Disclaimer: All of the original characters and plotlines of Ranma 1/2 are property of Rumiko Takahashi. All those characters and plotlines that are from Gundam Wing belong to the person who created them, whose name I forgot and wish I could be. All of the unfamiliar character and the plot used in this story belong to me and I would not appreciate if you stole it, though I doubt anyone would as this was one of the first fics I ever wrote.
Chapter 1
I woke up with a start, a silent scream trying to force it's way past my throat. It didn't succeed. I couldn't remember what was so horrifying about the dream and, personally, didn't want to. The feeling of deep, bone chilling dread was enough for me, thank you very much. Cold sweat plastered my hair to my face and drenched my pjs. I looked to my clock and saw that it was around five in the morning. That meant that Kasumi and the others would be waking up in an hour or so. I sat up and stretched, arcing my back and stretching my arms over my head. Walking over to my closet I pulled out a pair of loose midnight blue slacks and a white sleeveless T-shirt that fits rather loosely, take them off the hanger and I fold them neatly, then walk quietly downstairs and make my way to the furo.
Setting my clothes down, I walk over to the stool and pour a bucket of freezing water over my head. As I set about scrubbing myself clean, I let my mind wander. It's been a month since the failed wedding attempt. I still can't believe it. The time seems to have gone by very slowly, making it seem like an eternity. But in that time, Ranma has stopped calling me names and we've actually had real conversations. Heh... he even offered to help train me, which, of course, I accepted. But Ranma isn't the only one who has changed. I've stopped blaming him for everything and I haven't sent him into LEO since the third day from the failed wedding.
So me and Ranma have been getting along well, and I've even improved my speed a lot, my endurance more, and balance. Not to mention that now I can roof-hop with the best of them, though I can only keep it up for about two and a half hours before I begin to tire. We're working on that. And Ranma-sensei says that I don't need to work on my strength but I could use a little more endurance.
Another bucket of cold water over my head snapped me out of my train of thought. I stood up and walked over to the furo, gently easing myself in. Tense muscles slowly relax as I let myself luxuriate in the hot water.
An hour later, the sound of soft footsteps descending the stairs snapped me out of an unscheduled, but much needed, nap.
Getting out of the furo I dried off and changed into my clothes. I walked out of the bathroom and heard the sounds of someone cooking in the kitchen, meaning that Kasumi was up. Since Kasumi was up that meant that it was six o' clock sharp. I figured that since Ranma probably wanted to get some training in before breakfast that I should go wake him up. I walked up the stairs and stood before the door to my fiancé's room. As I was reaching towards the knob to open the door, I heard two voices yelling.
"Yo, Ryouga, what's up?"
"DIE, SAOTOME!!!"
"Aw man, what'd I do this time?"
"Be quiet and fight!"
Now the screams of rage could no longer be heard as they were drowned out by the sounds of battle. I thought irritably. Deciding that I didn't wanna leave Kasumi to clean Ranma's room after the fight, I made up my mind to put a stop to the fight before it made too big a mess.
Behind me I heard Nabiki mumble something somewhat irritably and heard her walking over towards Ranma's room and figured that she probably wanted to end the fight as well, for fear of property damage. So at basically the same time we walked into the room and looked around the room for the two fighters. Considering how loud they were it wasn't very hard. Since the both of us knew that one of Ranma's fights never ended if we yelled, I decided to take action. I picked up the nearest HBO (heavy blunt object), a vase, and hurled it right into the fight. First it hit Ranma on the back of the head, and bounced off the wall at just the right angle to hit Ryouga on the forehead.
And for those of you think that it's impossible for a vase to hit a wall and not break, I guess you've never heard of The Tendo School of Martial Art's Secret Technique of Throwing-an-Object-and-Having-it-Bounce-Around-Until-it Hits-Everything-You-Want-It-To. Daddy taught it to me.
Of course this got their attention. They turned their heads to look at me and the second I saw Ryouga's eyes I knew there was something wrong. They were glowing. And of course the manic glint in his eyes didn't help ease my concerns. I took an involuntary step back as I got a glimpse of what was behind those eyes. There was a heart wrenching fear and stronger than that was Hunger. It was a Hunger so deep and possessive that it scared me.
