Hope Eudorka doesn't screw this up.
-- Listar MIME Decryption --------------
Any and all comments are, of course, welcome, appreciated and indeed
begged for (thark@hem2.passagen.se). You can find my other crap at
"http://nabiki.newberry.edu/thark/fanfic/". Most of the characters used
and abused below were created by Takahashi Rumiko; my thanks and
apologies to her.
* * *
"NO! Don't do it!" the desperate scream echoed in her head. The voice,
at first just a quiet, nagging whisper, had now grown desperate, its
loud cries almost blocking out the world around her..
But Akane *wanted* this, wanted it more than anything else... didn't
she? If it was doubt, where did it come from?
"Please," the voice pleaded, "please, don't do it!"
A tear followed the cry this time, a tear that did not exist outside
her mind, yet a tear that felt so real she nearly reached out to touch
it, to brush the warm water from her burning cheek.
This time, she recognized the voice, Ranma's voice, begging her to
stop.
"Akane, don't..." Gentle sobbing followed the voice now, as another
tear followed the first one, and another, and as the gates burst a
waterfall of tears, accompanied by inarticulate cries as the voice could
no longer bring itself to speak.
But Ranma had had his chance, his chances, a long time ago, and she
focused her will to ignore his voice.
And her dress rustled as she turned to smile brightly at Ooyake, at
his handsome, gentle face, the tears of joy brimming in his large
friendly eyes mirroring her own. She barely stopped herself from
reaching out to touch him, drawing new confidence from him.
And she spoke, strongly, without hesitation.
And the words resounded, carried out as if on winds.
"I do."
And the voice... Ranma's voice... it screamed in her again, now for
the last time. "Noooooooooo..." Futile, desperate, almost inhuman, and
the cry ended in pain, a sharp pain, and the pain filled all of her
being as all the world became red, the overpowering smell of blood
assaulting her nostrils.
Akane faltered, almost falling, but caught herself as she took a step
forwards, and she shook her head, trying to clear her mind, to shake
away the pain that she did not deserve. The sensation faded, but a dull,
throbbing pain stayed somewhere deep in her mind, light enough to ignore
yet unquestionably there, refusing to go away.
As the husband bent down his head, his lips brushing against those of
his wife, a woman in the crowd vainly tried to wipe a tear from her eye.
Her arm tugged at that of her husband for support. So beautiful... Like
all weddings.
Nodoka knew it could - perhaps even should - have been her son there
beside the girl, and she could not fault him for refusing to come... yet
she couldn't help but weep at the sight of the overflowing love.
The muted buzzing of a cell-phone startled her. At first, she ignored
the inopportune signal, but when it came again, she couldn't stop
herself from snatching the phone from her waist and bringing it to her
ear, if only to snap irritatedly at the person who'd disturbed her at a
moment like this.
A deep growling sound which could only with some imagination be
interpreted as an inquisitive "Yes?" escaped her throat ... followed a
few moments later by a shocked cry of a panic that made everyone in the
church turn their eyes towards her, before she fainted, falling
backwards in her seat.
* * *
For You
A Ranma 1/2 fanfic, by Ronny Hedin (thark@hem2.passgen.se)
* * *
But a long time remains until then. Now, two fathers have gathered
their youngest children around a table, watching the pair sternly, both
uncertain of how to put the things they want to say; in fact, not even
sure they should say them.
"So," Genma spoke, after a long period of hesitation. "It's been
several months since the wedding..." He let his voice trail off, though
they all knew why they had been summoned, long before the words had been
uttered. It almost came as a surprise that the fathers had let such a
long time pass... but perhaps the duo had finally gained some sense,
even if it did seem like a bit much to hope for.
"We thought..." Souun filled in, his voice wavering even though he had
no doubts that young two knew exactly what their fathers thought. "We
thought it might be time again..."
Ranma lifted his head, letting his eyes gaze deep into those of his
fiancee, trying somehow to pierce through, to read her mind. _Maybe..._
his look said.
Akane returned the gaze, hearing his thoughts almost as if they had
been spoken. She stared into her fiance's hard, brown wells, almost
drowning in them as she, too, tried to reach the mind somewhere deep
beneath. _Maybe..._ her look said.
The fathers held their breath, almost feeling the energy in the air
between the pair, and beads of sweat formed on their foreheads as they
waited - waited and hoped. Maybe, finally, the day had come - the
children almost never argued nowadays; in fact, most of the time, they
seemed happy in each others company, as should be, and deep in their
heart, nobody in the room - father or son or daughter - doubted that the
pair really loved each other, really wanted to marry one day.
But to love, to want to marry one day, is not the same thing as to
want it now, to be ready and prepared, and that was what this was all
about, why Souun's hand slowly crept up his old friend's shoulder as
they waited for an answer from the young two.
And then, the moment was lost, the sparkle disappearing from their air
just an instant before it would have become actually visible.
The girl, first to find words, turned towards her father. "Me, marry
that pervert?" Her tone was somewhat indignant, but lacked any real
conviction. "Not while he still has all those girls chasing after him."
Empty words, empty phrases, the first that came to mind, the first
that would give them some more time, time enough for them to be really
sure that this was, beyond all doubt, what they wanted.
Empty though they were, their intent fully clear, they still hurt the
boy a little, as he turned to look away, not daring to meet her gaze
again in case something had appeared in it he did not want to see.
Briefly, he stuck his tongue out, perhaps on instinct, or perhaps just
to play along, to fool the fathers, even though they knew just as well
as him that this was all just an act. "Even if I *wanted* to marry that
tomboy, you know it won't work, Pop." He pretended not to speak to the
girl, despite the fact that his words, especially that *one* word, would
still cause her pain; a tiny, almost unnoticeable amount of pain, yet
pain nonetheless. "They'd just come and wreck it again."
His father sighed tiredly. "I guess you're right, son," he said,
shaking his weary head. No, it wouldn't be this time, either.
The other man let a tear fall down his cheek as he moved to embrace
his old friend, crying on his shoulder. "At this rate," he sobbed,
"they'll never get married." Somewhat of an exaggeration, perhaps, yet
both men were beginning to get tired of waiting for the inevitable to
happen.
The pair left the room hastily, shaking their heads at the crying heap
they knew their fathers would soon melt into.
* * *
"U- Ucchan!" Ranma stretched out a hand towards her back. "D- don't
leave," he begged, his shocked brain desperately trying to come up with
an answer to why this was happening, but finding none.
The girl sniffed repeatedly, her body convulsing in sobs as she tried
to clear her tears away enough to speak. "You want me to stay?" she
asked, her broken voice empty of emotion and barely loud enough to be
audible.
His hand reached her shoulder, and he let it rest there in a vain
attempt to let some of his warmth leak down into his cold friend. "Of
course I want you to stay," he told her firmly.
Suddenly, she span around to face him, to gaze into his confused face
with her bloodshot eyes. The girl pushed the hand from her shoulder to
take it into her soft grasp, barely able to hold on to it, and managed
to plaster a smile on her face, a cold smile that never reached beyond
her mouth. "Really?" she croaked, tears still flowing down like a
neverending waterfall, or perhaps like rain. "Then you'll come with me
now, and we'll get married?" A hint of acid crept into her tired,
unfeeling voice; she knew the answer already, knew it only all too
well,.
"N-n-no," he stuttered, his mind vainly searching for the words, any
words, which would comfort her, make her tears go away, but there were
no such words; at least none which he was prepared to utter. "Ucchan,"
the boy tried, knowing almost before he began that it would not help,
"you're one of my best friends, don't you see..."
She turned away, once more trying to hide her shame. "You're the one
who doesn't see." The girl shook her head as she broke into a run, her
long hair floating on the winds behind her. "I wanted it all!" she
screamed, voice suddenly gaining strength, and she hurried her steps,
desperate to get away before the strength would fade away again and
leave her to collapse broken on the ground. "All - or nothing!"
* * *
"Hey, Shampoo, Old Ghoul," Ranma greeted with a sneer as he entered
the Nekohanten. "What'd you want?"
From her position on the table, Cologne motioned towards a nearby
chair. "Sit down, Ranma," she said, a subtle tinge of sadness - or
perhaps regret - hidden beneath her usual, commanding tone.
"Ranma, huh?" The boy smiled slightly as he followed her order,
warily. "What happened to 'Son-in-law'? You finally realised I'm never
going to marry Shampoo?" As so often before, his words came out haughty
and arrogant.
Her answer was not among those he had expected. "Yes," the old woman
said tonelessly, nodding.
"WHAT?" As soon as he managed to get the shock aside, the boy rose
from his chair, barely stopping himself from trying to grab the woman.
"But- but..." he stuttered nervously, "you must still have a hundred
tricks up your sleeve to force me to marry her!" From the corner of his
eye, he noticed that Shampoo stayed silent through the exchange; the
purple-haired girl stood almost unmoving in a corner, and he could
barely notice traces of tears on her face. But what type of tears?
Cologne shook her head, clicking her tongue condescendingly. "And
there's a hundred tricks you'll learn to counter mine."
"Yeah," the boy nodded fervently. "That's the..." He trailed off as he
realised that this was perhaps not quite what he should say to convince
her. "Err..." Ranma scratched the back of his hand. "I mean, no, I'm
sure some day you'll..."
The old woman snorted, turning her back against him; to hide the
pained expression on her face, hide the fact that she didn't really like
what she was now forced to do. "As long as you don't actually marry
Shampoo, you could be an enemy - possibly a friend, yes, but also
possibly an enemy," she observed calmly, though her granddaughter knew
Cologne's voice was on the verge of shaking. "And I just can't let an
enemy grow any more powerful than you already are, boy, even if it's
just a *potential* enemy, an ever so unlikely one."
"But..." He protested, but she cut him off, soundlessly shaking her
head.
He turned towards the girl. "Shampoo... You love me." His voice had
gained a desperate edge, perhaps because with the disappearance of yet
another contestant, he'd probably be forced to a decision, now. "You
still love me, don't you?"
The girl raised her hands to her face, vainly trying to hide her
tears. "Shampoo know," she managed to push out between sobs, "Shampoo
knows Ranma will never marry her!"
He reached out to touch her, but she revolted from his touch,
desperately trying to avoid him, as had he been a leper. "Don't say
that, Shampoo," he cried, his voice now almost touched by fear.
But the boy knew now that their decision had been made, that he could
not make them change.
When he turned to leave, it was to look down into the furious face of
a short-haired young girl.
"What did you just say, Ranma?" Akane hissed.
After having been able to avoid it for well over a month, the boy
almost found it refreshing to fly through a roof again.
* * *
It would probably be wrong to say that Kodachi had ever really been
insane - she just had a slightly different view on morality and ethics,
a more ... liberal one.
She came from a family of the rich and influental sort which, most of
the time, could do no wrong; or at least no wrong of any consequence,
and on top of that, lived in a country which preferred sweeping problems
under the carpet to actually dealing with them.
For those reasons, and perhaps others, she could continue doing what
she did.
Until the day when she took it one step too far. The day somebody
died.
Her aunts and uncles - the relatives who weren't quite as ...
eccentric as the immediate family - discussed the situation. A Kunou
who'd done something really bad, even though this was unthinkable. It
would soil their reputation, and they couldn't allow *that* to happen,
could they? At the very least, they had to minimize their losses. Drag
the girl out of the spotlight, so that, eventually, she would be
forgotten.
And so, one of the aunts had Kodachi commited; at a very expensive and
more importantly very private and discreet institute.
Many came to see the girl be carried off, all of them smiling. Old
opponents, happy that they finally got their revenge. Her clubmates,
glad to be rid of their crazy leader. Even her brother smiled, for in
his eyes, her departure meant little more than that he would no longer
have to fear for his life at breakfast every morning.
Ranma was perhaps the only one who didn't smile; his face carried a
slight frown. Before they pushed the unwilling girl into the car, she
managed to turn her head around, and she sought him out in the crowd,
taking in his face for the last time. It brought an ever-so-slight smile
to her downcast face, and perhaps, maybe, possible, it would give her
some strength that at least *he* regretted that it had come to this.
