfocus and slicken with tears.
"She walked in here and stood in the doorway. I could feel her; she felt off. When I turned around, she just looked at me. She looked as if she was old. Hurt and exhaustion and pain were written into every line of her body and face. I asked her what was wrong and she sagged to the floor, crying. I have *never* heard anyone cry like that. It was as if she had lived a thousand lifetimes of nothing but pain in one second and was crying because of it. I could do nothing but hold her. She didn't even cling to me like she normally does. She held herself and cried. Her heart was broken, Ranma, and I could do nothing." Her eyes snapped back into focus and lay resting on him. He watched her bring a hand to her face and wipe away tears. He swallowed his own.
"What did I do?" he asked.
"Did you say anything nice to her? Or did you just mock her for failing? She told me about her day." Ranma flinched. He lowered his head and started to leave.
"NO. I'm not done yet." Ranma found himself cowering under Kasumi's anger.
"It would have helped if you had asked if she was okay. Just once. Did you know that the anniversary of our mother's death is half a week away? No? I thought not. Did you know that Akane is the one who has the most memories of our mother's sickness? No? I didn't think so. It's beyond you to care, isn't it?" Ranma's head hung lower at Kasumi's coldness.
"I have watched you, Ranma, for the past year and a half mock Akane and make her lose her temper. I have seen you break her heart more times than I can count. Today was the last straw. Akane deserves someone better than you. As of this moment, Ranma, you are no longer her fiancée. You will treat her with respect and if you cannot, then you will leave this house. I will not allow Akane to suffer this kind of pain." Ranma flinched, and then suddenly he was angry. His pride had been stung and by the one person he thought would never harm him. It hurt.
"How was I supposed to know?" he retorted. Kasumi clenched her fists.
"It was in her face!" she screamed. "All you had to do was LOOK at her and you would have seen it. All you had to do was take a single second to focus on someone who wasn't you and LOOK." Kasumi took several deep breaths and stood stiff and angry. "If you had ever bothered to really look at her, Ranma, you would see so much of her. You would see her hopes, her love, her pain, her sacrifice. Her soul is in her face, but you can't see it. I pity you." She turned her back on him then. Ranma stood in the doorway, staring at the floor. A soft voice called out then.
"'Sumi, are you yelling?" Ranma turned to see Akane walking sleepily toward him. Hesitantly, he looked at her. At first he could see nothing but the angry tomboy who yelled at him. Then, suddenly, she changed. He could see the tiredness in face. He could see the same sadness in her that was in her father. Her eyes met him and he was startled to see a flash of incredible tenderness. To his dismay, it was quickly replaced by hurt and anger. She didn't act on that anger, but instead looked away from him and into the kitchen.
"Kasumi?"
"I'm here, Akane." Akane frowned. Ranma saw worry well up into her eyes. Her own pain was forgotten.
"What's wrong, Kasumi?" She hurried past Ranma and into the kitchen. Ranma turned to follow her with his eyes. Kasumi had sat down at the table. She waved a hand at Akane.
"Nothing's wrong."
"Oh, pooh. You are obviously upset." Ranma watched as her concern grew and sudden shame flitted in around the edges of it. "It's not because of me, is it?" Kasumi laughed. The concern and shame left Akane's eyes to be replaced by relief.
"No, no, Little Akane. How could you ever upset me?" Akane blushed and looked down at her hands.
"I upset you when I get angry and hit Ranma." Kasumi laughed again and pulled Akane into a hug. Akane laid her head on Kasumi's shoulder and closed her eyes. She was feeling better now and Kasumi's laugh and hug helped.
"You don't upset me when you do that, you worry me."
"Why?" Akane asked, shocked.
"I'm afraid your face will freeze in a permanent scowl," she said mockingly. Both of them burst into laughter. Ranma watched fascinated. He had never noticed that intense play of emotion across Akane's face before. There were a few moments forever embedded into his memory, but they were nothing like this open display of, as Kasumi had said, her soul. He started when Akane's eyes opened and focused on him. Again there was that flash of love and again it melted into that hurt that tore at him. He knew then that Kasumi was right. If he had looked, he would have seen it. He couldn't meet her gaze any more and looked down. He turned and left, unable to be near her without crying in shame.
Akane stared after him, confused. That had looked like shame in his eyes. Why? She looked at Kasumi as she pulled from the hug.