"Akane! Come with me!" He commanded in a voice that dripped malice and was too deep and ominous to be Ryouga's.
Before I knew what was happening a gray fog surrounded me and made it so I couldn't move. I was straining my muscles so hard that I was sure they would just give. Unfortunately it also got Nabiki. In my peripheral vision I could see that Nabiki was not struggling. I took her example.
Ryouga and Ranma were running towards us and they were equal in how fast they were running. As they got within 5 feet Ryouga threw a marble (?) at us and suddenly a portal opened up beneath us. Ranma jumped on Ryouga and used him a springboard for the momentum to get to us before it closes. Ranma fell in after us and then the portal closed over our heads.
**** **** ****
The next thing I'm aware of is falling abruptly on my backside as pain shoots up my spine.. Ouch. Rubbing my butt I look around at my surroundings. A forest. How nice.
I hear a rustle behind me and in an instant I'm on my feet and in a defensive stance. Out of the bushes comes Ranma followed by Nabiki. I relax my stance and ask, "Hey guys, got any clue where we are?"
"We're in a forest." Came Nabiki's cool reply.
"Well that's obvious." I quipped.
"Looks kinda familiar." Ranma was looking around thoughtfully. "I know! It reminds me of China!"
Oh great. We're in China. Due to past experiences in China (Saffron, Kirin, etc.) , I'm understandably worried. "Well, let's look around and see if we can find some form of civilization." I suggest in a cool voice that belies nothing of my worry. My eyes, however, I'm not too sure about.
"Good idea, Imotochan." Nabiki says in her normal tone of voice. Calm, cool, and collected. Without another word, we start walking in a random direction. About an hour later we hear soft rustles and a few muffled thuds.
"Everyone, there's someone up ahead. It sounds like they might be fighting so stay behind me." Ranma said quietly. Because it was quite possible that the sounds were from a fight, we followed Ranma's directions. I made sure Nabiki was in the middle because someone might attack from behind.
We silently made our way towards where the sounds were coming from. Ranma poked his head through the bushes and then, deciding that it seemed safe, had us follow him. I looked around at the clearing we were in and saw five guys, two of them apparently sparring. One was an obviously Chinese boy with loose white Chinese clothes and black hair pulled back in a tight ponytail. The one he was sparring against was an American with a black priest's outfit on and a butt-length brown braid.
It was obvious to me that while the American was a bit stronger, the Chinese fellow was faster and more nimble. Even without the difference it was obvious that the Chinese guy was winning.
The Chinese man did a spinning crescent which caught the other boy directly in the jaw, causing the other boy to fly back about five feet. And thus the fight ended.
Ranma, finding a way to announce our presence, applauded. Suddenly all their eyes were on us. Oh boy.
"Who are you?" This was from a Japanese pilot with short unruly hair and cobalt blue eyes. His voice was in monotone, which made me even more wary of him.
Nabiki stepped up and announced in a monotone that matched his, "My name is Nabiki, this girl here is my sister Akane, and this guy next to her is her fiancé Ranma."
"What are you doing here?"
"That's rather hard to explain. Let's just say that one of my sister's fiancé's rivals sent us here." She said this as calmly and as coolly as if discussing the weather.
"Huh."
"Now that we have that out of the way let's get to the point. Me and my friends are stuck here. We don't know where we are. Hell, we might even be in another dimension. With how Ryouga had been looking, I wouldn't be surprised. So anyway we need information on where we are. You obviously come from around here so we need you to help us."
"..." I could tell they were a bit off balance at Nabiki's casual tone.
I felt the need to have my part in the conversation, so I added coolly, "While you boys think that over I'm gonna be over there with my fiance." I pulled Ranma along by his pigtail over to the opposite end of the clearing that the boys were at.
"What is it?" He asked me plainly.
"These guys are making me uneasy. There's something about their auras that just put me on edge. And did you notice the black taints in all of 'em?" Oh yeah. Ranma-sensei also taught me how to read auras. You know, so I can avoid people I don't wanna be mixed in with.
