I Love You!
Chapter 1: Feeling The Blue
© AngelSweetie 2003
E-mail me: m_angeleyes@hotmail.com
Disclaimer: Go Rumiko!
My Rants: Newly improved chapter and look! Thanks to all my reviewers! You guys rock! Oh, just a quick note so you all don't get mixed up, even when Ranma is in his girl form, I still refer 'her' as a 'him', kayz? (I'm quite confused as well _)
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Chapter 1: Feeling The Blue
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Don't 'hey man' me! What did you do to Akane this time you cad?!
-Ryoga Habiki
"So this will make Ranma say I love you to Shampoo, great grandmother, yes?" The purpled haired Amazon asked. Like a hawk about to attack its prey, the purple haired girl narrowed her eyes with great eagerness at the small blue vial.
"Of course Shampoo, even with one small whiff of this special potion, it will make future son-in-law fall in love with the first person he sees," the old, long white haired woman replied as she handed the small vial towards her purple haired accomplice.
Shampoo greedily received the vial and with one quick bounce she was out of the Cat Café and outside on her delivery bike, her features set determinedly to complete her task.
*****
"Come back here Ranma!" Akane Tendo demanded as she attacked her red haired opponent with a broom. The former guy by the name of Ranma, who was now unfortunately in his busty teenaged red-headed girl state,, ateee name of Ranma, who was unfortunately in his just giggled wildly and pulled a face as he dodged another of Akane's attacks.
It only made the dark haired girl angrier, "That's it Ranma!" She yelled with great fury, "You're going down!" her voice bellowed,and pulled a face as s containing great promise.
The pig tailed girl started to sweat feeling uneasy, he knew that tone of voice all too well. It was Akane's 'You-better-watch-what-your-going-to-say-next-or-else-your-dead' tone. Once the dark haired tomboy's rage got out of control there was no voice of reasoning that could stop her. Ranma tried to weasel himself out of it.
"Awwwww, c'mon Akane! I was just kiddin," Ranma tried to explain but instead got a right punch heading his way. Being experienced in dodging all of Akane's attacks, Ranma quickly jumped high into the air, landing on top of the fence that surrounded the residential area for the Tendo's home.
Frustrated, Akane followed the red haired girl in hot pursuit, her running growing faster and stronger as her anger bloomed. She followed Ranma outside into the street and took another swipe at him again but missed. Akane gave a loud cry of exasperation.
"Ranma, you JERK!" she yelled, both upset and angry.
Ranma stopped laughing and looked over his shoulder, as he continued to run down the small deserted street. He saw Akane stopping in front of the entrance of the gate; her fists curled and her head bent down low so that her hair covered her angry features. Akane was clearly mad; more so than Ranma had ever seen her.
The pig-tailed girl turned his head back around quickly to the path ahead of him deciding it was time to stop the early morning's game of 'Akane tries to beat Ranma into a pulp for being a jerk'.
However, what Ranma found was a no longer deserted street but a Shampoo riding her bike full speed ahead of him. Ranma screamed as he held out his hands in front of the high-speed bike, in haste of trying to avoid the inevitable collision. Shampoo also let out her usual high-pitched yell but it was all too late. Ranma and Shampoo collided into each other with more speed than a sugar-high kid and ended up a heap on the floor.
If Akane had been in a better mood she would had laughed herself silly at the situation but all she did was look at the two of them with pure disgust. Ranma would have also seen the deep hurt Akane held in her deep blue eyes, but he was too busy seeing stars.
What they all failed to notice at that very same moment was the little blue vial flying into the air and landing into a thousand small pieces in front of Akane's feet, which caused Akane to cough, inhaling the funny smell. She covered her mouth and nose as the small cloud of blue smoke began to envelope her. The smell was totally sickening and it turned her stomach upside down, almost paralyzing her. Once the blue cloud of smoke disappeared from around her, her senses soon came back quickly. She ran over to Ranma and Shampoo who were, to Akane's utmost dismay, still both tangled in each other's bodies with great red bruises erupting from their heads.
Akane's eyes flashed with anger once again. She despised the fact that Shampoo was lying on top of Ranma with her purple head resting on Ranma's chest. The smell was no where near as sickening as the sight of Ranma and Shampoo together that was for sure.
Akane folded her arms, "Serves you right, Ranma. Humph." She turned around sharply and walked furiously back into her house but not before poking her tongue out immaturely at the two teens on the floor.
"Wait Akane! It's not what it looks li…." Ranma cried out after her but was cut of by Shampoo's killer grasp around his waist.
"Nihao Ranma!" she said cheerfully and out of nowhere she pulled out a pot of boiling hot water and poured it onto the pig-tailed girl.