That *she* had come to this.
Then the engine roared, and she was gone. Forever.
* * *
_Two years,_ he thought, eyes gazing at the dark ceiling, as if trying
somehow to penetrate the shadows. _Almost three._ And still they hadn't
married. In a way, it almost surprised the pair as much as it surprised
everyone else.
Not as if things hadn't changed. They had grown a lot closer. Almost
never argued nowadays. He had no doubts that deep inside, he really
*wanted* it, and he didn't think that she had, either. Yet something
stopped them; perhaps, after all this time, they were still afraid that
the same things would happen again.
Not like there were any risk of that, or any alternatives left.
It had hurt Ranma a lot when Ukyou gave up and left. He wanted a
friend ... but she wanted more than he could give, and would not be
satisfied with less.
It had hurt a bit when Shampoo left; if not for the loss of the girl,
then because of all the techniques he would no longer have a chance to
learn.
It had even hurt, ever so little, when Kodachi disappeared.
Now they'd all been gone for almost a year. A small corner of Ranma's
heart still mourned their absence, and that of the chaos and excitement
they had taken with them when they left.
Still, the one most important thing remained, and would hopefully do
so forever. Akane. No, they weren't married yet, and possibly wouldn't
be for quite a while yet, but what is marriage but a ceremony to confirm
what everyobody already knows?
And nobody, least of all her, could doubt that he really loved her.
* * *
"You know he's failing school. He'll end up as just another no-good
rounin, with no education or job. How can I marry someone like that?"
The latest excuse. Sure, they all knew it was just an excuse, that she
didn't really mean it, but for perhaps the first time, Ranma took it to
his heart a bit. It *was* true, wasn't it? How could he even *allow* the
girl he loved to marry a good-for-nothing bum - a good-for-nothing bum
which was *him*, true, but still a good-for-nothing bum.
Had he not already thought those thoughts, perhaps he would have
answered differently when his mother came to him that day.
"My son, look at these," Nodoka said, her tone weary and tired as she
showed the boy his latest grade papers. "You'll never be able to enter a
good university if you keep producing results like these."
"But..." he protested, not putting any real energy in it; after all,
didn't he already agree with her? "I'm a martial artist." The usual,
meaningless excuse. Empty words, and he knew it. "Why do *I* need an
education?"
The woman sighed, some small corner of her mind still having vainly
hoped that he would not give her that answer. "Ranma, you intend to
marry Akane one day, don't you?"
"What? I'd never..." Her firm stare stopped him from uttering the
routine denials. Serious, this time. "Yeah, Mom," he said resignedly.
"You know I do."
"You'll need a job then, Ranma, a good job, to support your family."
Her voice was strong now, convincing. "And if you don't go to a good
university, you won't get a good job. In these times, you might not even
get *any* job."
Nabiki entered the room, unbidden. Or maybe not; the older woman made
no motion to chase her off. "You aren't planning to beat people up and
steal their money for a living or something stupid like that, are you?"
The girl eyed her nails absent-mindedly as she leaned back against a
wall, her tone as always giving little or no hint of what emotions lay
behind it; faint amusement, perhaps?
Ranma glared at her. "Of course not," he snapped, then cooled of
quickly, head falling back against the chair. "I know, Mom, but there's
just three months left to the exam. I'm too much behind already to catch
up, even if I try." He let his head sink into his arms as he stared
through the window at the cold, gloomy scene outside, rain beating down
in a seemingly unending stream.
"Son." The mother put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "I've
arranged for a private tutor to come here and help you for one hour
every evening, and also got you a place at a good evening school."
He looked up at her almost in shock. "Mom, that's ... thank you,
that's... gotta cost a fortune." A year or two ago, he would've been
outraged at the suggestion that he should put more work into school;
now, he wasn't quite sure how to react.
Nabiki grinned enigmatically at him. "Thank me, kiddo. I'm paying.
Mostly."
"You?" His chin dropped to the floor.
"Close your mouth, Ranma, that's disgusting." The girl giggled.
"You're bound to be family sooner or later, and if you can't support
yourself, I'll probably end up doing it anyway. In the end, this
solution will be cheaper."
The boy scratched the back of his head, then finally decided to
stretch out a hand towards her. "Thanks, Nabiki," he said, a touch of
awe in his oh-so-small voice, little more than a whisper.
She grinned again. "Oh, you'll have to pay me back, of course." Her
face grew serious for a moment. "I'm offering you a chance here, kiddo.
If you make the most of it, returning your debt - with interest - should
be no problem."
"Please, Ranma," his mother begged. "This is important. Don't screw it
up. For your sake... and for hers."
He rose from his chair, nodding determinedly. "I won't, Mom." His eyes
closed, fists clenched. "I promise." No, this time, he wouldn't let them
down. Wouldn't let himself down.
* * *
"Arrgh!" Ranma screamed, not for the first time, as he slammed his
pencil into the desk. He threw his hands into the air. "I give up!
There's *gotta* be an easier way to do this, some trick..."
His tutor strained to keep up a confident smile as he shook his head.
"I'm afraid not, Ranma," he said tiredly, as every time this exchange
had taken place before. "The only way you can learn this is to study,
study and study."
The boy growled, but took the pencil again, pointing it at what he had
just written. "OK, so tell me again, how does this work?"
"Well, you see..." Sukeo started the explanation once more, employing
what little patience he could still muster. As he watched the boy trying
to digest the information - with an expression that seemed almost pained
- he chuckled inwardly. When, like many of his fellow university
students, he had applied for a job as a tutor, he'd expected a charge
not only somewhat younger, but also not quite *this* far behind.
Still, Ranma tried, and he tried *hard*; Sukeo wasn't sure if he'd
ever seen someone this determined to improve - and improve the boy did;
every step came to him slowly and painfully, but he took them, one after
one, and progressed, like an enormous, unstoppable train, slowly gaining
more and more pace without showing any signs tiring or giving up.
What he lacked in talent, the boy made up for with a will of iron;
what he could accomplish if he just put his mind to it, Sukeo dared
hardly even begin to think of.
Akane passed by outside, and she briefly stuck her head in the doorway
as she saw her fiance hard at work. "Stop complaining, Ranma," she
teased, though it was evident in her voice that she envied the boy's
determination slightly. "You have to do it the hard way, just like
everyone else."
Caught up in his work, the pig-tailed boy didn't even stop to flash
his tongue at her, and she progressed down the hall with an indignant
sniff.
Sukeo found it slightly amusing. As far as he could tell, Akane was a
pretty good student; she studied just as hard as most girls her age, but
not more, either, and if Ranma didn't lose steam - which, certainly, the
boy showed no signs of doing - he might even pass her by in the near
future.
His musing were interrupted as his charge screamed in frustration once
more, breaking yet another pencil in half. "This doesn't make any sense
at all!" he complained irritatedly.
The young man clicked his tongue. "Ranma!" he admonished wearily,
taking out another pencil from the large stack he had soon realised he
would have to bring, "You'll never get anywhere at this rate. Now,
listen carefully..."
* * *
The teacher looked up at Ranma, shaking his head in disbelief. Not
only was the boy actually awake, he even seemed to be paying
*attention*. Judging by the confused look on his face, he couldn't make
much sense out of the lecture, but at least it was a start.
It almost warmed the man's heart a bit, to see a student reform like
this. Perhaps, for once, someone had taken the warnings seriously - and
that was what he lived for, wasn't it? Helping these young men and women
realise that they *needed* the knowledge they could gain here.. Because
if they didn't realise that, they would never learn anything.
Still, just paying attention would, unfortunately, not be enough to
pass the class. Sometimes, that pained him, but there was nothing he
could do about it; he had to follow the rules like everyone else.
So, he pointed at the equation on the board. "Well, Saotome, can you
solve this?"
Ranma stuttered, taken by suprise. The teacher, ask *him*? "Um, well,
sir..." He looked at it, trying to make sense of the abstract digits and
letters...
"No, no." The man chuckled, holding up the chalk. "Come over here and
do it."
"OK, I guess..." Ranma shrugged uncertainly as he left his desk for
the front of the class. All eyes followed him; more than a few pitied
the boy - why'd the teacher force someone forward he *knew* would never
find the answer?
Closer to the blackboard now, the pig-tailed boy studied the equation
again. Somehow, despite all the attention focused on him, it felt
clearer here, easier to read and understand within touching distance.
And then it came to him. Those digits and letters... suddenly, he saw
the pattern they wove, he recognized how to mold and transform them into
the shape Sukeo had forced him to recognize.
Ranma smiled confidently to himself, a warm feeling filling his mind
as he reached out with the chalk, brushing some characters away with the
other hand and then writing in a few new ones to take their place.
He took a step back to admire his handiwork. His teacher did the same,
pride almost as evident in *his* eyes as in the boy's. And the class...
just stared. Even those who weren't sure whether this answer was the
right one or not could not help but be impressed by the fact that at the
very least, Ranma, well-known for his uncaring attitude towards all that
was school, had actually managed to come up with *something*.
The pig-tailed boy barely stopped himself from shouting his success
out loud. He'd done it!
"There's gotta be a trick," he had said.
"No, I'm afraid not," his tutor had answered.
"You have to do it the hard way," Akane had told him.
But they were wrong, weren't they? He'd seen it. Caught it. The trick,
how to solve it. He'd had to work hard to find it, but now, obviously,
he had it.
All that remained was to find the trick to solve the next problem. And
the next one. And the next. Many hours of hard work ... but the same
could be said for everything else he had learned in the past.
Perhaps Ranma fooled himself in seeing things this way, but perhaps he
didn't; if nothing less, at least it worked.
* * *
With a tired yawn, Akane closed the book. She shoved it to the side of
the desk, pushed the chair back, and rose, stretching her legs as she
left her room. _I've already studied so much for the exam it makes my
head hurt,_ she thought to herself, walking down the corridor to stop
outside Ranma's room.
The boy inside still had his head deeply sunk into a book, and at
first didn't notice her, but as he reached to take another cookie from a
jar beside him, he had to turn his head slightly, and he saw the girl in
the corner of his eye. "Oh, hi, Akane," he mumbled, not looking at her.
"What's up?"
"Oh, nothing special," she said, her voice cheerful now that she'd
decided she was done studying for the day. "You wanna go practice or
something?"
"Uh-uh." Ranma shook his head distractedly. "Gotta read some more."
"Good. Then..." Akane trailed off, realising that his answer was not
the one she'd expected.. It took her a few moments to come over her
initial surprise, then a few more to figure out how she wanted to react
to it, before she stomped off. "Fine, be that way, then," she huffed
indignantly.
Oh, sure, she was glad Ranma finally took his studies seriously - but
not when he let it go out over her! Besides, despite the all-important
upcoming finals, no other boy - and only the very most school-focused of
the girls - spent as much time on schoolwork as her pig-tailed fiancee
now did.
She shook her head, sighing softly to herself as she sunk to her knees
in front of the TV, absent-mindedly reaching for the remote. Ranma might
be quite charming at times - a thought, she realised, which would have
made her blush only a year or two ago, but felt perfectly natural now -
but that didn't change the fact that he was a dumb jock. Just what did
he think he'd accomplish? No matter how much the idiot studied, he'd
never surpass her.
Perhaps, had she seen it as a competition, Akane might have followed
his example and studied harder, and harder, and harder, but she didn't.
At times, the girl almost regretted saying those things about him
failing school. She loved Ranma the way he was, even if that meant a
young man who knew nothing but martial arts - that was just something
she said to put off their wedding by a few more weeks or months. Right
now, Akane doubted she ever wanted to be in another wedding ceremony,
considering how fatal the previous one had been. Besides, what does a
wedding mean? They might still not be *common*, but there were couples
who stayed together for a lifetime without ever going through one.
Besides, they had all the time in the world; these days, when they
married, most young japanese girls had already been working - trying out
independent life - for a few years.
She hadn't meant to make him spend less time with her, to push him
away, when she said those words. Couldn't he see that? Stupid macho
jerk.