"Ranma upset you, didn't he?" Kasumi looked away. Akane was the only one who could ever really pull her veil of serenity away fully. It was unnerving but a relief at the same time to have someone she could show herself to. Akane sighed.
"He did. What did he do?"
"He hurt you." Akane stared at her sister, shocked.
"What do you mean, Kasumi?" Kasumi rubbed her cheek. It was an odd gesture, and Akane did not know what to make of it.
"Kasumi?"
"You didn't hear yourself today. Never has anyone cried like that, Akane. It was like you had come home to find everyone you ever knew and cared about dead. No, it was worse than that. Then, when you told me about your day, about how you were having such a hard time, and the memories, I wondered why he didn't say anything to you. I was so angry when you told me that he kept making fun of you." Kasumi looked down at her lap. "All he had to do was pay attention to know you were upset. He couldn't even do that."
"You yelled at him, didn't you?" Kasumi looked up, surprised by the amusement in the younger girl's voice.
"You're amused," she accused. Akane reached out and patted her sister's hand.
"Kasumi, think about what side of you he has always seen." Kasumi did, and she blushed.
"Oh, my. I'm afraid I may have been too hard on him then. I was really mean."
"Oh, Kasumi. What did you say?" Dismay warred with amusement in her voice. Sheepishly, Kasumi looked up at Akane. Shame was in her face.
"Bad things."
"Tell me," Akane demanded.
So, she did. Akane sat there stunned. Finally, she groaned and put her head in her hands.
"Kasumi, that was really mean."
"I was angry, Akane!" she exclaimed. "I may have been mean, but he deserved it. I never want to hear anyone cry that way again. It goes beyond heartache, Akane. You didn't have to hear it."
"No, I had to feel it," Akane said quietly. Kasumi looked away. They sat in silence for a while.
"Why do you put up with it, Akane? He shouldn't treat you like that."
"And I shouldn't treat him like I do, but I do. I put up with it because it's not that bad."
"It was today."
"There were extra things today. If it had been just him, I would have just hurt him severely, come home, cried, and then hurt him severely again." Kasumi smiled.
"I told him that if he treated you like that again, he'd no longer be welcome here." Akane stared at Kasumi. Akane knew she would not back down on this. He had crossed a line today. Finally, Akane bit her lip.
"I need to talk to him."
"Why? He should come to you." Akane sighed.
"You sound like a child, Kasumi." Kasumi glared at her and then sagged.
"I know. I feel like a child. I felt like I was back at the time of Mother's death, only it wasn't just hers, it was everyone's but ours." Akane reached out and hugged Kasumi again.
"Thank you, Kasumi, for being there for me. I'm sorry I brought it to you."
"Don't be, Akane. I love you, and that's what I'm here for."
"I love you too, Kasumi."
"Go."
~~~~~~
Ranma sat on the dojo floor staring morosely out at the pond. He had really blown it today. The worst, and the best, part was that look of love in Akane's eyes. He knew now how she really felt toward him, but damn, was he messing that up. A soft, feminine heat warmed the air next to him, and Ranma turned to see Akane sitting beside him.
"Why are you here?" he asked. She would have gotten angry, but the shame was obvious.
"Kasumi told me what she said."
"Oh." He tried not to cringe away from her, but he failed. Suddenly, he found himself on his back. Akane had him pinned, her hands gripping his upper arms, her legs folded across the bend where his thighs became his hips. He was very aware of her bare feet near his privates. She looked into his eyes. He looked back up at her, shame warring with desire to lift his head and kiss her. She cocked her head to the side.
"You're ashamed? Of what?" He looked away from her.
"Kasumi said what. I never did look at you. I mean I was aware you were there. Hell, I was even aware that there was something wrong with your aura, but I ignored it. I just kept teasing you. I shoulda been payin' attention."
"You're always like that. What's changed?" It stung. He was always like that. She said it as if it was an immutable fact.
"What changed?" she asked again, more gently this time. He realized that she had seen his hurt.
"I looked, like Kasumi said. I-I saw, I really saw how hurt you were. I saw how kind you were, how selfless. I could see your soul in your eyes, just like Kasumi said." He was looking away, so he didn't see her head jerk back, or the tears that filled her eyes.