"I noticed, and they're making me uneasy too. And there's something about five guys being out in a forest that seems so far from civilization that puts me on edge."
"Well this is just great. We're stuck in a forest with five guys that seem rather likely to kill us and we're probably in another dimension." Just then I notice Nabiki motion to us. "C'mon Ranma." I say pulling him along by his pigtail.
Just as we reach Nabiki the guys send the one with the short brown hair and cobalt blue eyes over to talk to us.
"Are you with OZ?" Straight to the point, isn't he?
"No." Nabiki, ever calm.
"What's OZ?" Ranma asked suspiciously.
"Oh boy. You really don't know?" He's shocked. To most people he would look like he was still disinterested and calm, but to me, having to live with some one like that all my life, he's an open book.
"No. What is it?" Ranma asked.
"It's an organization that's trying to take control of Earth and the colonies."
Oh boy. I turn to Nabiki and Ranma. "Looks like we're not in Kansas anymore, Toto." Ranma blinked and gave me a blank stare. He clearly never saw the Wizard of OZ. Wonder if there's a connection...?
"That does seem rather likely, doesn't it." Nabiki says absently, while studying the boy talking to us.
"Huh. So, will you please tell us about this dimension?" I ask sweetly.
"Hold on a moment." With that he walked back to his friends and presumably told them about our little problem.
All of a sudden a "How do you know we can trust incompetent women about this?!" erupted. That was from the Chinese guy. I don't think I like him.
"Who're you calling incompetent you @$$hole?!" Nabiki asked him menacingly.
"You and your weakling of a sister, that's who!" He yelled back. Stupid idiot couldn't take a warning. Now I know I don't like him. That's a really bad thing for him. Suddenly my aura is very visible around me. It's a deep blood red and looks oddly like a dragon. Intimidation tactic. Ranma-sensei taught it to me.
"WHO is a weakling?" I asked ominously.
Even from this distance I can hear some of the guys gulp. The Chinese pilot is not among them.
"You are, you pathetic female." He spits the word out as if a curse. Very bad for him.
"Would you care to find out just how weak I am?"
"Peh, you're not even worth the effort." That was his last chance.
"Bye." Nabiki said just before I leapt at him with a vicious crescent that caught him square on the temple and sent him some 20-odd feet back. I was on him in an instant before he recovered and elbowed him in the gut and brought my knee into the small of his back. I turned away from him as he falls and hear a satisfying thud behind me. I meet the eyes of his friends, all of which contained shock. Not surprising. I'm well aware that during my whole attack I had been nothing more than a blur. And I hadn't even used my full speed or strength. I heard a low moan behind me and felt him stand up and almost fall back down.
I turn back around to him and see a small trickle of blood flowing steadily from his bottom lip and I can tell he's in pain. I sigh and walk back to him. Just as he falls back into unconsciousness and starts to fall to the ground I carry him to his friends. I set him gently on the ground in front of them and meet their gaze with one of calm and ask innocently, "What?"
The one with the cobalt blue eyes recovers first. He just stares. It's then that I realize that I still have my aura glowing around me. Sheepishly I turn it off.
"Whoa! How did you do that?!" asks the pilot with the braid.
I wink. "Lots of training."
"Man! You must train hard! The only person who's ever beaten Wufei before was Heero! I thought he was otherwise invincible. Oh by the way, my name's Duo. These guys here are Heero, Trowa, Quatre, and the guy you beat up is Wufei." Not once did he take his eyes off me as he gestured to his friends.
I realize I am grinning by now. This Duo seems to be a nice man. I like him. As a friend of course. But just because I'm considering him a friend doesn't mean I can't check him out. Which I do appraisingly. He's got a good build, lean with well toned muscles. He's good looking, but nothing compared to Ranma. I can feel Ranma's presence as he walks up behind me and follows my gaze. He also notices some of the guys checking me out. He is jealous. I smile my most extravagant smile and turn around just as he reaches me, giving him a soft peck on the lips as I throw my arms around his neck. I get one arm loose but keep the other firmly around his shoulders as he puts his arm around my waist as I turn back to the guys. I leave no doubt in their minds that I am Ranma's girlfriend.