* * *
As they neared the gate, Akane turned towards her fiancee with a
somewhat exasperated sigh. "You know, Ranma," she said, "it's nice of
you to accompany me, but you didn't really have to go all this way."
"Accompany?" Ranma voiced his confusion. "I'm taking the test, too."
That provoked a spontaneous laugh from her, which died out immediately
as the girl could see the seriousness in his eyes. "You, taking the
Tokyo University entrance test? Right." She shook her head. "Nabiki got
in here, but she's the smart one in the family. I'm really taking just
in case, and it'll probably end up being a waste of money. And time."
"Whatever you say." The boy nodded, wisely choosing not to utter
anything about stupid macho chicks - had to focus on the test now!
She poked a finger at his nose. "So, what do *you* think you're doing
here, when *I* probably don't stand a chance? No need to prove anything,
I'm impressed enough that you managed to pass the exam." Akane wrinkled
her nose.
"Is that so?" the pig-tailed boy hissed, his eyes gradually assuming
the form of tight, vertical slits. He hurried ahead, his quick steps
heavy with determination.
Behind him, his fiancee continued shaking her head. "Honestly, Ranma,
you are *so* stubborn," she muttered, sighing again.
* * *
"Here they are!" Kasumi waved two envelopes in the air, smiling
brightly. The family had gathered around the table, all of them just as
anxious to see the test results as Akane and Ranma themselves. She sat
down, and took the first one, giving it to her younger sister. "Let's
look at yours first, Akane."
The girl returned the smile as she carefully tore the envelope open,
pulling out the documents within with unnoticeably trembling hands. She
unfolded them, her eyes scanning it wildly before they came to rest on
the result, then turned the sheet aside to look at the one behind,
repeating the procedure. Akane let out a satisfied sigh as she dared
pass the papers along, and several small exclamations of congratulation
followed as they all looked at it.
The result might not be a great one - unlike Nabiki, she hadn't been
able to enter the top university, in Tokyo - but still ended up well
above average, at a more than decent school. With some luck, Ranma might
even be able to go to the same place, now that he'd studied so hard! She
smiled warmly at her fiance as her older sister handed him *his*
envelope. The thought of not having to leave him relieved her more than
she wanted to admit.
Ranma's trembling was *not* unnoticeable, and his hands shook as he
tore it open with one violent jerk, eager to see if all his hard work
had payed off. He checked the result, and checked it again ... and
jumped backwards, unable to contain his joy.
While they all stared at him, Nabiki snatched the papers up. She gave
it a cursory glance and grinned. "Congratulations, kiddo. Looks like we
might be taking the same ride in a few months."
"I..." The boy tried to collect his thoughts. "Shouldn't I just go to
the same school as Akane?" he ventured, voice wavering with
incertainity. "It might not as good, but..."
And then they came back to his mind, words spoken two months ago.
"You'll need a job then, Ranma," his mother had said, "a good job, to
support your family. And if you don't go to a good university, you won't
get a good job." And Nabiki. "I'm offering you a chance here, kiddo. If
you make the most of it..."
Decision made, he raised his head to return the grin slightly. "Yeah,
I guess we might."
In the corner of his eye, he could see his fiancee hastily leave the
table and run towards the stairs. _I'm sorry we won't be able to see
each other as much as before,_ he thought, _but I'm doing this for you,
Akane._
* * *
And so, spring came. Ranma spent much of it training, to gain back
what he'd lost while studying for the exam, and the rest with the girl
he loved - or, as the female in question would insist, the young woman
he loved.
Most of the time, the two could even be combined, a fact which the
pair took every opportunity to exploit. Yes, things had indeed changed
in these past years.
But they hadn't changed *that* much.
"Come on," Akane screamed furiously. "Hit me!" She struck out again,
and again, but all in vain; Ranma was just too good for her, and of
course, he was good in such an insulting manner. Most of the time, she
didn't particularly blame him - he couldn't really *help* being good -
but on the other hand, most of the time she wasn't being exposed to the
difference between them in skill.
Whenever they trained, though, it became painfully obvious, which
resulted in Akane becoming painfully irritated, and Ranma eventually
becoming painfully aware of that irritation.
"Pfffh." He stuck his tongue out - to mock the girl, a casual onlooker
might have thought, but in reality to drive her to try even harder.
Akane herself probably wouldn't be able to realise it until afterwards,
but at least these days she *did* realise it. Usually. "I don't hit
girls!" He made a show out of easily dodging another blow. "You'll have
to be faster than that to touch me."
"I'll show you..." the girl growled, increasing her already remarkable
speed even further as she sent out a flurry of blows - none of which
managed to hit their target; the pig-tailed boy already well out of her
reach.
Ranma wiped the sweat off his brow, smiling down at his fiancee, who
had sunk exhausted to the dojo floor. "Had enough already?" he teased
playfully, holding a hand out towards her.
"Yeah." She returned the smile, taking the hand to pull herself to her
feet.
Then they noticed they weren't alone.
"Oh, look, old friend," Souun wept. "They're getting along so well!"
Of course, this wasn't exactly news, but after the disastrous start
things had gotten off to, the fathers still, after three years, took
every sign of affection as a gift from heaven. If nothing else then at
least these days it gave them a lot of reasons to be happy, and you
could never have to many of those.
Genma patted his back. "Indeed, Tendou." He looked up at the pair
again. "Son, we've been thinking."
"Thinking, you two?" Ranma snorted derisively. "Don't make me laugh,
old man." His fiancee giggled amusedly, and they briefly turned their
heads to smile at each other again.
The Tendou father coughed to get their attention back, ignoring the
barb. "Since Akane will have to move out for... for..." The man trailed
off as his emotions grew too strong to bear, the mere thought of his
little girl leaving the house making tears flow in an unstoppable river
down his face.
"It's all right, Tendou," his old friend tried - vainly - to comfort
him. "Anyway, since you'll be living separated by half the island most
of the time for the coming years, we figured it might be time for you
two to get married now."
For a while, nobody said anything. Judging by Akane's face, it looked
like she might finally be about to accept it, no longer afraid or
uncertain.
Then Ranma spoke up. "No," he said, his tone strong and commanding.
"I'm not getting married until *after* I'm finished at the university,
and that's final." He'd already decided he wouldn't let the girl he
loved marry some good-for-nothing bum, and until he actually *finished*
his studies, that's what he'd be.
They all looked at him, not without a touch of shock, Akane perhaps
even more surprised than the fathers. Guessing that this moment would
come, she'd been starting to entertain thoughts of a new wedding, a
succesful one... even looking forward to it. But now, Ranma, he - he'd
*never* said no before, just passively gone along with the decisions of
others - but now he had. What did he mean? Did he look forward to being
separated from her? No, she couldn't believe that, not with how things
had been between them recently. Still - she didn't know *what* to
think...
"Come on," Ranma said, startling her out of the shock as he took her
hand and led her past the still confused parents. "Let's go for an ice-
cream."
* * *
Silence descended for a while, broken only by the monotone thumping of
the train against the track. They seemed to have chosen a slightly
unusal time to travel, as it had left them alone in the small
compartment. Trees passed by the window outside, and the bags, resting
above their heads, jumped slightly as the vehicle passed a particularly
rough length of track.
Not wanting to let this their last meeting for a fair while all go to
waste in silence, Akane spoke up. "So, will you still be staying at our
place?"
"Naw." Ranma shook his head, looking out the window at a gentle,
undisturbed blue lake. "Soon as I get back home tomorrow, me and Pop are
moving back in with Mom. She figured we'd been mooching of you guys for
way too long now, seeing as how you won't even be there, now."
"Oh." The girl nodded thoughtfully, then looked at him with a hint of
confusion. "Tomorrow? I thought you were just coming along to help carry
my bags?" _Not that I need any help,_ she would have added a few months
ago, when she didn't yet know that she and her fiance would come to
spend most of their time separated for the years to come.
The pig-tailed boy nodded. "S'right, but with the time it'll take to
get you settled in an' all, it'll be too late to go home." He scratched
the back of his head embarrassedly. "They got me tickets for one of the
early trains tomorrow, figured I could, erm..." Briefly, his voice grew
weak.
"You could what?" Akane stifled a sigh, having no problem predicting
what was to come.
"I could stay over the night at your place." He scratched the back of
his head again, obviously quite a bit nervous. "I know it's just one
room, but they didn't give me no money, so I can't afford any hotel or
so..."
The girl shrugged. As usual, the fathers didn't disappoint. "It's
okay, I guess," she said without much feeling, not yet having fully made
up her mind about how too feel about this. "I trust you." More words
that would have come out differently only a year or so ago. Still, it
wasn't as if she'd mind being able to spend a few more hours in his
company. And maybe, it would even be nice if...
Relative silence descended again, their thoughts floating away to the
mind-numbing accompaniement of the rhythmic ka-tchunk, ka-tchunk, ka-
tchunk.
As they so often did, especially lately, Akane's thoughts focused on
her fiance, and she let her head lean back and rest against the wall.
In her daydream, he smiled warmly at her. She smiled back. Here, he
was dressed in a finely pressed suit, high-polished black leather shoes
gleaming in the sunlight. A wind blew threw his carefreely yet somehow
at the same time metodiously perfectly arranged hair ... a hair that was
perhaps a little bit longer than the real Ranma's, reaching down into
his eyes, and perhaps also a little bit thinner, the outer strands
swaying slightly. He looked down at her - from a height marginally
higher than usual - with large, warm eyes; larger than they should be,
and friendlier. But after all, if you couldn't have your dream-prince in
your dreams, when could you? And the subtle adjustments needed were not
many...
"It looks like we are all alone here..." Even though he whispered, his
voice came across strong and firm. The dream-Ranma leaned down against
her, and her knees weakened as his lips brushed against hers... and the
fantasy continued on to other things, bringing a slight blush to her
physical face.
Opposite her, the real Ranma looked at his resting fiancee without
really seeing, *his* eyes, too, locked inwards. The Akane in his mind
did not have any modifications or adjustments; perhaps because Ranma was
more ready to settle for what he had instead of dreaming for what he
could never get, or perhaps just because imagination had never been one
of his strong points.
In *his* daydreams, too, he leaned down against her, his heart beating
wildly... and then, she threw a fist at him, sending him flying into the
wall. "In your *dreams*, pervert!" the dream-Akane shouted, enraged.
_But it *was* in my dream,_ Ranma thought wryly. Besides, Akane probably
wouldn't act that way now. Once, yes, but no longer.
The scene returned, rewinded, and as Ranma placed his face against her
and felt her soft cheek brush against hers, theirs lips locked together.
Just as Ranma, in his daydream, placed his arms around his fiancee to
deepen the embrace and draw her tighter against him, he heard a noise
... hands clapping, and as he turned around, shocked, there they were,
just outside the door to Akane's room, merrily shouting their
encouragement. "She's yours, son!" Genma grinned - or perhaps it was his
panda-form that did, holding up the words on a sign; Ranma's imagination
could not quite decide - perhaps they were both there. "Hurry up now and
go all the way, and then we'll bring in the priest!" Tears of joy
streamed down Souun's face.
That broke Ranma out of his reverie, and he startled in his seat. He
shook his head to clear away the images, settling to watch the
countryside roll by, and briefly wondered what went on in Akane's mind,
what thoughts colored her cheeks - hoping that they were of him. No, no
matter how hard it might be under circumstances like those to come, he
had to put a rein on his feelings. For her sake.
* * *
"So." Ranma waited for Akane's approval as he pushed the table a few
inches more, then wiped the sweat off his brow. "I think we've got all
the stuff in order now."
His fiancee nodded, moving to stand in front of the room's single
window. Darkness greeted her outside, the black sky dotted by stars.
"Yeah. Just in time, too; it's getting real late." She turned to face
the cupboard beside her. "Let's have a snack before we turn in."
Ranma grinned slightly. "No problem." He folded his legs, sitting down
at the low table they'd just assembled.