"I could see how quickly you forgot about your own pain to help Kasumi. I never saw it before. I guess I never wanted to see it. I mean I didn't want to be married. I wanted to have some reason to not be married. I was scared and disgusted with myself. I had fallen in love with you and I didn't know why. I refused to believe it. Then, tonight, it was like I found the reason why. I just never knew I knew it." A hot liquid landed on his cheek. Ranma turned his head to see Akane crying. Before he could say anything, she leaned down and kissed him. He was unaware of what he had just touched in Akane. He had given her the one thing she wanted. He had admitted, through his words and his tone, how beautiful she was, how kind, how much he wanted her. He had admitted how precious she was to him.
Akane shifted to lie on top of Ranma, her feet jumbled together with his, his arms around her, her head under his chin. She closed her eyes and just lay there. His heartbeat was firm and steady, if a little fast. The gentle whoosh of air from his lungs calmed her. The pain of that day melted away as he held her. Finally, he heaved a sigh.
"Akane?"
"Hmm?" She was half-asleep.
"I'm sorry about today. I shouldn't have treated you like that."
"I's okay, Ranma," she murmured as she tried to nestle herself into his arms more. He tightened his grip.
"No, it's not," he whispered. "It's not and I won't ever treat you like that again." She just murmured a soft assent.
~~~~~~
Ukyo fidgeted nervously in her seat as she glanced at Ranma and then Akane. They hadn't had one fight today, and rumor had it that he had walked beside her on the way to school. Not only that but it seemed as if every time she looked at Ranma, he was looking at Akane with this odd look on his face. It made her think he was grateful, but why, she couldn't say. It was getting on her nerves.
At lunch she cornered him.
"I need to talk to you," she said looking him in the eye. He nodded.
"Lead the way." He followed her silently. She wanted to talk to him, but couldn't think of anything to say. Finally, she couldn't take it any more. She whirled to face him.
"What is going on between you and Akane?" He cocked his head at her, his usual frustration not evident.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean you haven't fought at all. You keep *staring* at her. Why?" Ranma sighed.
"I got a swift kick to the butt, Ukyo." The 'Ukyo' froze her. It was a bad sign.
"Did Akane hit you again?" she asked bitterly. To her surprise, Ranma laughed.
"I wish. It would have been less painful."
"What are you talking about?" She was trying not to scream at him.
"Did you notice anything off about Akane yesterday?"
"No. She was fine. Why?" Ranma nodded and sat on the ground, cross- legged as usual. Ukyo followed suit, sitting on her shins.
"See. That's what I thought too. You noticed I didn't hold back with my mocking?" She nodded. "Well, I should have. She was having a bad day. Everything was going wrong for her. That in itself was not so bad, but I kept making it worse by insulting her every chance I got. That she could have handled, and we know how, but what I didn't know was that the anniversary of her mother's death is coming up. I also didn't know that practically the only memories she has of her mother are those of her sickness. So, all day yesterday, she was reliving her mother's sickness and death, wasn't able to do anything right, and was being mocked endlessly and harshly by me." He stopped and looked at Ukyo to see if she understood. Ukyo stared at her hands.
"And no one noticed," she added softly. Ranma nodded.
"Kasumi told me that when she got home, she broke down. I got home at dinner and." Ranma stopped, uneasy with the memory of Kasumi's words.
"And what, Ranchan?" He flinched.
"Kasumi was pissed, Nabiki was also angry, Pop wouldn't look at me, and Mr. Tendo had this incredibly sad look on his face. I didn't understand what happened. Kasumi told me off." Ukyo frowned at Ranma.
"How bad could it have been?" Again, Ranma flinched.
"She, ah, well, she yelled at me."
"What!" Ukyo's mouth dropped open.
"She yelled at me and told me that if I didn't start treating Akane better, she'd kick me out. For good."
"Geez. You didn't deserve that, Ranchan," Ukyo said, trying to be supportive. Ranma shook his head and laughed a little.
"Maybe I did. Hell, even if I didn't, I needed it. Or something like it." He sighed. "Akane and I have a lot of problems to work out between us. A year and a half of bad behavior is gonna take a lot of work, but you know she loves me anyway." Ukyo stiffened. He *was* grateful. He was grateful to be loved by Akane. Ukyo fought the urge to beat the crap out of him.