"Duo, this is my fiancé, Ranma." I say cheerfully and note happily that the guys that had been checking me out, Trowa and Quatre if I remember, slouch their shoulders slightly and look at everything but me including very close attention to my sister and fiancé. Out of the corner of my eye I see Nabiki approach us.
"Hi." Ranma says cheerfully.
"Hey. So I hear you guys're from another dimension. I'm having a rather hard time believing it." He said suspiciously.
"Well that's our suspicion. Have there been any major events lately that could help us confirm our suspicions?" Nabiki says calmly as she strolls purposely beside me and Ranma. I heard a groan from the ground and watched Wufei get up.
"Hell yeah! There's been a war going on ever since AC 195." Duo informed us.
"Oh boy. That's not good. They don't even have the same dates as we do." I comment sourly. This hasn't exactly been my best day, as you can tell. This just makes it worse for me.
"What country are we in?"
"China."
Ranma smirked. "I was right! Toldja that we were in China." Ranma was now grinning from ear to ear. Oh well. That's my fiance for ya.
"Yes, you did." I pet him on the head and say jokingly. "Good boy Ranma. Very good." He scowls. His reaction gives me this sudden urge to laugh. Of course, I couldn't resist it for long.
"What's so funny?" He asks grouchily.
"Nothing." I gasp, no longer giggling. I look around the forest and notice a mountain off in the distance. "Umm...Duo, what's that mountain over there called?"
"Mt. Phoenix. Why?" I have gone so pale in the face, to them I probably look like a ghost. I notice Ranma is almost as pale too.
"Does..." my voice cracks, so I swallow and try again, "Does anyone inhabit it?"
"Nope. No one I know of. But there have been some strange disappearances around here lately. Why?"
"It's nothing. Let's just get away from here, please." He shrugs and heads off, the rest of us following behind him.
**** **** ****
We stop on top of a hill and look down into the valley. Another unpleasant memory rose up into my mind, unbidden. It was where Kiima had made a Spring of Drowned Akane. I tried to suppress a shudder but didn't quite manage.
Ranma watched me closely and gently slid his arm around my waist and brought me right in front of him. I turned around to look at him.
At this close a distance I could hear the beating of his heart and _feel_ the warmth radiating from his body. Suddenly the slightly musky and most definitely masculine smell of him assaulted me. Looking into his grey-blue eyes, I see nothing but love and the spark of life in his eyes. And Kami-sama, he was so warm! It was like some type of magnet was bringing us closer, drawing us in. My arms wrap around his neck of their own accord and I feel his strong arms gently slide around my waist. It was like being touched by a god. I shiver in delight and close my eyes as we draw in for the kiss.
Just as his warm, moist lips brush mine a voice interrupts, "Excuse me, love birds, but we're _trying_ to give you directions here!" Duo. We jerk back and I growl low in my throat. I must admit, it was the primal growl of hatred of an animal. I could hear him gulp. I turn slowly around to lock his eyes with my burning gaze and he falls back a few steps. I could feel my lips draw back in a grin that was sure to be scarier than the fiercest of snarls. Looking at him, my hands clawing, I drop to all fours. I barely notice this as I feel my rational mind fly away and take a vacation.
A sudden, terrible itching covers my body. I start scratching the itches on my arms even after a warm, sticky liquid flows freely down my arms. I start feeling thousands of tiny needles push up through my skin. White expanded across my vision and I close my eyes, silently begging for it to be over, to be left alone.
As the itching begins to subside, a new pain takes it's place. I could feel my flesh flowing and my bones grind against each other. My teeth grew longer, sharper and my whole face was shifting. I was convinced I was in a hell torture chamber as I felt my internal organs shift and move, becoming smaller and larger.
Vaguely I hear a hoarse voice screaming outside my body. Funny how I forgot there even was an outside.
"Akane!!!!!" It's Ranma screaming. I hear loud, wailing sobs tearing from Nabiki's throat. And a hoarse, primal scream of agony, all barely heard over the blood pounding in my ears. Who screaming? I dimly wonder as speech begins to leave me.