As the girl brought out a loaf of bread, she looked towards the futon
on the floor, and the sleeping bag Ranma had rolled out next to it - as
far away as the size of the room would allow, and still with obvious
nervousity. A blush almost appeared on her face as she looked up at him
again, the boy now looking absent-mindedly towards the window, and her
mind raced an impressive distance in only a few short moments.
Then she put the food on the table, and decided on an impulse to sit
down beside him. It startled Ranma, who'd expected her to choose the
opposite edge of the table, but he managed to keep himself from showing
it.
Silence descended on the room for a while as they ate. Soft sounds of
music came through from the room next door, accompanied by the desperate
cries of the male singer as he, seemingly on the verge of tears, shouted
out his love for some unnamed woman, his voice loud enough to penetrate
the thick walls.
That inspired Akane further, as a burst of courage struck her, and she
turned to smile up at the slightly taller boy. "Thanks for the help,
Ranma," she said, and stretched out her head to kiss him on the cheek.
That *did* startle him visibly, and the boy almost jumped where he
sat. Briefly, he ran a hand over the spot her lips had touched, a
nervous smile on his face. "Oh..." his weak voice tried. "No problem...
It's my duty as your fiance and all..."
He wrapped an arm around her shoulders, and overcome by the moment,
his head turned towards her as he bent down to return the kiss...
The boy had planned a simply peck on the cheek, but found her waiting,
face raised to meet him, and their lips touched ... and locked. She drew
him into a hug, her face radiating the heat that rose from within.
At first, Ranma surrendered to his impulses, but then, as his fiancee
tried to draw even closer, his clouded mind started to realize what was
happening, and he remembered the conclusion he had come to earlier.
With a jerk, he tore free, turning his head to the other side so he
wouldn't have to look into her eyes. "No..." he whispered, his voice
cracking. "No, I ... I can't."
He waited for the inevitable blow, but it never came.
Akane looked at his back, at the pigtail hanging down his back, in
shock. Tears slowly gathered in her eyes. "I see," she hurriedly pushed
through her lips, desperate to get the words out while she still could.
Just what did Ranma mean? That he didn't want her? Until he broke free,
it had seemed obvious that he did, just as much as she wanted him. That
some other complication remained? But what? Here, no fathers would come
bursting through the doors demanding instant marriages; no-one would
ever know, no-one but them...
Not wanting, or daring, to let her mind stay on the subject, she
started cleaning up the remains on the table. "I... guess it's... time
for bed, now." Her voice wavered as she struggled to keep it free from
the doubts that would have been evident had he seen her face.
* * *
"So, m'boy," Souun said with fake sternness, trying to hide a smile.
"I trust you did not do anything ... unsuitable to my poor baby
daughter?"
"Nope," Ranma responded without pause, and no trace of nervousity or
insincerity could be found in his voice.
The Tendou father stared at him, shocked, as tears began to gather...
* * *
Ranma's voice broke through the rhythmic thumping of the train against
the tracks and the constant chattering voices in the background. "I
thought there'd be more people?" He held his arm out as if to
demonstrate that presently, he actually *had* some living room.
Next to him, Nabiki nodded. "Yeah. There usually are, but this is the
first day."
"Hm?" He cast her a sidelong glance, confusion unspoken.
"Oh," she explained patiently, if with a somewhat condescending tone.
"Studies begin at a somewhat odd time this first day. Tomorrow you'll
probably have your first chance to experience what it is like at rush
hour."
"I see." The boy scratched his head. "I guess that explains why it
looks like everybody here's a student."
"Indeed. You might actually be slightly less stupid than you look."
She grinned, but failed to provoke much in the way of response, beyond
an angry glare.
A few more seconds passed in silence, and then the train made a brief
stop, the doors drawing open with a hissing sound. More people poured
in, most of them youngsters.
One of them, a short girl wearing a pair of somewhat oversized jeans,
scanned the crowd, then waved her hand as her eyes came to rest on the
pair, marching up them. "Hey, Nabiki," she greeted, cheerfully.
"Jikiko," the Tendou sister acknowledged with a nod of her head.
The girl eyed Ranma carefully, and a few drops of sweat began
gathering on his forehead as he noticed it, which in turn caused a
slight smile to form on Nabiki's lips.
Finally, Jikiko finished her inspection with a barely audible
disappointed sigh. "New boyfriend of yours, is he?" she asked, as if the
pig-tailed boy hadn't even been there.
"Naw," Nabiki said, not much for long answers this morning, and she
paused a little to let her friend's hope rise. "He's my sisters..."
"Boyfriend?" the other finished, her thinly veiled disappointment
returning.
The taller girl shook her head. "Her fiancee."
"Fiancee?" Jikiko eyed her friend surprisedly. "She's just, what,
nineteen? And already getting married?" She faked a pout. "Imagine,
wasting a cute boy like this on *your* family."
* * *
Aiko looked down at the boy sitting in the shadow of the tree. Hard to
comment on in that position, but before, at the class introduction, he'd
looked pretty cute. She wished she'd dare...
Brushing a hand through her long, black hair, she tried to push the
thought from her mind. This young man would probably be her classmate
for years to come, so she was bound to eventually *have* to speak to
him. Better try to break the ice as soon as possible...
_Argh,_ she thought. _Wrong expression._ "Breaking the ice" gave her
the wrong associations, and if she didn't get over thinking of him - and
the other boys in class - that way, she'd never be able to face any of
them without ending up as a stuttering wreck, an embarassement she
decided she could live without.
So, she gathered what little resolve she had, and walked up to him,
pasting on her most confident smile as she coughed to catch his
attention.
"Hm?" Ranma looked at her; shielded from the worst heat, he'd been
letting his mind float. "Hey, um..." He trailed off, until his mind
found the answer it sought. "Aiko, ain't it?"
"Right," she giggled. "And you're Ranma." She didn't have any trouble
remembering the name, having been thinking of him most of the time since
the class introduction. Even before that, actually; she remembered
seeing his picture and name in Gikunshi-kou's usual advert, the one
showing all the students able to get in at Tokyo University thanks to
*their* help, and her cheeks colored somewhat as she realized that. Here
she was again, about to go fluttering off like some schoolgirl with a
silly crush.
"Yep." He nodded, producing a slight smile. "'sup?"
"Oh, nothing much," she said neutrally, her mind focusing on thoughts
of "classmate" and "friend". "Mind if I sit down here?"
"No problem." Ranma waved a hand towards his side. "Ain't my tree,
anyway." An all-too-brief wind rustled the leaves slightly. "Heat's real
bad, ain't it?" he added as the girl sat down next to him.
"Sure is," Aiko agreed. A few moments passed in nervous silence,
neither of the two very good at small talk, if for vastly different
reasons. "So, what do you think of all this?" she finally ventured.
"This?" Ranma raised an eyebrow, gesturing towards the wild running
and shouting going on around them. "You mean... this?" He waited for her
to nod her head. "Don't give much for it. I guess some like the fun and
games, but I'd rather be without it." _I've had enough chaos to last a
lifetime already, no need to go to any lenghts to create *more* of it,_
the boy thought.
"I know what you mean." Aiko sighed. _Wow, he seems to be a really
serious guy. No wonder he managed to get in here._ As the boy failed to
produce a response, she fumbled a while to come up with something to
keep the conversation alive - after all, she was doing this mainly to
prove to herself that she had no problem doing just that. "Myself, I
guess I just... feel uncomfortable about it. I'm a bit shy, you see."
Understatement of the year. Briefly, Aiko wondered to herself if she
really should have said that. Talking about herself always made her
embarrassed (even more, that is, than what any conversation would
automatically do), and this was no exception; as soon as she realized
that she'd blurted it out, her cheeks grew red, thankfully hidden by the
shadow in which they sat, and the fact that Ranma currently looked in
the other direction. Maybe that was what this conversation stuff was all
about; maybe that was the reason she'd never really been able to hold
one. And maybe that meant she should try again.
The haltering conversation continued for a while, and gradually,
Aiko's confidence increased. Finally being able to talk with someone - a
cute boy, no less ... no, stop that thought or she'd lose it again -
without drawing back into a murmuring shell ... it felt good, real good.
She might not be able to repeat the feat for quite some time to come,
but better a start than nothing at all.
* * *
In his head, Ranma replayed the conversation with the girl once more.
What had she said? What had *he* said? What did it mean and imply?
Had she been flirting with him? He doubted that, but on the other
hand, that *could* be the reason she had seemed so nervous. Of course,
it might just be because, as she'd said, she was shy, but on other hand,
why had she told him that? Maybe it was a perfectly normal thing to
reveal, though. No, really, she probably hadn't. He just wished he could
be sure.
If, indeed, she *had* been, what signals had he sent her? Had he been
encouraging? After all, she'd kept the conversation going for a fair
while ... which could, actually, just be a sign of stubbornness.
_Argh._ The boy felt ready to bash his head into the desk. He just
didn't know how these things worked. All of his actions seemed perfectly
innocent to *him*, but he had no idea how anyone else would interpret
them. Should he just have turned her down when she asked permission to
share the tree's shadow with her? But wouldn't that have been
unecessarily rude?
Ranma had no idea how to deal with situations like the one he'd just
been in, but he couldn't just ignore every female he met for the coming
four years, or tell them to go to hell. So, to make sure he'd at least
be able to speak with the ones in his class without misunderstandings,
he'd have to make certain things clear.
Thus, the pig-tailed boy stood up, not exactly confident yet not as
nervous as some of the others had been, and, adding an item to his
presentation most wouldn't have, he spoke. "Name's Ranma Saotome. My
hobbies ... martial arts, I guess. I'm engaged to be married..."
* * *
"Sooo..." one of the girls trailed off. "What about you, Akane?"
"Hm?" Somewhat ashamed to admit she hadn't been paying full attention
to the conversation, she looked up at her new friends - if she could
call them that yet - with a raised eyebrow. "What about me?"
The girls who'd spoken giggled briefly. "Yeah, do you have a
boyfriend?"
"Do I have a boyfriend?" Akane mused to herself. Sure, she was engaged
to Ranma - the now suddenly so distant Ranma - but was she his
girlfriend? Up until that fatal moment, she'd felt so - at least most of
the time - but since then, an increasing stream doubts had assaulted her
mind. And what it always boiled down to... if they were a pair, if he
considered himself her boyfriend, then why, in that situation, hadn't
he... Why, even though she clearly signalled it was what she wanted, did
he turn the "offer" down? No, the whole definition of "boyfriend" and
"girlfriend" implied that if that's what they was, things would have
happened... differently.
And so, though she still loved and wanted and was determined to get
him - and only him - every bit as much as before, she gave the answer
that sent the first tiny little pebble of snow rolling down the
mountainside.
"No. I... guess I don't."
* * *
Exhausted, Akane threw her bag into a corner, and sank onto the chair,
letting out a tired breath. All in all, it had been a pretty damn busy
day, but the activities really did serve their purpose. _I could live
without some of the more embarrasing stuff,_ she though with a frown,
_but making friends and getting to know people would probably take much
longer time without this._
As her head turned towards the mattress, which looked really inviting
right now, her eyes fell on an item on the desk; a framed and propped-up
photo of a handsome, smiling young man, about her age. _Almost forgot,_
Akane scolded herself, reaching for the phone.
A few signals went through before someone picked up on the other side.
"Saotome residence," a female voice spoke through the speaker.
"Hello, auntie Saotome, this is Akane."
"Oh, hi!" the woman greeted cheerfully, then giggled softly. "I'll put
you through to Ranma right away." The girl could almost see her blinking
through the phoneline.
A few moments passed, dragging and scruffling noises carried across
the distance, before the male voice she'd missed came crackling in her
ear, the not-quite-perfect sound-quality distorting it slightly. "Hey,"
the pig-tailed boy said.
"Hey, Ranma," she greeted in return, brushing the tiredness from her
mind. "How was your day?"
"Fine, I guess." He sounded somewhat hesitant, and she guessed that he
had shaken his shoulders. "Yours?"
"Oh, real good." Akane said, letting out a sigh. "A bit tiring,
though."