"Hey watch it Shampoo, that water is hot!" girl form Ranma exclaimed and then boy form Ranma finished.
"What do you want Shampoo?" Ranma asked in a monotone voice. He was in no mood for Shampoo's daily games. He had to apologise to Akane-fast! He had no idea what he had done to her this time but he could tell that Akane wasn't angry over nothing; he had really done something to make her so upset.thet thimmaturely at the two teens on the floor
Shampoo smiled a cat-that-ate-the-bird smile. "Shampoo has come to give Ranma a present," she answered in her high pitch voice, happily.
Ranma looked undaunted, "I really don't have time for this Shampoo. It's not even my birthday…" He started towards the Tendo house but Shampoo held his hand strongly in hers.
Smiling sweetly up at him, Shampoo hurriedly reached into her pocket for the blue potion, but felt nothing. Something suddenly flashed through her mind that caused her eyes to grow large. She remembered that the last time she had the potion was when she had been carrying it in her hands which was before she had-literally-___terally-umped iont him, Shampoo bumped into Ranma. Shampoo squealed loudly and started to look for the vial quickly, knowing very well that the collision was exactly when she had lost her hold of the very important potion.
"Look Shampoo I dunno what you're up to but I have to get goin," Ranma said as he walked into the gate that led towards the house, leaving a desperate Shampoo looking for the thing that she had lost. He gave a small wave and disappeared inside.
Shampoo didn't even acknowledge Ranma's exit; she was too busy trying to find the potion to make Ranma her new husband.
"Aiya!" she shrieked as she saw the blue vial smashed on the floor, fragments of the glass glinting from underneath the warm sun. That meant only one thing….
"Akane is under spell," Shampoo realized, her crimson eyes widening even more, both in shock and disbelief. "Aiya! Now Akane fall in love with the first person she sees…." She paused for a minor of a second. "Oh no! Ranma!"
*****
Ranma quickly walked inside the dining room where the beautiful Kasumi, the eldest of the Tendo sisters, was handing out tea to everyone. He noticed that Akane wasn't in her normal spot on the table.
"Why hello there Ranma," Kasumi said in her usual gentle tone.
Once his name was uttered the three other people who occupied the room turned their accusing eyes towards the raven-haired boy, who was standing near the doorway. They were all clearly mad at him. Ranma cautioned himself and took a step back.
"What did you do this time my boy?" Genma Saotome, Ranma's father, asked. It was surprising to see that he wasn't in his panda form.
Ranma shrugged, "I really don't know." He put his arms behind his head and began to think. His train of thought was, however, interrupted by Soun Tendo's melodramatic crying.
"Son, you'd better apologise to Akane right now," he demanded, tears falling from his eyes. Ranma looked around the room for help but none came.
Nabiki Tendo, the middle child of the family, stood up from the table. "Look Ranma I don't know what happened this time and quite frankly I don't really care but you had better apologise to Akane and if you don't know why she's upset this time then I suggest that you find out." She replied as she left the room giving Ranma one last accusing glare.
Kasumi followed suit. "I agree with Nabiki here, Ranma. She's upstairs in her room. Go up there and see what's wrong with her."
Ranma sighed, feeling defeated. He left the dining room slowly and began to ascend his walk up the stairs where is true fate awaited him.
The dark pig tailed boy could handle Akane being mad at him, after all that was all he was ever used to, but what he couldn't handle was to see her cry and upset. It made him feel bad and other emotions he never knew he had for his fiancée. The very same racing emotions that were all very well kept hidden in the depths of his heart. Emotions that he was always masking so that no one would find out the real truth, even himself.
Ranma looked up at the staircase remembering Akane's angry eyes, and winced.
Suddenly heavy footsteps were heard from outside the front door and without another second to react, Ranma heard a loud blasting noise of something being destroyed.
Nabiki, who had also heard the loud noise coming from the front door, peered from the top of stairs and sighed as she saw Ryoga run into the house.
"Oh good grief hasn't anyone heard about knocking on the door these days?" she commented and returned back inside her room, deciding that she didn't want to see the new drama that Ranma and Akane's friends had pulled up this week.
At the bottom of the stairs, Ranma turned his face to what looked like a mirror image of him but with shorter hair and a yellow bandana.
"Oh hey man, what's up?"
Ryoga Habiki breathed in and out heavily, not because he was out of breath but because something had happened between Akane and Ranma again, leaving Akane upset in her room. It made Ryoga mad with every being in his body to see his dear Akane hurt, especially to the likes of Ranma Saotome, his lifetime rival.
"Don't 'hey man' me! What did you do to Akane this time you cad?!" Ryoga roared, curling his fists. He remembered the way Akane's tear filled eyes looked into his own small piggy ones as she cradled him in her arms. The image tore Ryoga's heart apart; he had to make Ranma pay. "Well Ranma what did you do this time?!" Ryoga demanded his burning eyes bored into Ranma's own.