Oh...me...was my last coherent thought as I fall into the blissful relief of unconsciousness.
Chapter 1
I woke up with a start, a silent scream trying to force it's way past my throat. It didn't succeed. I couldn't remember what was so horrifying about the dream and, personally, didn't want to. The feeling of deep, bone chilling dread was enough for me, thank you very much. Cold sweat plastered my hair to my face and drenched my pjs. I looked to my clock and saw that it was around five in the morning. That meant that Kasumi and the others would be waking up in an hour or so. I sat up and stretched, arcing my back and stretching my arms over my head. Walking over to my closet I pulled out a pair of loose midnight blue slacks and a white sleeveless T-shirt that fits rather loosely, take them off the hanger and I fold them neatly, then walk quietly downstairs and make my way to the furo.
Setting my clothes down, I walk over to the stool and pour a bucket of freezing water over my head. As I set about scrubbing myself clean, I let my mind wander. It's been a month since the failed wedding attempt. I still can't believe it. The time seems to have gone by very slowly, making it seem like an eternity. But in that time, Ranma has stopped calling me names and we've actually had real conversations. Heh... he even offered to help train me, which, of course, I accepted. But Ranma isn't the only one who has changed. I've stopped blaming him for everything and I haven't sent him into LEO since the third day from the failed wedding.
So me and Ranma have been getting along well, and I've even improved my speed a lot, my endurance more, and balance. Not to mention that now I can roof-hop with the best of them, though I can only keep it up for about two and a half hours before I begin to tire. We're working on that. And Ranma-sensei says that I don't need to work on my strength but I could use a little more endurance.
Another bucket of cold water over my head snapped me out of my train of thought. I stood up and walked over to the furo, gently easing myself in. Tense muscles slowly relax as I let myself luxuriate in the hot water.
An hour later, the sound of soft footsteps descending the stairs snapped me out of an unscheduled, but much needed, nap.
Getting out of the furo I dried off and changed into my clothes. I walked out of the bathroom and heard the sounds of someone cooking in the kitchen, meaning that Kasumi was up. Since Kasumi was up that meant that it was six o' clock sharp. I figured that since Ranma probably wanted to get some training in before breakfast that I should go wake him up. I walked up the stairs and stood before the door to my fiancé's room. As I was reaching towards the knob to open the door, I heard two voices yelling.
"Yo, Ryouga, what's up?"
"DIE, SAOTOME!!!"
"Aw man, what'd I do this time?"
"Be quiet and fight!"
Now the screams of rage could no longer be heard as they were drowned out by the sounds of battle. I thought irritably. Deciding that I didn't wanna leave Kasumi to clean Ranma's room after the fight, I made up my mind to put a stop to the fight before it made too big a mess.
Behind me I heard Nabiki mumble something somewhat irritably and heard her walking over towards Ranma's room and figured that she probably wanted to end the fight as well, for fear of property damage. So at basically the same time we walked into the room and looked around the room for the two fighters. Considering how loud they were it wasn't very hard. Since the both of us knew that one of Ranma's fights never ended if we yelled, I decided to take action. I picked up the nearest HBO (heavy blunt object), a vase, and hurled it right into the fight. First it hit Ranma on the back of the head, and bounced off the wall at just the right angle to hit Ryouga on the forehead.
And for those of you think that it's impossible for a vase to hit a wall and not break, I guess you've never heard of The Tendo School of Martial Art's Secret Technique of Throwing-an-Object-and-Having-it-Bounce-Around-Until-it Hits-Everything-You-Want-It-To. Daddy taught it to me.
Of course this got their attention. They turned their heads to look at me and the second I saw Ryouga's eyes I knew there was something wrong. They were glowing. And of course the manic glint in his eyes didn't help ease my concerns. I took an involuntary step back as I got a glimpse of what was behind those eyes. There was a heart wrenching fear and stronger than that was Hunger. It was a Hunger so deep and possessive that it scared me.
"Akane! Come with me!" He commanded in a voice that dripped malice and was too deep and ominous to be Ryouga's.