"Busy, eh?" She heard a muted thumping sound and guessed it meant
Ranma had sat down.
"Yeah. But I made a few new friends. The people seem nice here."
Ranma grunted positively. "Glad to hear that."
The girl wondered what more she could say. She didn't use the phone
much, and it didn't help that Ranma seemed even worse than her - almost
as if he was reluctant to speak to her. She really *wanted* to keep
talking, maintaining at least vocal contact when a physical one had
become impossible, but a conversation really required two parts, and
this one almost didn't even have *one* part. "What about you?" she
tried.
"Ah, they're people, I guess." He came across uncaring. "Nothing
special."
Akane sighed to herself, not really caring if the boy on the other end
could hear it. Neither of them'd had much to say yesterday, or the day
before that, but this marked a new low. Perhaps she should phone
somewhat less often; that way, she might at least be able to *really*
speak with him, instead of these empty phrases. "Well, see you," she
finally said, not coming up with any artificial ways to keep the
conversation alive.
"See ya," she heard, and then the clicking sound that indicated her
fiance had hung up.
* * *
Ooyake looked down at the short-haired girl sitting in the armchair.
Quite cute, that one. He adjusted the sleeves of his loose-fitting dark
blue shirt to make sure he gave the right careless-yet-not impression,
and brushed a few stray locks of black hair out of his eyes, keeping it
all slanted to the left. Coughing slightly, the boy gestured towards the
seat next to her with an inquisitive glance - his other hand stll stuck
into the pocket of his jeans - and then, as no protest came, sat down
there. "So." He turned towards her. "You new here?"
"Yeah," Akane nodded, taking a shallow sip from her drink. _Tall guy,_
she thought. _Kinda good-looking, especially in that shirt, but no
Ranma._
He smiled at her. "Having a good time?"
"Yep." She nodded, returning the smile briefly. "I'm real glad my
friends managed to drag me here." And she was. At first, she'd wanted to
study - and besides, she hadn't been so sure this partying would be her
thing - but really, she'd finished the grueling high school period and
passed on to university, which would be a breeze in comparison, or so
everyone said.
To her surprise, the girl even found herself liking the drink, and the
way it made her feel more at ease. She'd be careful not to overdo it,
though; she knew her limit. Or that's what she thought.
* * *
"Urrrk." Still hunched over the toilet seat, Akane reached for a towel
to wipe her mouth. A brief look in the mirror revealed that her face
still had a distinctly green tone, and she groaned again.
"First time, eh?" the mocking voice of her friend came from above,
followed by loud snickering. "You should've taken it easy on the drink,
then."
"I'll never have a single drop again as long as I live," the short-
haired girl observed weakly, giving her reflection a miserable look.
The other girl grinned. "That's what they all say." She laid an arm
around Akane's shoulder to comfort her. "Don't worry, it happens to
everyone."
* * *
Ranma sighed, stubbornly sticking his hands into his pockets as he
eyed the room disinterestedly; the smell of nicotine assaulted his nose,
accompanied by all-too-loud music, its deep bass making his stomach
vibrate. "Tell me again, why am I here?"
Mimicking his sigh, Nabiki knocked her fist lightly on top of his
head. "Really, Ranma," she said, tiredly, though she had to raise her
voice to be heard. "You need to loosen up a little. Didn't even go to
*any* of the introducory class-parties, did you?"
"No," he answered, unemotionally. "And you knew that."
"Damn right I did." The girl grinned slightly. "Can't have you just
sitting around at home growing moldy, I doubt my sister would like
that..." She pushed him forward. "Have fun. Drink a bit. Dance. Be
yourself, not the boring geek you've seemed like lately. Takes more than
studies to succeed, you know."
"Whatever." He sighed again, but set sight for the bar. Maybe that way
she would at least leave him alone.
Nabiki watched him for a few seconds, shaking her head, then set
sight for the circle of friends she spotted of in the distance.
* * *
_Kampai,_ Ranma thought to himself, with what would have been a tired
and bored edge on his voice had he spoken the word out loud. He lifted
the glass container and poured the last of its contents into his mouth,
yet another glass of beer running down his throat. At least it didn't
taste as much as the first few had. He eyed those around him briefly.
People dancing wildly ... couples chatting cheerfully at the tables...
Bah. What was there to be happy about? "Have fun," the stupid bitch
had said, but how could he? Sure, he knew she really did mean well, but
Ranma saw no point in all that jumping about, nothing to enjoy in the
meaningless chatter. Especially with no Akane around.
That's what he really missed. Her. Probably wouldn't see his girl for
weeks, and the empty phonecalls gave nothing. No amount of fake trying
to have fun would change it, so why bother? He raised a hand to call
attention, waving his glass slightly. "Another one, please." The boy dug
into his pocket to throw up a few random coins.
The damn drink didn't help any, either. He felt at least twice as
miserable now as he had when he entered ... yet, for some reason, he
couldn't stop. Ranma figured he soon wouldn't be able to order more,
anyway; might as well keep going 'til then. Letting out one more tired,
dejected sigh, like so many before it this evening, he let his head sink
into his arms. And all around, people laughed and smiled... Why? Why'd
they have to be so damn happy about it? Didn't feel fair at all. He
raised the glass, now full again, to his lips.
As he put it down, a short sip later, he felt a tap on his shoulder,
and turned to look. Was it Nabiki again, come to check how he was doing?
She'd tried to cheer him up several times already; by now, she probably
regretted that she'd insisted on bringing him.
It wasn't, though. "Hey, Ranma," the girl said, nervously. "Didn't
expect to see you here."
He recognized the face, but in his current state, it took the boy a
few seconds to place it, and come up with the right name to go with it.
"Oh," he finally answered. "Hey, Aiko. I could say the same."
Thankfully, as far as he could judge, he still spoke clearly; it would
embarrass him considerably to seem like some rambling drunk.
Sitting down on the stool next to his, the girl smiled at him; a warm
smile, though perhaps somewhat forced. Not forced enough for Ranma to
notice, though, and the sweatdrops on the back of her head escaped his
attention completely. "Some older friends were going here," Aiko
explained. "I figured I'd go along with them."
Not quite all of the truth. She hadn't been to any off the class-
parties; she always felt so out of place at such occasions, and when
Jikiko-sempai, aware that her younger friend had been staying at home,
asked if she wanted to come along for the evening, she'd first intended
to decline. But then...
"I think at least one of your friends will be there, too." Even that
hadn't really interested her much; she hadn't really befriended any of
them yet, hardly even spoken to them. Most of the time, it took Aiko
months to make new friends, if she made them at all. "That boy," Jikiko
continued, not noticing or not caring about her friends disinterested
expression, "what's his name... Ranma. Nabiki told me she'd take him
along." The older girl giggled. "Did you know he's engaged to her
younger sister? Shame on such a cute boy. She says she had to drag him
along or he'd just sit at home and mope all day long."
That's what settled it. Aiko felt ashamed of herself; even *before*
she knew of the engagement, she had decided she wouldn't think of Ranma
as a ... as a "boy". Still, she couldn't help but feel... She pushed the
thought aside, hoping that he wouldn't notice her knees shaking. She'd
come along trying to fool herself into thinking that it wasn't really
for his sake, that she might perhaps find it amusing after all, but
she'd never been good at lying to herself. And now, here she was, facing
him ... as usual, with no idea of what to say.
"So, how are you doing, Ranma? Having a good time?"
He frowned, raising the glass to his lips again for another sip. "Not
really."
"Oh." Briefly, she looked aside, afraid to meet his eyes. "I'm sorry
to hear that." Gah, how cheap that sounded.
But Ranma didn't really notice, just as bad at talking as she was.
"Look," he said, laying a hand on her shoulder. "Don't waste your time
trying to cheer me up. You won't succeed. Go have fun instead."
Aiko's cheeks colored as she felt his strong hand rest right next to
her head. "I..." Briefly, a tear appeared in the corner of her eye, and
she wished she knew why. "I could say the same."
But despite her words, she rose, too afraid of making even more of a
fool out of herself to dare remain. _No use in trying to fool myself,_
she thought, heading for the exit. _That's the only reason I came ...
now, I might just as well go._
Nabiki eyed Ranma in the corner of her eye. The boy had sunk onto the
table again. She sighed, shaking her head. _Hopeless._ With that
thought, she returned her full attention to her friends. _Next time he
says he doesn't want to come, I won't push him. This didn't do any good
at all._
* * *
Briefly distracted by a random thought, Akane looked into the ground
as she opened the front door, her brow furrowed in thought, and let out
a short yelp of surprise as she bumped into something.
Taking a step back and trying to force her irritation aside with an
embarrassed smile, she looked up at... a boy. Tall, kinda handsome, with
long (but not *too* long) black hair and a friendly smile; seemingly not
at all bothered by the situation. There was something vaguely familiar
about his face, but when she tried to place it, all her mind came up
with was fuzzy outlines... the sound of distorted syllables floating
by... She must've met him at one of the parties, but the details of
when, where and how remained just out of her reach, taunting her.
Ooyake suppressed a grin. What luck, running into the cute girl he so
well remembered - and she even seemed to be living in the same house!
The young man raised a hand. "Hey, Akane," he greeted.
The girl scratched the back of her head embarrassedly. "Oh, uh, hi..."
she spoke, now almost ready to bash her head into the house to force the
information to come out. "I'm sorry, you..."
"Ah, no problem." He flashed her a smile, pretending not to care about
the fact that he hadn't been able to make enough of a lasting impression
for her to remember his name. The boy bowed his head slightly before he
continued. "Hoso Ooyake. We met at..."
This time, it was her turn to interrupt. "Oh, yeah, I remember now." A
slight exaggeration, but at least the picture had started to form, even
if she still couldn't quite recall much details. "So, you live here too.
What a coincidence!" Another slight exaggeration; many students chose
this area, but still...
"Yeah, isn't it?" He nodded, brushing a hand through his fringe hair.
"I'm in a bit of a hurry tonight, but would you care to join me for
dinner later?"
She contemplated the offer briefly. A nice one, and indeed a nice boy,
but still... it felt a bit... wrong. Really, she didn't want to give any
wrong impressions; at least not too wrong ones. Sure, Ranma certainly
didn't own her - judging by the way he acted at ... that time ... even
*he* didn't seem to think so - but dinner with a boy she hardly knew,
no, that *would* constitute somewhat of a betrayal; more of one than she
wanted to commit just yet. "Sorry, no, I've... got other plans already."
She shook her head, wondering why she hadn't chosen the much easier path
of telling him the truth.
"Ahwell." Ooyake shrugged, heading for the door. "Maybe some other
time." As he passed her by, he set his jaw. _Some other time, for sure._
Seeing her in sober condition and with a fully lit environment made him
even more determined of that.
* * *
Stepping out, Ooyake locked the door behind him with a sigh. He shook
his shoulders, trying to make the shirt hang looser, but without much
success; it still came way too close to his bony chest.
The boy had regretted buying this set of clothes almost immediately,
but now everything else was in the wash, and even this would be better
than the humiliation of going out wearing something not perfectly clean.
Briefly, he contemplated staying at home... But then, maybe someone
would ask him where he'd been, and what would he answer then? Or maybe
some opportunite would come up during the day, which he'd miss by not
being present. Better to do what was expected of him, and stay in his
set role.
Ooyake always did what he could to appear confident, acted strong, but
the thought of something piercing through that carefully set through
mask terrified him... They'd all laugh at him. Point at him, mock him.
Hoso Ooyake - tall and skinny, not fitting in at all.
How could anyone ever like someone like him? Because of his friendly
personality? Nobody ever cared about such things, not really. Better not
to take any chances, and hide it whenever possible. To seem like
everyone else, but even more so.
He opened the front door and left the building, acutely aware of how
the sweater brushed against his skinny frame with every move - and now
that he thought of it, the color didn't fit quite as well as it had
originally had seemed to, did it? His hair... didn't it look a few
millimeters too long? Maybe he should have gotten it cut yesterday. And
had he really gotten the correct angle this morning? _Argh._
Then, he heard a friendly voice just behind out, calling his name, and
turned to look...