Ranma looked down at his feet feeling a little ashamed, "Actually Ryoga, I don't know what made her so upset." Ranma admitted. He hated to see Ryoga actually having an upper hand on the situation, but maybe he could get Ryoga to find out for him.
"Do you know why she's so upset?" Ranma asked hopefully.
Ryoga smirked and crossed his arms, "Well, well, well the great Ranma Saotome actually needs my help."
Ranma rolled his eyes, "No dummy, I was just askin', you know just in case she told you something."
Ryoga's smirk deepened, it was great to see Ranma squirm.
"If you think I'm going to tell you Akane's secrets then you have another thing coming." Ryoga replied.
Ranma's battle aura soon began to rise, "Well wittle P-chan, maybe I should tell Akane who you really are…maybe that way you'll learn your lesson you pervert." He retorted.
Ryoga curled his fists into angry balls once again, "Ranma you wouldn't."
Ranma gave a mocking smile, "Well if you would just tell me why Akane's so mad at me then…" but the left hook, known as Ryoga's angry fist, that was hurtling his way, cut him off in mid sentence.
Fortunately, Shampoo managed to wedge herself into middle of the two black haired teens just in time to save Ranma from being hit. She had run into the room carrying a bucket full of water, knocking Ryoga at his wake.
"Ranma turn into girl!" Shampoo shrieked as she threw a bucket full of cold water at the raven-haired boy. Ranma, not knowing what was happening, didn't jump in time to avoid the flying water that was thrown at him. He suddenly turned back into a she, for the second time that day, once the cold water touched his skin. "Shampoo! Why'd you do that for?!" he exclaimed in his girl form, spitting out some water that he had swallowed.
"What is going on down there?!" Akane ordered from the top of the stairs. She soon appeared with her hands on her hips. "Why don't you guys take this outside!? There are other people here who want some peace and quiet, you know!" she said angrily.
Ryoga, who had been knocked out on the floor, soon regained his consciousness. He rubbed the back of his head. "Sorry about the noise Akane…we were just um…" he began to stutter but all the while smiling goofily with love struck eyes.
Akane looked down at the bandana-wearing boy who she considered to be a good friend. She was going to reply back when a sudden lurch at her heart rate stopped her from doing so.
Unbeknownst to her, the Love Potion was already beginning to work. All her raw emotions were soon replaced by one new emotion, the emotion of pure love. One that was directed right at the handsome young man in front of her. Her eyes seemed to cloud over as she stepped down each stair slowly, making her way towards her new love.
Ranma, who had been restrained by Shampoo, watched slowly as Akane's anger clouded over with something else. He squinted his blue eyes, sensing that something was wrong with Akane. He began to observe his fiancée more closely. Ranma was quite surprised to see Akane making her way down the stairs in a slow and seductive manner. The red haired girl began to get uncomfortable; his instincts began to ring with warning bells. Ranma tried to say something as Akane approached him but stopped once he saw his fiancée's already dark eyes begin to darken with a shroud of anonymity.
Akane hadn't even noticed that Ranma was in the same room because she looked right past him and straight towards Ryoga.
Ranma flinched. 'What's going on here? Did I miss something?' he asked himself inwardly as he looked on. Before the pig tailed girl could think another thought; Akane did something that no one in the room was expecting.
She hugged Ryoga and kissed him fully on the lips.
It was, in some way, like a love scene out of some sick romance movie. It made Ranma ill to the very bone.
Time seemed to stand still.
Shampoo gasped, knowing very well that the potion worked like a charm, although her plan didn't. However, without Akane to stop Ranma from being her fiancée, Ranma was sure to be all hers. She smiled sneakily, content for once.
Ranma was totally opposite of the way Shampoo was feeling. If it was possible, he was sure he could hear his heart breaking into tiny molecular pieces in the background. It hurt to see Akane kissing another guy other from him. It hurt more so than what he thought it would.
This was not happening! It just couldn't be! It was probably some wacko dream or something. But it became more of a sick reality as Ranma watched the couple in front of him share a blissful kiss. One that the pig tailed girl, himself, had dreamt about sharing with his fiancée in his deepest dreams.
Ranma pinched himself just in case but the horrid scene just didn't seem to go away. The two were still lip locked. Sadness soon anguished Ranma but there was nothing he could do. He was paralyzed from the shock.
Ryoga and Akane? It couldn't be! There had to be some rational explanation! There had to be!
Once the two stopped kissing each other, Akane uttered those three words that Ranma was sure she had reserved only for him. "I love you…."
Ranma's mouth fell, agape. This wasn't simply happening.