"You're grateful to her? For what? Grateful that she lowered her standards to love you? Please! She doesn't deserve you." Ranma sat silent for a moment, gritting his teeth. Yes, he was grateful. He was very grateful. After yesterday, Akane had every right to hate him, to give up on him, to find someone who would take the time to concern himself about her. He had concerned himself with her, but mostly when she was kidnapped or some guy was threatening his claim. What sort of care was that? How was that love? Who deserved that kind of love?
"I'm not about to admit that I'm completely at fault, Ukyo. And neither is she. She's well aware of her behavior. I don't appreciate those kinds of comments. I've been treating her like shit and she's been doing the same to me. We love each other anyway." Ukyo savagely fought the sob that was in her chest. He had just said it. He loved Akane. He didn't love Ukyo.
"So, you love her. I suppose it was too much trouble to love me."
"Damn it, Ukyo! I didn't go, 'Hey! I think I'll fall in love with her!' You know it doesn't work that way."
"You could have at least said you didn't love me. I've been here for over a year waiting for you! You knew I loved you! All you had to do was say you didn't."
"Would you have listened?" Ranma growled at her. "I never said I loved you and you convinced yourself that I did. I never treated you like anything other than a friend and you thought of me as more than a friend. Would you have believed me? Would you have accepted it? Will you? You dedicated ten years of your life to finding me. That doesn't speak of one who gives up easily."
"That doesn't mean you couldn't have told me or given me some hint!"
"Damn it, Ukyo. I barely knew I loved her. And you had some hints. You just chose to ignore them."
"What hints?"
"All the times I fought to save her, all the times I refused to give her up to some other guy. I know you know about the time that Mikado tried to kiss her. Why the hell should I care if some random guy kissed her if I didn't care for her? And why would I stop Ryoga from ever getting close to her? Or from sleeping with her?" Ukyo froze at that. Ranma kept on list examples, but she was stuck on that one sentence.
"What do you mean sleep with her?" Ranma stopped his litany and looked at her. Suddenly, his eyes widened.
"Opps."
"What are you talking about? What do you mean he's sleeping with Akane?"
"Ahh. I can't say. He swore me to secrecy."
"Swore you to secrecy? Ranma, what are you talking about?" Ranma made a face at her. Right. He couldn't tell her. So, she would have to figure it out. Ryoga was sleeping with Akane. But how could that be? Akane wouldn't let Ranma even touch her or at least she used to not let him touch her. Ukyo shook her head. Best not to think of that now. So, if she wouldn't let Ranma touch her, why would she sleep with Ryoga? She wouldn't, not unless she didn't know she was sleeping with him. Again, how could that be? The only one she slept with was P-Chan. Several scenes flashed through Ukyo's mind. Scenes of Ranma calling Ryoga names. Her mouth dropped open.
"Ohh. Oh, man. That's bad. That's real bad."
"Yeah, it is." Ranma's face was grim. His gaze locked on her in a way that made her twitch.
"What?"
"Would you tell her for me? I've been looking for a way to tell her without telling her. I didn't even tell you, so he can't accuse me of tellin' anyone. Please? He's dishonoring her and I *hate* knowing he's in there sleeping with her and seein' her change." Suddenly, Ranma snapped his mouth shut. He turned his face away from Ukyo, his cheeks as red as his shirt. Ukyo couldn't decide if she wanted to laugh or cry. It amused her that he was jealous of a pig, even if it was Ryoga, but it also hurt that he had, in a roundabout way, just admitted that he wanted to see Akane naked. She understood one thing. Akane deserved to know the truth about her pet. If Ryoga had done that to her, she'd have kicked his ass. To make it worse, Ukyo knew that Akane considered Ryoga a friend. She trusted both forms and both were betraying her. Ukyo sighed.
"Ranma? I'll tell her. Just not today. I-I need some time...." Her voice trailed off and she climbed to her feet. She looked down at Ranma.
"I do love you, you know," she said and then she was gone.
~~~~~~
Kasumi stood outside the dojo and took a deep breath. Steeling herself, she pushed open the door and entered the dojo, carrying a tray of tea. One for her and one for Ranma. She stood in the doorway and watched as Akane sparred with Ranma, or tried to.
Ranma twisted away from Akane, laughing, and caught sight of Kasumi. He froze and was hit hard in the jaw by Akane. She gasped as he went flying. Akane ran after him, falling to her knees beside him.