Before I knew what was happening a gray fog surrounded me and made it so I couldn't move. I was straining my muscles so hard that I was sure they would just give. Unfortunately it also got Nabiki. In my peripheral vision I could see that Nabiki was not struggling. I took her example.
Ryouga and Ranma were running towards us and they were equal in how fast they were running. As they got within 5 feet Ryouga threw a marble (?) at us and suddenly a portal opened up beneath us. Ranma jumped on Ryouga and used him a springboard for the momentum to get to us before it closes. Ranma fell in after us and then the portal closed over our heads.
**** **** ****
The next thing I'm aware of is falling abruptly on my backside as pain shoots up my spine.. Ouch. Rubbing my butt I look around at my surroundings. A forest. How nice.
I hear a rustle behind me and in an instant I'm on my feet and in a defensive stance. Out of the bushes comes Ranma followed by Nabiki. I relax my stance and ask, "Hey guys, got any clue where we are?"
"We're in a forest." Came Nabiki's cool reply.
"Well that's obvious." I quipped.
"Looks kinda familiar." Ranma was looking around thoughtfully. "I know! It reminds me of China!"
Oh great. We're in China. Due to past experiences in China (Saffron, Kirin, etc.) , I'm understandably worried. "Well, let's look around and see if we can find some form of civilization." I suggest in a cool voice that belies nothing of my worry. My eyes, however, I'm not too sure about.
"Good idea, Imotochan." Nabiki says in her normal tone of voice. Calm, cool, and collected. Without another word, we start walking in a random direction. About an hour later we hear soft rustles and a few muffled thuds.
"Everyone, there's someone up ahead. It sounds like they might be fighting so stay behind me." Ranma said quietly. Because it was quite possible that the sounds were from a fight, we followed Ranma's directions. I made sure Nabiki was in the middle because someone might attack from behind.
We silently made our way towards where the sounds were coming from. Ranma poked his head through the bushes and then, deciding that it seemed safe, had us follow him. I looked around at the clearing we were in and saw five guys, two of them apparently sparring. One was an obviously Chinese boy with loose white Chinese clothes and black hair pulled back in a tight ponytail. The one he was sparring against was an American with a black priest's outfit on and a butt-length brown braid.
It was obvious to me that while the American was a bit stronger, the Chinese fellow was faster and more nimble. Even without the difference it was obvious that the Chinese guy was winning.
The Chinese man did a spinning crescent which caught the other boy directly in the jaw, causing the other boy to fly back about five feet. And thus the fight ended.
Ranma, finding a way to announce our presence, applauded. Suddenly all their eyes were on us. Oh boy.
"Who are you?" This was from a Japanese pilot with short unruly hair and cobalt blue eyes. His voice was in monotone, which made me even more wary of him.
Nabiki stepped up and announced in a monotone that matched his, "My name is Nabiki, this girl here is my sister Akane, and this guy next to her is her fiancé Ranma."
"What are you doing here?"
"That's rather hard to explain. Let's just say that one of my sister's fiancé's rivals sent us here." She said this as calmly and as coolly as if discussing the weather.
"Huh."
"Now that we have that out of the way let's get to the point. Me and my friends are stuck here. We don't know where we are. Hell, we might even be in another dimension. With how Ryouga had been looking, I wouldn't be surprised. So anyway we need information on where we are. You obviously come from around here so we need you to help us."
"..." I could tell they were a bit off balance at Nabiki's casual tone.
I felt the need to have my part in the conversation, so I added coolly, "While you boys think that over I'm gonna be over there with my fiance." I pulled Ranma along by his pigtail over to the opposite end of the clearing that the boys were at.
"What is it?" He asked me plainly.
"These guys are making me uneasy. There's something about their auras that just put me on edge. And did you notice the black taints in all of 'em?" Oh yeah. Ranma-sensei also taught me how to read auras. You know, so I can avoid people I don't wanna be mixed in with.
"I noticed, and they're making me uneasy too. And there's something about five guys being out in a forest that seems so far from civilization that puts me on edge."
