Disclaimer: Nope... I don't own Ranma and the others. Why is fate so cruel!?!

A/N – Yes, I realize that I should be writing Lost Time, but this idea came to me, and I wanted to write a Ranma/Akane fic, so here it is. Hope you like!!! Please leave a review!
Fool Me Twice
By: Lori Finnegan
Chapter 1

"You moron!"

The sound of shattering glass echoed through the Tendo household until it reached the kitchen. Kasumi Tendo dropped her wooden mixing spoon and cringed. "Oh, my," she said as she pinched it out of the batter. "Will they ever learn to get along?"

"It's getting worse!" Soun Tendo, her father, cried, entering the kitchen with his face in his hands. "Nothing I do helps... our schools will never be joined!"

Panda Genma Saotome waddled in behind him. 'Woe as me!' his sign read.

"Don't worry, Father, Mr. Saotome," Kasumi consoled as she slid a plate of freshly baked cookies across the counter and in their direction. "We'll think of something. They can't fight forever."

Soun and Genma gaped at her calm smile.

"Daddy, it's all under control."

All eyes turned to Nabiki Tendo, who stood in the doorway, an apple in her hand.

"I can't even sleep at night anymore," she went on. "Akane is always being kidnapped and causing a scene. My grades are even falling, so I figured I had to do something about our little problem."

Kasumi, Soun and Genma just stared at her. Nabiki grinned back at them.
Akane Tendo couldn't remember the last time she had so much homework. The teachers just kept piling it on. Not only was she swamped in her studies, but no one in town would leave her alone! Every five minutes, Ranma showed up to bother her... intentionally or not. She glanced up at the large crack in her window. Who was going to fix that!?

Before she could think any further, there was a loud rap at her door. Her shoulders tensed.

"Go away, Ranma... I'm BUSY!"

The door swung open anyway, and Akane turned to yell at him, only to realize that it was Nabiki who had just entered her room.

"Is that how you greet your dear, dear sister?" she wanted to know, big fake tears flooding her eyes. "Listen, Akane," she said, sobering up immediately as she threw an envelope in Akane's direction. I was only bringing you your mail. And, hey. Maybe if you tell him to go away nicely, he'll actually leave you alone for awhile.

The door slammed, and Nabiki was gone. Akane tore open the envelope and smoothed out the creases in the paper.

Akane Tendo,
Sorry this is such short notice, but it is an opportunity that can't be passed! We'll be going on a school field trip deep in the woods to study a rare species of mushrooms that have recently been discovered. We'll be leaving at tomorrow at 7:00 am sharp in the back of the school, so pack your things and be ready! The trip will last a week, and we'll be staying at a small bed and breakfast in the area, so there's no need to worry over camping supplies. Just be sure to bring a notebook and pen for thorough note taking, as there are many interesting properties to mushrooms, and the nearby plant life. Again, sorry for the short notice, but we cannot miss such an opportunity! Hope to see you tomorrow at 7:00 am sharp!
Your Biology Teacher
Mrs. Kantori

Akane stared at the letter for a long while. She had never gone on a field trip with such short notice before, but this was, after all, a good chance to get out of her other classes. And best of all, no homework!

She shoved the letter aside and immediately began to pack.
Early the next morning, Ranma Saotome woke to a heavy weight on his stomach. "Oof!" he sputtered, gasping for air. He opened his eyes to see his father standing over him... and a heavy backpack resting on top of his own stomach. "What's the deal, Pop?"

Genma only frowned down at him. "Get up, boy. We're going on a training trip!"

Ranma stared at his father. There was only two more weeks of school before break, and he had a few pretty big tests coming up. But when did Ranma Saotome ever study? His fingers wrapped around the strap of the backpack, and he sprung to his feet.
Akane stood at the bathroom sink and brushed her teeth. She was about to reach for her hand towel when the door flew open, and Ranma slid in. He took one look at her, and then went over and nudged her away from the sink before grabbing his own toothbrush.

"Whatcha doin', tomboy?" he said as he squeezed the tube of toothpaste onto his brush.

Akane shoved him over, and then spit into the sink. "What does it LOOK like I'm doing, moron?"

Ranma didn't bother to look at her. "It LOOKS like you're in my way," he retorted.

"Excuse me?" Akane shoved him even harder. He landed on the floor, right on his backside, his toothbrush sticking out of his mouth. "In case you've forgotten, I was here first. Now, get out!"

He stood up and brushed himself off. "Well, I didn't see a sign on the door saying that this was your bathroom. I'm going on a training trip with Pop, and I have to be ready in ten minutes. Maybe you should respect my training and get out of the bathroom until I'm done."

"I can't believe you!" Akane screamed at him. "You don't even know why I'm up so early, so don't assume that your activities are more important than mine."

Ranma grinned at her, white toothpaste all over his teeth. "Well, aren't they?"
Akane glared at him. She drew back her fist and knocked him straight out the window. "That'll teach that pervert to come barging in on me when I'm in the bathroom."

Kasumi and Akane walked up to Furinkan High School at exactly six-fifty- nine that same morning. Akane expected to see her biology classmates gathered around, but the place was deserted. Next to the school was an envelope, and in sloppy handwriting, it said her name. She walked over and ripped it open. A bus ticket slipped out, but she caught it just in time.

Dear Akane,
I'm very sorry that you didn't get this message sooner. I tried to call your house, but the phone was busy. We had to unexpectedly leave an hour earlier. Enclosed is a bus ticket that will take you to our destination. Sorry, again, but there was no other way!
-Mrs Kantori

Akane turned the ticket over in her hand. A bus ticket... by herself to a school field trip? This was just getting more and more strange.