"Oh, Ranma. I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to hit you. Hey, you stupid baka, why'd you stop?" Akane finally realized that he was staring at something behind her and turned. Her eyes landed on Kasumi and widened. Kasumi cleared her throat.
"Akane, would you please excuse Ranma and me? I need to discuss something with him in private." Akane hastily climbed to her feet.
"Of course. I'll go take a bath." She closed the door behind her. Kasumi lowered herself and the tea tray to the ground. Swallowing hard and summoning her courage, she gestured to the floor across from her.
"Won't you join me, Ranma?" He complied silently. She poured him tea and he accepted the cup. When she looked up at him, his gaze was lowered to the floor. Kasumi sighed. He winced.
"Ranma, I want to apologize. I was overly harsh the other night. I said things that weren't true and that I shouldn't have said. Please, forgive me." Ranma lifted his gaze to hers. After a while, he sighed.
"Of course, I'll forgive you, Kasumi. I do have to admit that, while it hurt, it did, ah, knock some sense into me. It was helpful."
"Helpful?" Kasumi frowned at him. He blushed and ducked his head. He fiddled with the teacup in his hand.
"Yeah, I, uh, I mean, we, heh, I told Akane that I loved her." Kasumi's mouth dropped open.
"You did?"
Ranma nodded, his blush growing deeper. Kasumi smiled and leaned across the tray to hug him.
"That's great, Ranma. I'm so happy for you both." She pulled back. Ranma grinned at her.
"It is great. I didn't think I'd ever be so comfortable around her." His cheeks were still red, but he had a pleased grin on his face.
"So, are you two planning on getting married soon?" Ranma dropped the cup in his hand. It hit the tray, but didn't break. He looked absolutely terrified.
"No! We are both way too young, and I don't just mean, physically. We both have a lot of growin' up to do." Ranma sighed. "Oh, hey, that reminds me. Can you not say anything? To Pop and all. She and I both know we got things to work out and we don't need no one pestering us to get married while we're not ready." Kasumi smiled and nodded.
"Of course. That's very wise of you both. Are you going to tell anyone else?"
"Well, I already told Ukyo. I wanna tell Mom, but I need to talk to Akane first. I think that once Mom knows, I can get her to help with Pop and your dad." Ranma grinned at Kasumi and hopped to his feet.
"I'm gonna go see if Akane's done with her bath and then go take my own." Kasumi stood and nodded. Ranma hesitated and then reached out to hug her again.
"Thanks, Kasumi."
She hugged him back.
"Thank you, Ranma."
~~~~~~
Akane brushed at her skirt and tried her hardest to stand still. Ranma looked over at her and chuckled slightly. He reached out and took her hand.
"Why are you more nervous than I am?" he asked. She shot him an angry look and gave his hand a vicious squeeze. He whimpered and tried to pull his hand back. She refused to let go.
"Why aren't you more nervous? She is your mom, after all."
"Yeah, well, she's been rooting for you all along, so I know she's gonna be happy." Akane dropped his hand and spun on him.
"You knew she was going to be happy and you saw no reason to tell me? Saotome Ranma, I'm going to hurt you!" He jumped back, grinning.
"Aw, come on, Akane. It ain't that bad."
"Not that bad?" she cried. "I've been worried sick about how she'd take this and then I find out I had no reason to worry and you tell me it's not that bad? Die, Ranma!"
"Now, Akane. I don't know how you can marry my son if he's dead." Akane froze as Nadoka's soft voice reached her ears. The girl spun and hastily smoothed her skirt.
"Auntie! I didn't hear you coming. How are you?" She elbowed Ranma hard in the gut when he started to laugh. When Nadoka started to laugh, all she could do was stand there and glower at them. Finally, Nadoka calmed and she waved Ranma and Akane into her house. As the three headed to the dinning room, Nadoka watched Ranma reach out and catch Akane's hand again. She looked up at him, and he smiled reassuringly. Akane smiled back and inched closer to him. Nadoka smiled to herself. She had a feeling she was going to like what they were going to say.
~~
She did like what they had to say. She was also surprised by how adult her son sounded. She knew her son was immature, and she partly blamed Genma for it. Apparently, Akane was a maturing influence on him, which was weird to Nadoka's mind, because Akane was not that mature either. She peered closely at her son and sighed.