"Well this is just great. We're stuck in a forest with five guys that seem rather likely to kill us and we're probably in another dimension." Just then I notice Nabiki motion to us. "C'mon Ranma." I say pulling him along by his pigtail.
Just as we reach Nabiki the guys send the one with the short brown hair and cobalt blue eyes over to talk to us.
"Are you with OZ?" Straight to the point, isn't he?
"No." Nabiki, ever calm.
"What's OZ?" Ranma asked suspiciously.
"Oh boy. You really don't know?" He's shocked. To most people he would look like he was still disinterested and calm, but to me, having to live with some one like that all my life, he's an open book.
"No. What is it?" Ranma asked.
"It's an organization that's trying to take control of Earth and the colonies."
Oh boy. I turn to Nabiki and Ranma. "Looks like we're not in Kansas anymore, Toto." Ranma blinked and gave me a blank stare. He clearly never saw the Wizard of OZ. Wonder if there's a connection...?
"That does seem rather likely, doesn't it." Nabiki says absently, while studying the boy talking to us.
"Huh. So, will you please tell us about this dimension?" I ask sweetly.
"Hold on a moment." With that he walked back to his friends and presumably told them about our little problem.
All of a sudden a "How do you know we can trust incompetent women about this?!" erupted. That was from the Chinese guy. I don't think I like him.
"Who're you calling incompetent you @$$hole?!" Nabiki asked him menacingly.
"You and your weakling of a sister, that's who!" He yelled back. Stupid idiot couldn't take a warning. Now I know I don't like him. That's a really bad thing for him. Suddenly my aura is very visible around me. It's a deep blood red and looks oddly like a dragon. Intimidation tactic. Ranma-sensei taught it to me.
"WHO is a weakling?" I asked ominously.
Even from this distance I can hear some of the guys gulp. The Chinese pilot is not among them.
"You are, you pathetic female." He spits the word out as if a curse. Very bad for him.
"Would you care to find out just how weak I am?"
"Peh, you're not even worth the effort." That was his last chance.
"Bye." Nabiki said just before I leapt at him with a vicious crescent that caught him square on the temple and sent him some 20-odd feet back. I was on him in an instant before he recovered and elbowed him in the gut and brought my knee into the small of his back. I turned away from him as he falls and hear a satisfying thud behind me. I meet the eyes of his friends, all of which contained shock. Not surprising. I'm well aware that during my whole attack I had been nothing more than a blur. And I hadn't even used my full speed or strength. I heard a low moan behind me and felt him stand up and almost fall back down.
I turn back around to him and see a small trickle of blood flowing steadily from his bottom lip and I can tell he's in pain. I sigh and walk back to him. Just as he falls back into unconsciousness and starts to fall to the ground I carry him to his friends. I set him gently on the ground in front of them and meet their gaze with one of calm and ask innocently, "What?"
The one with the cobalt blue eyes recovers first. He just stares. It's then that I realize that I still have my aura glowing around me. Sheepishly I turn it off.
"Whoa! How did you do that?!" asks the pilot with the braid.
I wink. "Lots of training."
"Man! You must train hard! The only person who's ever beaten Wufei before was Heero! I thought he was otherwise invincible. Oh by the way, my name's Duo. These guys here are Heero, Trowa, Quatre, and the guy you beat up is Wufei." Not once did he take his eyes off me as he gestured to his friends.
I realize I am grinning by now. This Duo seems to be a nice man. I like him. As a friend of course. But just because I'm considering him a friend doesn't mean I can't check him out. Which I do appraisingly. He's got a good build, lean with well toned muscles. He's good looking, but nothing compared to Ranma. I can feel Ranma's presence as he walks up behind me and follows my gaze. He also notices some of the guys checking me out. He is jealous. I smile my most extravagant smile and turn around just as he reaches me, giving him a soft peck on the lips as I throw my arms around his neck. I get one arm loose but keep the other firmly around his shoulders as he puts his arm around my waist as I turn back to the guys. I leave no doubt in their minds that I am Ranma's girlfriend.