To look at... at her...
Ooyake struggled not to break out crying; of all the people who could
see him like this, it would have to be her. Perhaps later it would not
matter, but now she would be able to briefly see an aspect of the real
him before the image he tried to paint had been firmly engraved in her
head.
"Oh, hi, Akane. How are you today?" The boy plastered on a fake smile,
but inwardly, he sighed. Another battle lost almost before its start.
Now he'd never be able to catch her interest again... She'd smile
falsely, yes, and then snicker behind his back, when she thought he
wouldn't be able to hear it. Press on ahead to avoid being seen with
someone like him, a skeleton of a guy who didn't even have decent taste
in clothing.
"Oh, the usual. Could be better I guess." The girl kept her smile, but
he could detect nothing fake about it. "Nice weather we're having
today."
He studied her face, trying to see those subtle signals of disdain
that would appear as she fully took in his not-quite-perfect appearance.
But they didn't come. "Say, what is it you study, anyway? I'm not sure
I remember."
The conversation flowed on, and it intrigued Ooyake, the way she felt
so... genuine. For perhaps the first time in many years, an interest
rose within him prompted by more than a desire to gain status and keep
up a good appearance.
* * *
Ranma briefly let the voice of the lecturer drift in through one ear
and out through the others - these days, it felt like he paid more
attention than most students anyway - and turned his head slightly to
the left, to look at Aiko, a few rows ahead of him.
As usual, like him, the girl gave at least an outward appearance of
listening. That marked them off as somewhat unique in the class; perhaps
even in the entire university. Most seemed satisfied enough just to be
here, not really caring about what their results what would be. He knew
that's how it usually worked - except for the last few months of the
final year, nobody bothered to study on the university level... but
would he, the big stupid macho jock, be able to catch up in that short
time? The rest of these people were supposed to be smart, unlike him, so
he couldn't afford to take the risk. He had to finish the education, and
he had to be *sure* he would do it ... even if it meant having to study
harder than others.
Besides, what was the alternative? He could've spent the time
chatting, but there was nobody here he would care to chat *with*. He
could go out partying every night, but even staying at home reading was
preferable to that, mostly. No, *that* was what set them apart... unlike
the others here, neither he nor Aiko were particularly outgoing people.
At least he felt a slight comfort in not being alone. Perhaps he
could...
* * *
As the lecture ended, Aiko looked up over her shoulder, eyes widening
slightly as she found Ranma standing beside her.
"Hey, Aiko," he grunted.
"Oh, hello," the girl responded, wondering why he'd want to speak with
*her*, the thought alone producing a slight increase in the rate of her
heartbeat.
Ranma waved the book in the air. "I was wondering..." He hesitated
slightly. "I don't know about you, but I think this stuff is pretty
difficult. Maybe we could study together a bit?"
The long-haired girl knew she could only respond in one way, a nervous
smile appearing on her face. "S-sure," she stuttered, mentally cursing
her shyness.
As the boy suggested a time, she wondered *why* he had asked. Ranma
had stated early on that he already had a fiancee, and he always seemed
so serious; she doubted that he would ever even *think* of flirting with
another girl.
Yet, at the university, joint studying was really unheard of ... at
least as anything but a cheap excuse for company. And as she had just
observed, Ranma was more serious than most - what use would a smart guy
like *him* have for her help?
So why had he invited her? Part of Aiko's mind desperately wished that
it meant Ranma showed interest in her, while other parts with equal
force insisted that it would be terrible if such were the case... And
what if he was? The mere thought of it made her knees weak, and she
cursed herself again - hadn't she decided long ago to shut that
possibility out?
* * *
As Aiko reached for the pencil, which had rolled forward a bit, she
raised her head slightly, and for the first time, her eyes happened to
fall on the photo.
A bit surprising, actually. The first thing she'd noticed upon
entering Ranma's room was that it felt so ... empty, even compared to
what she'd expected of a boy's room. A window, with no curtains or other
furnishings, overlooked the city outside, letting in a bit of sunlight,
and a simple closet held his clothes and items, or so she assumed. The
desk at which they sat, a few random books stapled atop it, constitued
the only other piece of furniture, except for the simple mattress - its
perfectly clean sheets arranged with almost clinical precision.
Despite that, and having been here for quite a while already, she
hadn't, until now, noticed the simple, black wooden frame, in which
rested a photo of a young girl (or young woman) about their age, her
hair cut short and a warm smile on her face.
Aiko touched the frame with a few of her fingers, brushing them along
its well-polished surface. "Is that her?" she asked, distracted.
"Hm?" Ranma still hadn't looked up from the book, his mind deep in the
seemingly unsolvable equation.
"On the photo." The long-haired girl leaned back in her chair. "Is she
your girlfriend?"
The boy raised his head. "Oh, yeah. That's Akane, my fiancee." A
slight smile appeared on his face, though Aiko didn't notice.
The re-wording brought an odd question to her mind, and it progressed
through her mouth before she had time to stop it. "Do you love her?"
"Love? N..." Ranma hesitated, then cursed himself for it; he'd never
really needed to actually vocally admit it to anyone but Akane herself
before, and old reactions died hard, even though no real reason
remained. "Yeah, I do."
"Oh." Aiko let out an inaudible sigh, desperately hoping the boy would
not catch it. Yet, the way he had said it... Cutting off the line of
thought, she looked back into her books again - and then, as the
infinitesimally different perspective suddenly made the solution
obvious, jolted back up. "I've got it," she exclaimed happily, quickly
jotting the answer down. "Look, all you have to do is..."
The boy leaned over to look at her writings, then grinned. "Heh, I'd
never have figured that out on my own. Thanks!" On an impulse, he gave
her shoulders a brief friendly squeeze, his arm laid her back. "You're a
real pal, Aiko."
He regretted it almost instantly, but then the deed was already done.
But... she knew him, she wouldn't interpret it the wrong way, would she?
While Ranma hoped his reaction would not produce a blow to the head or
a cry of "pervert", Aiko's mind sent itself spinning, her brain now
almost unable to control her body. No sound came out of her mouth for
several minutes, but the boy didn't notice, occupied by trying to figure
out the *next* problem.
The hopes she'd been afraid to admit even to herself that she held
when she came here... At first, it seemed not so, but... If not, then
why?
Now that she thought about it, it seemed somewhat odd that Ranma never
referred to that girl as his "girlfriend". He always said "fiancee" - in
fact, Aiko had never even heard her name before. Added to that, the
boy's hesitance to speak of feelings, what could that mean? That he
didn't really care for this Akane, but had been pushed into an arranged
engagement, and his sense of honor forced him to accept it, to claim
that he wanted it?
Yes, it had to be. The only possible explanation. Still, doubts
remained in her mind, doubts strong enough for her not to dare act on
her guesses.
* * *
_What to do today?_ Ranma pondered. An unecessary question, though; he
would do the same things he had most of the days before it - practice a
bit, and study. He didn't really think the upcoming test would be all
that difficult, and had already spent a fairly decent amount of time
preparing for it, but what else remained to do? Most of his
"classmates"... well, what *did* they do? Ranma wasn't really sure.
Socialized? Partied? Club activities? None of the clubs really
interested him, especially since they seemed to be centered around some
sort of hierarchy with the older students ruling it over the younger
ones - and that he could do without.
So he'd do what he knew how to. _Besides, this will probably be pretty
hard, so I'll need to study seriously,_ he told himself once more, and
nodded, now convinced.
His father, however, after spending the previous night drinking with
Souun, had forgotten to tell me that he really wouldn't need to make
plans for today.
* * *
Akane smiled as she looked up at the small house wherein the Saotome
family currently lived. After a quick stop by at the Tendou home to say
hello, she went right here, anxious to meet her fiance again, for the
first time in many weeks.
"Gomen kudasai!" she called as she stepped in, tossing her shoes off,
and soon found Ranma entering the hall to greet her. The boy, dressed as
sloppily as always, held a book in his right hand, a finger tucked in to
keep track of where, and he leant against the doorway lazily.
"Oh, Akane," he said, trying to hide his surprise; he would not have
fooled her, except she did not bother to notice.
The girl stepped up, giving him a warm hug, and both youngsters had
wide smiles on their faces as they separated.
"Hey, come on in." Ranma headed for the stairs, motioning for her to
follow, and briefly stopped by at the entrance to the kitchen, where his
mother roamed about, busy preparing the day's nourishment - not a task
to be taken lightly in a household containing both father and son
Saotome. The woman hummed happily to herself, echoing a tune on the
nearby radio.
"One more for dinner, Mom," he called.
"Hm? Why's that?" Nodoka said distractedly as she wiped her hands on
the plain apron she wore, then turned around, flashing a smile as she
noticed the visitor. "Oh, hello, Akane! What a pleasant surprise."
The girl curtsied slightly, displaying just the right amount of
politiness. "Hello, auntie Saotome."
As the pair proceeded up the stair, Akane following behind her fiance,
she let out a soft sigh. Nothing wrong with auntie Saotome's cooking,
but at the very least, after all this time, she'd expected him to treat
her to dinner out. _He never has been much of a romantic, I guess,_ she
thought to herself.
Ranma put the book on his desk as they entered his room, folding it
open again. "I just gotta finish reading this chapter, then I guess we
could go practice a bit or something." He scratched his chin. "Yeah, I
should have time for that. There's a decent dojo just round the corner."
Sinking down to sit on the mattress in the corner, the short-haired
girl stared at the back of his head with wide-open eyes, a tear starting
to form in the edge of one of them.
She'd even informed her father in good time so everyone would be
prepared for her visit, and now here she was... with Ranma not even
giving her his full attention. What was wrong?
Something *had* to be - no university student, certainly least of all
Ranma, would feel the need to *study* more important than anything else,
so why? And why such a totally empty excuse?
She couldn't figure out what to make of it - but it hurt.
* * *
Ooyake smiled, brushing a hand through his hair. "Yeah, I can see
that," he said, in answer to the girl's statement, nodding.
Self-consciously, he adjusted the zipper on his jacket slightly. Sure,
he'd been walking to school with Akane almost every morning since that
day, and by now felt quite comfortable in her company, knowing that with
her, he didn't have to pretend, that she wouldn't despise him even if he
didn't hold up the correct mask. He enjoyed the feeling a lot, but
despite that, he still preferred doing what he could to keep appearances
up. It might not matter much to her, but he had led this life for too
long to change it in such a short time, or for only one person, even if
that person was her.
Or perhaps *especially* because that person was her. Sure, he could
always detect a genuine friendliness in the way Akane acted towards him
- well, except for those times when he'd had the misfortune of invoking
her fierce temper - but whenever he tried to press for more, she
resisted, stepped aside without quite answering. Not encouraging him,
yet ... not really discouraging him, either.
How was he to take that? Did she send out some signal that he missed,
despite all the practice he had, all the attention he focused on such
matters?
Until he figured it out, though, he'd keep trying. _Now that I think
of it, it's been a while since last..._
Making a final adjustment, Ooyake cleared his throat to make sure he
got her full attention. "Say, Akane, how about going out for dinner
tonight?"
"Hm?" The short-haired girl looked up at his face, quite a bit above
hers. Every time he'd asked before, she'd turned him down, but for every
time, that also got harder - Ooyake *was* a quite nice guy, after all,
and seemed more so the better she got to know him. Kinda like Ranma in
the way he tried to hide behind a tough exterior. Except he'd been
showing through, while lately, her fiance...
Oh, yes, when she'd been home this weekend, and Ranma almost ignored
her (an exaggeration on part of her memory, yet one with a slight basis
in truth). After that, could he expect to keep some sort of hold on her?
_Hmph. I deserve to be taken out by *someone*, and if it's not *him*..._
Finally, she nodded, flashing the young man a slight smile. "Sure, why
not?"
* * *
Ranma let his face, somewhat smaller and more delicate than usual,
sink into his arms, folded upon the old, cracked wooden desk, without
quite fully breaking mental contact with the lecture around him; the
simply furnished classroom and the somewhat sloppily dressed professor.