"All right. I will help you. I have to say that I am surprised at the maturity behind this decision. May I ask where it came from?" Both Ranma and Akane blushed. Akane fidgeted uneasily. Ranma glanced at her and then looked at his mother.
"A lot of things. Mostly, ah, Kasumi."
"Oh. Well, that makes sense. What happened?" Akane's face took on an unhappy expression, and Ranma's became guilty. Nadoka looked between them and sighed.
"If you would rather keep it between you, I understand." Ranma hesitated and then nodded.
"I would, thank you." Nadoka looked again between her son and his fiancée. They did look comfortable together, and happy. She had been startled at first when she had opened the door to find them fighting and then she'd noticed the easy way Ranma was smiling. Even with her angry with him, Ranma was able to smile at Akane as if she was the greatest thing to happen to him. Nadoka smiled and listened as they began to tell her how she could help.
~~~~~~
Ranma laughed and stuck his tongue out at Akane. She growled and began to chase after him. Crowds of students parted for them; it was business as usual. Kuno appeared at the edge of the crowd, bokken in hand. He watched Akane chase after Ranma, shouting for him to come and take his punishment like a man. He heaved a sigh.
"Oh, how the heavens weep at the fair Tendo Akane's demise. I must free this lovely nymph and the lively red-haired sprite from the foul sorcerer's spells." Suddenly, Ranma appeared before Kuno causing him to fall back a step. Akane ran into Ranma from behind, and, without thinking, she wrapped her arms around his waist--and didn't let go. Neither of them noticed the crowd's startled silence. Nor did either of them hear the rumors that immediately began to circulate. They were focused on Kuno. He was not taking the comfortable stance very well. Tears flowed down his face.
"Oh, my poor, beloved Akane. What spell is this that I see forcing you to embrace the foul Saotome Ranma?" Akane blushed and shoved Ranma away from her. He stumbled to the ground.
"Hey! What was that for? I didn't tell you to grab me!" Akane ignored him and glared at Kuno.
"It isn't a spell, Kuno. If I grabbed *you*, it'd be a spell."
"A spell of love," Kuno cried. Akane gagged. Ranma climbed to his feet, looking rather angry.
"I'll have you know, Akane hugged me because she wanted to."
"Ranma!" He turned to her. She glared at him angrily. He threw up his hands.
"What?" Then, it hit him. He looked around at the student body gathered around them. His cheeks flared red at the intense inspection he realized he was under.
"Oh. Opps." Excited whispers broke out among their audience. Kuno shouted for silence. He raised his bokken.
"I, Kuno Tatewaki, the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High, challenge you, Saotome Ranma, to a duel." He attacked, lashing out with his bokken. Ranma dodged it easily. He grinned lazily and sent a kick at Kuno's face. The older boy disappeared into the horizon.
"Hopefully, he won't be coming back," Ranma said, satisfied. Akane snorted, disgusted.
"You are hopeless, Ranma."
"What?" he asked. She shook her head and continued into the building. Ranma trailed after her trying to figure out what she was talking about. She led him into the building and down the stairs into a quiet part of the school. It took Ranma a while to figure out that he didn't know this part of the school. He stopped in the middle of the hallway.
"Where are we?" he asked. Akane grinned at him.
"Here."
"Okay. Why?"
"So, I can do this," she said, and reached out and grabbed him. Ranma found himself sandwiched between the wall and Akane, her lips on his. It took him a moment to recover from the shock, and then he wrapped his arms around Akane's waist, pulling her tight against him. She melted into him. An involuntary moan escaped him. The only conscious part of his mind wondered why it had taken him so long to admit he loved her. It also marveled at how warm and soft Akane was. He was used to seeing her in his mind as a living fire, brilliant with life and energy, but here she was, soft and compliant in his arms. That same part of his mind noted the affect having her thus was having on him. It became embarrassed while the rest of him concentrated on the woman causing the reaction. Soon, that part of his mind succumbed to the rest of his mind, drowning in the pleasure of his fiancée.