"Duo, this is my fiancé, Ranma." I say cheerfully and note happily that the guys that had been checking me out, Trowa and Quatre if I remember, slouch their shoulders slightly and look at everything but me including very close attention to my sister and fiancé. Out of the corner of my eye I see Nabiki approach us.
"Hi." Ranma says cheerfully.
"Hey. So I hear you guys're from another dimension. I'm having a rather hard time believing it." He said suspiciously.
"Well that's our suspicion. Have there been any major events lately that could help us confirm our suspicions?" Nabiki says calmly as she strolls purposely beside me and Ranma. I heard a groan from the ground and watched Wufei get up.
"Hell yeah! There's been a war going on ever since AC 195." Duo informed us.
"Oh boy. That's not good. They don't even have the same dates as we do." I comment sourly. This hasn't exactly been my best day, as you can tell. This just makes it worse for me.
"What country are we in?"
"China."
Ranma smirked. "I was right! Toldja that we were in China." Ranma was now grinning from ear to ear. Oh well. That's my fiance for ya.
"Yes, you did." I pet him on the head and say jokingly. "Good boy Ranma. Very good." He scowls. His reaction gives me this sudden urge to laugh. Of course, I couldn't resist it for long.
"What's so funny?" He asks grouchily.
"Nothing." I gasp, no longer giggling. I look around the forest and notice a mountain off in the distance. "Umm...Duo, what's that mountain over there called?"
"Mt. Phoenix. Why?" I have gone so pale in the face, to them I probably look like a ghost. I notice Ranma is almost as pale too.
"Does..." my voice cracks, so I swallow and try again, "Does anyone inhabit it?"
"Nope. No one I know of. But there have been some strange disappearances around here lately. Why?"
"It's nothing. Let's just get away from here, please." He shrugs and heads off, the rest of us following behind him.
**** **** ****
We stop on top of a hill and look down into the valley. Another unpleasant memory rose up into my mind, unbidden. It was where Kiima had made a Spring of Drowned Akane. I tried to suppress a shudder but didn't quite manage.
Ranma watched me closely and gently slid his arm around my waist and brought me right in front of him. I turned around to look at him.
At this close a distance I could hear the beating of his heart and _feel_ the warmth radiating from his body. Suddenly the slightly musky and most definitely masculine smell of him assaulted me. Looking into his grey-blue eyes, I see nothing but love and the spark of life in his eyes. And Kami-sama, he was so warm! It was like some type of magnet was bringing us closer, drawing us in. My arms wrap around his neck of their own accord and I feel his strong arms gently slide around my waist. It was like being touched by a god. I shiver in delight and close my eyes as we draw in for the kiss.
Just as his warm, moist lips brush mine a voice interrupts, "Excuse me, love birds, but we're _trying_ to give you directions here!" Duo. We jerk back and I growl low in my throat. I must admit, it was the primal growl of hatred of an animal. I could hear him gulp. I turn slowly around to lock his eyes with my burning gaze and he falls back a few steps. I could feel my lips draw back in a grin that was sure to be scarier than the fiercest of snarls. Looking at him, my hands clawing, I drop to all fours. I barely notice this as I feel my rational mind fly away and take a vacation.
A sudden, terrible itching covers my body. I start scratching the itches on my arms even after a warm, sticky liquid flows freely down my arms. I start feeling thousands of tiny needles push up through my skin. White expanded across my vision and I close my eyes, silently begging for it to be over, to be left alone.
As the itching begins to subside, a new pain takes it's place. I could feel my flesh flowing and my bones grind against each other. My teeth grew longer, sharper and my whole face was shifting. I was convinced I was in a hell torture chamber as I felt my internal organs shift and move, becoming smaller and larger.
Vaguely I hear a hoarse voice screaming outside my body. Funny how I forgot there even was an outside.
"Akane!!!!!" It's Ranma screaming. I hear loud, wailing sobs tearing from Nabiki's throat. And a hoarse, primal scream of agony, all barely heard over the blood pounding in my ears. Who screaming? I dimly wonder as speech begins to leave me.
Oh...me...was my last coherent thought as I fall into the blissful relief of unconsciousness.