At first, he was worried he'd have problems if he turned up female at
school, but it soon turned out his fears were unfounded.
The teachers... Well, to them, one student was as good as another;
nobody ever cared about learning anything, anyway - none of them noticed
the missing boy, and none of them cared about the appearance of one more
girl, especially when that girl kept her mouth shut, which was more than
could be said of most students.
When Ranma's female body made the first of its relatively rare
appearances in class, some of the boys had briefly found her
interesting, just like some of the girls had been interested in his male
body the first few weeks, but soon, they realised that the sister - so
similar she even chose the same clothing and the same hairstyle - would
remain every bit as boring as the brother.
So, they left Ranma alone, male or female, and that suited him fine.
Well, most of them. "Hey, Ranko," a soft whisper came from behind.
"So, you're here today?"
The boy-turned-girl swiveled his head to flash a slight smile at Aiko,
nodding wordlessly.
Aiko leaned back in her chair again. Ranko didn't come often... But
most students spent the time idly chatting, so it wasn't like she lost
much, anyway. However, that also meant Aiko never really got a chance to
know the girl. A shame; she seemed nice, much like Ranma - maybe the
only girl in class whose company she really felt she could enjoy. And
perhaps equally important, she admitted to herself, a chance to somehow
get closer to Ranma without really having to make a fool out of herself
in front of him.
* * *
Always the perfectionist, Ooyake smoothed out the sleeves of his shirt
as they sat down at the table. He'd spent almost the whole afternoon
nervously fiddling, trying to pick an outfit that would make him appear
a bit more formal than usual, but not too much so - then he'd just
appear out of place.
The young man shook his head, cursing his stupidity. Akane wouldn't
really either care either way - after all, wasn't that part of the
reason why he liked her? It still made him feel more confident, though,
and judging by the butterflies still present in his stomach, he needed
any boost he could get right now.
Akane, in her usual dress, looked as cute as ever, and he smiled at
her with a slight hint of embarrassment. "I'm afraid I couldn't afford
taking you to any of the *fine* places, but at least this is better than
your average fast-food joint..."
The girl smiled back. "Oh, that's OK. I wouldn't feel at home in a
posh place anyway."
Ooyake breathed a sigh of relief, finding to his surprise that despite
every implication to the contrary, he'd been afraid she'd prefer
something more formal. "I really wanted to do something myself, but..."
He patted his stomach for emphasis, the wide shirt pushed inwards to
indicate the thin body beneath it. "I don't eat much myself, so I've
never really learned to cook."
Almost immediately, Akane looked down into the table, a slight blush
coloring her face. She giggled nervously. "No need to feel bad about
that," she said, her voice low as she brought up one of the weaknesses
that bothered her most. "I doubt you're even half as bad as me. You see,
I'm a true disaster in the kitchen."
It almost shocked the girl to realize that she could admit it so
easily to him. She'd always been aware of her cooking skills - how could
she not? - but the way people ... people? She meant only one person, and
she knew it. The way Ranma insulted and challenged her about it, she had
no choice but to respond the way she did; anything else would be to
admit defeat.
Yet here she could talk freely about it with Ooyake - because he had
opened up to her first... Something Ranma, always so desperate to stay
closed, almost never did.
* * *
Akane smiled to herself as she skipped happily down the sidewalk, in a
way that might make any passers-by think they had met an overgrown seven-
year-old. Truly, this was a great idea!
Sure, she loved the life she now lived; she went out often, and
enjoyed it, and the lack of burdensome studies felt great. There'd been
many new friends to replace those she'd lost contact with somewhat when
she left, and Ooyake, the boy, was nice, even if she did feel a sting of
guilt whenever she talked to him, despite the total innocence of the
"relationship".
This life lacked one thing, though. It lacked Ranma.
She'd been rather upset when she last left him, but Akane had never
been one to stay angry for long, and the way their last encounter had
went made her longing to *really* be with him even stronger.
So, when a large, unexpected hole in the schedule popped up, what do?
_Go see Ranma, of course!_ Her steps quickened even more in
anticipation. _Boy will he be surprised to see me._ She'd travelled
directly here, choosing not to waste time on her family.
Soon, she found the Saotome residence within her range of vision, and
took a leap forward... then stopped, heart caught in her throat, as she
took in the whole scene.
Ranma stood on the front steps, a smile - a friendly smile, not the
nervous one she could now admit it had usually been when he dealt with
the "other girls" - on his lips as he waved off the retreating figure
of...
...a young woman, beatiful long hair flowing down her sides as she
walked away. She turned briefly, the smiling, cute face visible to Akane
as the girl waved back.
Akane stood there for a while, shaking, then turned around and left,
her steps now slow and heavy. She'd come this far just to meet him
again, but after what she'd just seen, how could she?
It seemed rather obvious to her what had happened; yes, obvious
indeed. It couldn't really be anything else, could it?
A voice of conscience in the back of her head told her she couldn't
really blame him, not considering what she'd done herself ... but that
hardly made her feel better, and tears slowly trickled down her cheeks
as she headed back towards the station.
* * *
With gentle, motherly hands, Nodoka put the bowl of rise on the table,
then sat down with a slight bow, chopsticks in her hands. "Itadakimas'!"
And with those words, echoed by her son across the table, feeding
began.
She tilted her head and smiled warmly, watching the boy intently. _His
table-manners could do with some improvement, but I guess he needs to
eat well to grow into a true man..._
Ranma paused, swallowing the contents of his mouth as he looked up at
his mother. "Something bothering you?" he asked, the words barely
legible through the scrambling effects of a mouth full of food.
"Oh, I've been thinking about something." The woman sounded somewhat
concerned. "You've been engaged to Akane for several years, but now that
she's not around, I've noticed you've started to take that sweet girl
home, Aiko..."
Ranma could feel the sweat on the back of his head. "Oh, er, um," he
faltered. "It's nothing like that, really mom, we're just friends and
all..."
Nodoka continued unfazed, and seemed not to have heard his words.
"...and I want you to know, I approve. She's a well-mannered young lady,
and if you want to pursue her on the side, you have my full support."
Taken by surprise, he merely stared at her in shock, but managed to
produce an inquisitive grunt. "Gah?"
"Really, Ranma." The mother shook her head, her voice once again
taking on a concerned tone. "Socializing is just as important for
getting a job as your studies are, perhaps even more so, but you never
go out, so I was starting to worry..." Her face lit up again as she let
the sentence trail off and drift into a new one. "It seems I was wrong,
though." She reached over to pat his shoulder. "And such a fine choice,
too."
Ranma sighed, letting his shoulders sag in defeat. Now that his mother
had gone off on a rant about her son's manliness, he'd never be able to
get through with the truth. Perhaps it wouldn't even be a good idea to
try, but still, what if she mentioned it to somebody? He felt a chill
run down his spine as a picture formed in his mind of his mother
bragging to Souun about the manliness of the Tendou father's future son-
in-law...
As if listening to his thoughts, she gave him a conspiratorial wink.
"Oh, don't look so glum, I promise I won't tell anyone." Her smile
widened. "Maybe I should go on a trip and leave you alone in the house
for a few days?"
* * *
Akane shook the bottle a few times to make sure that she really *had*
emptied it, and heaved a disappointed sigh. She'd barely gotten started,
and already out of drink...
A burping sound escaped her throat before she could stop it, and she
stifled it in her hand, giggling to herself as she tried to get proper
focus on her watch. _Barely gotten started might have been a slight
exaggeration,_ the short-haired girl thought as she leaned back in the
comfortable sofa, her head swimming as conversation all around passed
over her head in one big jumble of incomprehensible words.
A hand on her shoulder interrupted her failing attempts to clear her
mind, and with some effort, she could make out the words aimed directly
at her. "Unh. Ooyake." She shook her head in a vain attempt to clear the
haze away. "Having fun tonight?"
He shook his head softly as he sat down in the now empty seat next to
hers. "Not really," the boy answered, an ever-so-slight slur in his
voice indicating that he'd been drinking, too, if not as heavily. "But
at least it's looking up now that I found you."
Akane giggled again. "Silly, I've been here all evening, how could you
have missed me?" She put the bottle to her lips in a final attempt to
get a few more drops out of it, pouting resignedly at her failure. "I'm
not really enjoying myself, either. Shouldn't have come, I don't know
any of these people."
Ooyake flashed her a smile. "Except for me, right?"
She nodded, putting the bottle away, and closed her eyes hard for a
few seconds as she answered. "'sright. I could do without these people."
The boy raised a half-empty glass to his lips, emptying it's blue-
colored contents into down his throat in a single gulp as he gathered
his courage. "So..." he ventured. "Wanna leave this place? You've never
been to my place, right?" He winked.
Even in her inebriated state, Akane easily recognized his true
intent... and realized he had meant it to be obvious, having no wish to
deceive her.
_Still,_ the girl thought, _What the heck, why not?_ She liked Ooyake
well enough, and nothing held her back... Ranma? Yeahright, hadn't she
seen that girl leave his house? She should have known, with the way he'd
been treating her. Not like he ever cared for her, anyway. Just
something arranged, another possession. Well, she wouldn't be having any
of that.
And so, she felt only a brief stab of guilt as she nodded. "Sure,
let's go."
* * *
Ranma took a sip from his newly opened beer and stepped forward a
couple of paces, the crowd parting around him to let him through. _Why
am I here?_ he asked himself with a sigh. _I knew it wouldn't work._
"Socializing is just as important for getting a job as your studies
are," his mother had said, but now it felt to him it might already be
too late. The party had barely begun, but it already bored him out of
his head, and besides, people avoided him, as attempts to speak to him
early in school had revealed they might as well do.
He took another sip, then grunted. _I already know this stuff won't
help._ Yet the boy couldn't help but keep the bottle in his hand as he
stepped forward again, coming out on the other side of the group of
people to view a cluster of small, round wooden tables in a corner of
the smoky locale, most of them empty.
Most of them, but not all; at the one closest to him sat a female
figure, staring emptily at a distant wall as she absent-mindedly stirred
her greyish drink with a black straw, head resting in her other hand.
Some of her long, black hair had fallen forward to cover her face and
obscure her down-cast eyes, but it seemed she lacked even the energy to
brush it out of the way.
Briefly, she looked up, the sound of his approaching feet enough to
raise her interest somewhat, and their eyes met for a second.
He turned his head towards her table and one of the other chairs at
it, not noticing how her eyes seemed to lit up and a minor touch of heat
warmed her face as he pulled the chair across the floor, letting his
behind sink onto its hard, polished surface without bothering to ask for
permission.
Ranma raised the green-tinted bottle to his lips again, then changed
his mind before any of the liquid within reached his mouth, and put it
down, the clonking sound as it hit the table drowning in the noise
around them. "What a surprise to see you here," he noted. "Didn't think
you were the party type."
"Oh, I'm not, really," Aiko hurried to respond, a slight blush now
coloring her cheeks. "I haven't been out for a really long time, so it's
quite a coincidence to meet you here," she lied, voice muted. She dared
not tell him that ever since that first meeting, she'd been to each and
every class get-together, sitting silently in the shadows and watching
the others enjoy themselves in the vain hope that he might come; not
missing a single one out of fear that he *could* have been there.
"Look at them." He gestured at the crowd. "All having fun. Feh." This
time, he *did* take a swig. "I guess this just isn't for us, eh?"
She nodded silently, then raised her glass to do the same. Some time
passed as they both looked into their drink-containers.
Finally, Ranma spoke up. "No, I really shouldn't have bothered to
come." He shook his head as he pushed the chair out again, rising to his
feet. "This is hopeless. I'm leaving."
"W-wait." The sudden change in the situation made Aiko gather her
courage slightly, and she hurried to use it before the moment had
passed, stretching a hand towards him. "I don't like this either...
Won't you come over to my home and have a cup of tea?" she stammered,
glad that her reddening face would not be as obvious as it would have
been out in the open.
The boy pondered the offer, then nodded, almost making her heart skip
a beat. "Sure," he said, "why not?"