Akane pressed her hands flat against the wall behind Ranma's head and pressed herself more firmly against him. Her mind was screaming at her angrily, demanding to know when she had begun to consider this kind of behavior acceptable. If she stumbled onto a couple making out like she and Ranma were, she'd give them a piece of her mind. Well, maybe not anymore. This was definitely something she could get used to. She was actually surprised that she'd had the guts to make a move on Ranma. 'Oh, hell, why not?' she though. 'I might just do it more often.' It was then that she became aware of the affect she was having on Ranma. 'Oh. Oh, wow,' she thought. Then, 'Wait. This can't be good. In fact, this could be trouble. But he's my fiancée.' Her mind quieted for a moment, a moment in which Ranma moved his lips from hers and down to her neck. She moaned and then pulled away from him. Losing the heat he had become suffused in snapped him back to awareness. He stared at Akane, his cheeks slowly reddening.
"Ahh...." he began.
"Sorry, sorry," she gasped, trying to clear her brain. "We're at school." He stared at her. What did that mean? Did she mean that if they weren't at school, he'd have been able to...whoa. His mind short-circuited and Ranma found his mouth hanging open. For some reason, his eyes were having a very hard time not focusing on Akane's breasts, which were heaving up and down with her heavy breathing. Finally, he spun around and stared at the wall.
"Um, Akane?"
"Yeah?" She sounded as if she were having a hard time with her emotions as well.
"I think, uh, that we, uh, shouldn't be doing this."
"No, we shouldn't. Not until we're married." Ranma nodded and studied the wall. After a long moment of silence, he sighed.
"Man, I didn't think it'd be like that."
"Like what?" Akane asked. She moved to sit leaning against the wall. He hesitated and then sat beside her.
"So...well, hard to stop. I mean, part of being a martial artist is control, ya know. I just gave up control willingly." He paused, musing. Beside him, Akane sighed. She reached over and took his hand.
"Ranma?" She sounded hesitant and as if she knew she shouldn't be saying what she was about to say, but she was going to say it anyway.
"What?"
"I, uh, I think that we should get married. I don't mean tomorrow or anything, but sooner than we planned."
"Like when?" he asked.
"After we graduate. Not immediately but before we go to college. Oh, that's something else. Are you planning on going to college, Ranma?"
"If you are, then I am. I don't really wanna be away from you."
Akane smiled up at him, and leaned against his shoulder.
"So, you mean in not more than a year?" Akane nodded. Ranma considered this as he studied the wall across form him.
"Yeah," he said slowly. "I think we should get married before we go to college." He smiled down at her. She returned his smile and kissed him softly.
~~~~~~
Ryoga looked around him. Nothing was familiar.
"Damn it. Damn Ranma. I just know he's to blame for this." He sighed and sat down, leaning against the wall of a restaurant. He looked up at the cloudless sky and sighed again. Visions of a dark haired dream danced before him.
"Oh, Akane. I will come and protect you from Ranma's womanizing as quickly as I can."
"Who's womanizing?" Ryoga looked up and jumped to his feet. Ranma stood in front of him, smirking.
"Prepare to die, Ranma." Ranma's smirk widened.
"I don't think it's Ranma who's gonna die, Ryoga." The young directionally challenged martial artist spun at the new voice. Ukyo stood in the doorway of her restaurant, glaring at him.
"Oh, Ukyo. It's you."
"Yeah, it's me, and if I were you, I'd worry about me." Ryoga frowned at her.
"What do you mean?"
"What I mean, P-Chan, is that I know your dirty, little secret." Ryoga paled. He spun to turn on Ranma.
"Saotome Ranma, you swore!" Suddenly, Ukyo was between Ryoga and Ranma.
"He didn't tell me. I figured it out myself. You have some things to explain, Ryoga, and not to me." Ryoga stared at her, not comprehending at first. Then, slowly, he paled.
"You wouldn't."
"I would. You. Are. Using. Her. I may not be very fond of her, but no one deserves being treated like that." Before he could take off, Ukyo reached out and took hold of Ryoga's arm. She turned to Ranma.
"I think that perhaps tonight will be the night, Ranma. I'll keep an eye on Ryoga." Ranma nodded.
"I'll go tell Kasumi we'll be having two extra guests for dinner. Oh, and hey, could you tell him about me and Akane?" Ukyo looked away from Ranma and nodded. Ryoga frowned at her reaction and tried to ignore the sinking of his heart. Deep inside, he knew already what Ukyo was going to say. He followed her silently inside.
~~~~~~