"Oh!" Kasumi said, looking over Akane's shoulder. "Looks like they left without you, Akane."

"Yeah, but they left me this ticket," she held it up to her sister, and the two of them turned around and headed toward the bus station.
Initially, Akane had been upset that she had missed the rest of her classmates and was now on the way all by herself, but now that she sat in the back of the bus, staring out the windows at the pretty spring scenery, she was glad to be alone. Plus, it gave her something to look forward to. A few of the girls in her class were good friends, and Akane couldn't wait to spend a while week with them... away from Ranma. As time went on, he only seemed to be more and more annoying. All he ever did was make fun of her, insult everything she did, and constantly mess up all of her plans.

Ranma was definitely a problem.

Before she had gotten onto the bus, Kasumi had handed her a thin envelope. And using the good name of their deseased mother, she continued to tell Akane to wait until the afternoon to open it. While Akane was curious as to what the note said, she couldn't disobey her sister when Kasumi had looked so seriously into her eyes just earlier that morning. Her mother would be so disappointed if she did.

Instead, Akane held the letter to the light, trying to read the print, but it revealed nothing. "Oh, well," she sighed as she leaned against the side of the bus. "This trip will make everything worth it!
"Ouch, Pop!" Ranma yelped as another branch hit him in the face. "Would you quit letting go of those things? My face is starting to hurt!"

Genma grinned back at him. "Sorry, boy, but what is a martial artist who can't endure a little pain?"

"Pain?! You're just doin' it to be mean!"

"It's called training!"

Ranma shut his mouth as he glared at his father's back. He wasn't sure where they were headed, but it was obviously out in the middle of nowhere, as most of their training trips were. "What are we studying this time, anyway?" Ranma wanted to know as they leapt over a small stream.

Genma stopped dead in his tracks, and Ranma slammed into his back. "Um... well..."

Ranma rubbed his nose. "Um, well, what?"

"I thought I'd... um, show you the... Cry of the Hippopotamus!"

Ranma raised his eyebrow at his father. "The hippopotamus?"

"Yes. It's a skill that has been passed down in this family for generations. And it's time that you, my boy, learned it."

"What's it do?" Ranma wanted to know.

"Well...erm..." Genma chuckled nervously. "It's a secret. The learner can't know the outcome of the skill until after they've mastered it."

"How the hell does that work?"

"I told you, boy! It's a secret! Now shut up and let's get going!"

Ranma grumbled under his breath as he heaved his backpack further onto his shoulders. He should have been used to his father's stupid techniques, but honestly, he was beginning to wonder what the old man was up to this time.
"Here we are!" Akane exclaimed as the bus drove back down the dirt path. In front of her was a small bed and breakfast, that couldn't have had more than five rooms. She wondered where all of her classmates would fit. Maybe they had extra cots?

She stepped up the wooden steps and entered through the front door. "Hello..." she said, but no one answered. The walls were painted a deep shade of red, and under her feet rested a shiny hardwood floor. Couches, chairs and lamps lined the sides of the main area, and in the center sat a small table. On the table was another envelope. Her name was scrawled on the front.

Slowly, she walked over to the table, her shoes clicking on the hardwood as she approached. She tore open the letter and pulled out the single sheet of lined paper.

Akane,
We went to get our first look at the mushrooms. Don't worry, you're not missing out on too much. The rest of the students were excited to take a peak, but our main studying will begin in the morning. Please have a seat, and wait for us to return shortly.
-Mrs. Kantori

It seemed odd that she would keep missing her classmates, but Akane shoved the letter into the top of her bags with the rest of them, anyway, and took a seat next to a window. The bed and breakfast was very quiet, and since she was left alone for the time being, she let her thoughts drift. They went directly to the unopened letter that resided in her bag. One look at her watch told her that there was only ten more minutes till noon. Figuring that that was close enough, she dove for the letter and tore it open without another thought.

Dear Akane,
After long and careful thought, we (your family) have decided that we can no longer sit by and watch as you and Ranma drift further and further apart. Daddy insists that your relationship is very important to the dojo, and to the Anything Goes Style of martial arts, and he will not give up easily! All four of us (Mr. Saotome included) believe that if only you and Ranma could spend some quality time together, without all of the usual disturbances, of course, that you would realize that your marriage is something that will not only better our family, but will make you both happy as well. Well, as happy as someone can be married to someone who's a girl half the time... Oh, whoops. Kasumi told me not to write that, but it's too late. I am writing in ink, after all, and I'm not going to start over. Anyway, what I'm trying to say is that we fooled you. You probably already realize what's going on since Ranma is there with you. (that is, if you waited until noon to read this letter. Mr. Saotome is supposed to have him there by then. If you didn't wait, then shame on you, Akane! You better stay put, or Daddy will cry himself to sleep for a whole month! He's very convinced that this will work!) Try to get along with Ranma. A bus will be there to pick the two of you up a week from today. And don't worry about your classes. I've taken the liberty of talking to your teachers and working everything out. You can find all of your homework assignments on the third bedroom on the right.
With Love,
Nabiki, Kasumi, Father, and Mr. Saotome

Akane picked up the lamp from the table and hurled it across the room. It crashed against the wall with a satisfying shattering sound.

How could they do this to her? She couldn't believe that they would stoop to locking her up in some stupid deserted bed and breakfast with RANMA, of all people!!

The note was still in her hand, but now it was crumpled in her clenched fist. Ranma would be here any minute... and then he would be informed that they would be leaving and headed straight for home!!