* * *
Aiko poured the cups in silence, burst of courage now over, then sat
down opposite him, the finely ornamented teapot between them on the
table as what seemed to her almost like a symbolical obstruction.
Beneath the table, the heater warmed their legs. Except for the circle
of light shed by the small lamp on the table, darkness rested all
around, the house's other occupants already fast asleep.
The two took their first few sips in silence, neither quite sure of
how to interpret the situation they had put themselves into.
As time passed, Aiko felt her thin strands of confidence slowly gather
in her heart, little by little; some of them perhaps originating in the
alcohol she'd consumed earlier the same evening. Finally, enough had
gathered to overcome the mental obstacles in one big hurdle, her need of
confirmation grown stronger than the fear, and she reached out with a
hand to touch his cheek, her soft skin gently brushing across the traces
of coarse stubble... then they both leaned forwards, heads slowly
drawing closer and closer, inch by inch, until they met, lips just
barely touching...
And Ranma broke away with an almost violent jerk, a tear forming in
the corner of the young woman's eye as he wearily pushed himself to his
feet, his eyes darting aside to avoid looking at her. "Aiko, I'm
sorry... I... I can't..." His voice was so low, barely a whisper, yet in
the silent, empty apartment she could hear it with full clarity, not
daring to even sob out of fear of missing part of the message, despite
the sharp, almost unbearable pain attacking her chest. "I'm so sorry...
I shouldn't even have come... Please forgive me... "
The girl just sat there, unmoving, as he silently went to the hall,
putting on his shoes. Just as stepped out, he spoke again, voice still
barely audible. "Please, it's best if you forget this ever happened..."
Then the door closed, and Ranma was gone.
Aiko exploded, a river of tears flowing down her cheeks as she threw
her head into her arms, folded on the table, and attempted to escape the
world.
* * *
And time passed, as it often did; too quickly for some, yet
agonisingly slowly for others. Eventually, the chilly days of winter
gave way to the somewhat brighter sun, and there was much rejoicing.
Most , or at least much, of this rejoicing was had by those currently
trapped somewhere in the Japanese educational system (except the ones
for whom the High School period drew to a close; they were much too
preoccupied worrying about the approaching entrance tests), since they
would now gain a few short weeks (too short, as they always are at such
times) of respite, and then be moved one step up the ladder.
* * *
Leaning back in the chair, Ranma could feel the cold, rounded sticks
making up its back push against his hard flesh. He gazed at the picture
in his hands, his fingers gripping its frame tight to make sure beyond
all doubt that he would not drop it.
_Akane..._ That single thought stayed in his otherwise empty mind for
a long time, as he felt the thumping of his heart grow stronger and
stronger.
When he first made the decision that took him to this point, he'd
thought that he could be strong, that reminding himself of the reward
awaiting at the end of the journey would be enough... But the boy had
never been one to plan far ahead, and now, already, he could feel the
pain and emptiness in his heart grow stronger for every day that passed.
Suddenly, he noticed that a tear had begun the voyage down his face,
several more on their way to follow it, and he hugged the photo close to
his chest, as if afraid to show his weakness even to this reproduction
of her face.
If he felt this way after the passage of a single year, how could he
possibly hope to endure three more?
No. He brought the photo forward again, locking his gaze with that of
the deep, brown eyes that met him on the glossy surface. She had no
objections; *that* had been obvious that time they were confronted
before she left, when he was the first to speak... Soon, she'd come
home, over the break; he would ask her then.
He let the determination settle into his mind. Yes, he was himself the
only thing that stood in the way; when they next met, he would ask.
Finally having managed to snatch at least a minor crumb of happiness,
he drifted off to a weary sleep without even bothering to rise, his mind
filled with images of the girl in the photo, in a flowering white dress,
her warm, friendly smile hidden under its thin veil.
* * *
Akane rose from the bench as he approached, her beaming smile almost
as warm as the bright sun in the cloudless sky above and her charming
dress, with a subtle flowery pattern, competing with the chirping birds
for attention. All in all, the day couldn't have been better.
Yet even though Ooyake had thought he'd reached a firm decision, he
felt doubts enter his mind as the moment of truth drew ever so close.
A year ago, he never quite noticed the emptiness of his life, the
facade of happiness and satisfaction so carefully painted that he almost
believed it himself. Almost, but not quite; there was that faint nagging
feeling he'd always been forced to push down to the very bottom of his
heart.
But then he met her, and got to know her... And something changed.
Actual substance replaced what had once been empty shells.
He found it difficult to believe how quickly and smoothly things had
moved these last few months; almost dared not pinch his arm out of fear
it would reveal that everything had been a dream.
And now that the academic year drew to a close, sending them both home
to visit their respective families, he could not help but think that
somehow, the mere weeks apart it meant could somehow change something,
maybe break it all apart... Paranoid, maybe, but he'd never really had
something he wanted this strongly, something he truly did care for.
Yet... Would this step be a too big one, too soon? And if so, what
would the consequences of his attempt be? Perhaps worse than those of
not trying to take it at all...
But he only had to take one more look at her smiling face to convince
himself that it would be the right thing. "Akane?" he said, his nervous
voice breaking the serene near-silence in the park. "Before we go,
there's something I want to ask."
"Hm?" She nodded, her eyes closed as she took in the excellent weather
with full force.
"Akane, will..." He trembled again, reaching his hand out to touch her
shoulder, and immediately, her harmony and confidence floated into him,
filling him with life. "Will you marry me?"
That woke her up. Akane stared at him with big, shaking eyes.
It came as a surprise... yet in a way, it didn't, really. They'd grown
so close; little doubt remained that...
But wouldn't it be wrong? Wouldn't she betray... No. She pushed that
thought aside firmly, having long since determined no longer to let
herself be bothered or constrained by *him*.
She eyed the young man, shaking anxiously as he awaited her answer.
No, she realized, she did want it. It had all happened so fast, but it
didn't feel like a mistake.
Not daring to open his eyes, Ooyake cursed himself, then cursed
himself again and again. No answer came. Obviously, he had misjudged the
situation. Or asked at the wrong time, maybe. It would probably give
disastrous consequences, at any rate... Why had he been so over-anxious
to press on when what they already had was more than he could ever wish
for?
Just as he was about to let one of his eyelids slide open slightly to
peer out, he felt a hand on his cheek, and then a warm set of lips press
against his, and he had all the answer he needed.
* * *
Souun bowed down as deep as he could, his forehead touching his hands,
which in turn rested on the floor in front of him, and much of his hair
fell forward, creating a circle of long, black locks that obscured what
little of his face would have been visible from that angle.
"There is no excuse," he repeated again, formally, and a slight touch
of fear had crept into his saddened voice, and tears streamed freely
down from his eyes to soak the floor thoroughly. "Y-you must understand,
she threatened to do it *without* the family if I did not give my
permission and support, and that would be even worse. Please, even
though I know there is no excuse, I ask you..."
"WHAT?" Enraged, Genma shook a tightly knit fist in the air, the
temperature of his face almost enough to cover his glasses with steam.
"What about..."
A soft yet firm restraining hand on his shoulder cooled him down
almost instantly, and he turned to look at his wife, surprised.
"How bad," the woman said, in that gentle, feminine tone that stopped
an inch short of complete covering the unyielding force hid beneath it.
"I thought they would have made a fine match. However, I won't let mere
feelings play the major role in a situation like this, and how you
choose to raise your daughters is not my concern." _Though you must
being doing a rather poor job of it if she thinks my manly son is not
good enough,_ Nodoka added to herself. "You still have two daughters not
spoken for, do you not?"
The long-haired man, having sensed that he could probably safely dare
to sit normally now, stared at her for a few seconds as the words
registered... and then threw himself at his old friend to draw the other
man into a deep hug, as tears of joy ran down his cheeks. "Of course!
Our families can still be joined!" he bawled.
* * *
"If I feel like this after the passage of a single year, how can I
possibly hope to endure three more?" he had thought, not so long ago,
when he decided that the certainity of the reward awaiting at the end of
those three years would not be enough to pull him through.
And now, the reward had been snatched away, and there was nothing left
to make him continue for the years to come... or for the rest of his
life. Might as well make that time as short as possible.
As Ranma took one final look at the photo, held outstretched in his
left hand, he couldn't stop a smile from slowly creeping onto his lips
again, the sight of her face still enough to comfort him...
Then he realized what was happening, and swore out loud. _I've decided
already. Can't start getting happy now, especially not because of
*her*._ He threw the picture away with a flick of his wrist, and it
crashed into the wall, the protective plate shattering to spread tiny
little shards of glass in a circle around the now bent wooden frame on
the floor.
The boy took a deep breath, feeling a gentle breeze that made his pig-
tail flutter slightly blow across his bare chest, and the thought of
whether he should have closed the window first briefly took hold of his
mind as he brought his right hand closer, the hilt of the short-sword
clenched tight.
He threw the thought aside. Had to concentrate on what he was doing,
or he'd never get it done. He'd just broken the picture off there in the
corner, just like its subject at this very moment was in the process of
breaking him, and the connection between them... And with the thread
irreparable, he might as well make sure nothing remained on his side of
it.
A tear slowly trickled down his cheek, stinging his skin. He could see
her before him, looking like an angel in that dress... but with no Ranma
at her side.
The young man smiled grimly to himself. He could almost sense that
just now, she'd... she'd been asked the... the question... and... she...
_NOOOOO,_ his mind screamed, and the burst of despair gave him the
power to push the blade in, cold steel driving his now almost soulless
flesh aside, and he screamed out in pain that came just as much from his
heart as from the wound.
Far too late to back out now. Summoning what little strength still
remained in his body, he slowly drew it across his stomach, blood
pouring down freely to gather in a big, red pool on the floor beneath
him, the crimson fluid diluted by the river of tears that he realized
had cascaded from his face. _The pain... feel it..._
Briefly, he almost laughed. _Should have done this in my other form..
Sure ain't manly this way... Just doing it to... To escape..._
He noticed the black spots starting to dance in his vision with ever-
growing frequency, sensing that he'd have to end it quickly before he
passed out. He might be perverting the *purpose* of the ritual, but he'd
still do it right.
With one last pull, he twisted the blade, drawing it up towards his
heart ... then slumped back, falling limp against the hard wooden floor
with a thud.
* * *
AUTHOR'S NOTES
--------------
Wee, finished at last. I've totally forgotten where the heck I got the
inspiration for this one. Matters little. At any rate, this is my
longest work to date - as single work, by far, and even my longest-
running series (the Dragonball/Ranma-fusion Not Even You) is currently a
few kilobytes behind this piece. In the end, I'm not really happy with
it... but at this point, it's too late to change it all into something
totally different.
Right now, I think my next bit of writing will probably be chapter two
of "A Boy Went Up a Hill", but of course, nothing is guaranteed.
Looking back, I guess maybe Akane really doesn't come across in a
positive light in this fic. I must say that I certainly didn't *intend*
to portray her with excessive negativity, even if it might seem so if
you just look from one angle. Heck, I'm practically a fanboy of hers.
And Argh; I killed somebody *again*, or at least it looks like that; a
habit I really eed to break. Actually, I didn't really do it this
time... I had ideas for a few more scenes after the point where I ended
the fic, but I decided not to include any of it since it would just take
a few steps without really *going* anywhere; instead, I'm ending at the
"end". Still, maybe you can find some small comfort in the fact that
Ranma isn't *supposed* to have died. ^_^
One realization that hit me about halfway through is the fact that
part of the reason I like Ranma (the character), is that in some ways,
he's very much like me. Of course, in others we're not alike at all...
but I have a strong suspicion that in my writing, the aspects of Ranma
that resemble me are emphasized, and the others toned down; Ooyake, in
some ways, manifest the "qualities" of mine that Ranma do not.
ApanAP.
-- Listar MIME Decryption --------------
---
Ronny Hedin, thark@hem2.passagen.se, http://nabiki.newberry.edu/thark/
"Momomoto, famous japanese, can swallow his nose."