Disclaimer: I do not own Ranma 1/2.
The Visitor
An old man stared at the gravestone. The place was deserted, but he frequently found tranquillity in the emptiness that greeted him each morning. The cold wind swept through the green field in the cemetery like a blanket tucking him in. In his youth, he would have greeted this day with a series of katas that he had memorized by heart. However, now that age had caught up with him, he no longer welcomed the cold wind as an invitation or a promise of a brighter day, but as a sign of a long and tiresome day ahead.
He uncomfortably shifted his weight. Giving up the fight, he squatted on the grass. He remained there until the sun was high in the sky. He knew that he would come again tomorrow, and the day after, until he could no longer come. He promised her and he always, always, kept his word.
The man left limping. Leaning heavily on his cane, he didn't move so quickly. Despite that, his gait suggested an enthralling grace borne of years honing his body. For other people, it would have been a difficult task to walk in such a way. It appeared as though he slowly danced in a tune that only he could hear - a melody so slow that no one else could catch its rhythm.
Several minutes later, a younger woman came to the same gravesite offering flowers and prayers to the dead. But this woman, unlike the visitor that came before, radiated contentment and happiness. Her striking blue eyes sparkled like diamonds. She spent a little while to the same grave that the old man had held his vigil at not minutes before, talking animatedly as if someone was listening. Her laughter rang unto the empty place like music with the grass swaying to its tune and the birds singing to its rhyme.
The two had been following this pattern for months now, not once catching each other. They always went their separate ways, not knowing that they were connected.
One day, the man came a little late and the woman came a little early. Not knowing what to say or what to do, they stood there awkwardly beside each other until one of them broke the silence.
The younger woman stole a few glances over the man before her curiosity could stand it no longer. She asked, "Are you a friend of my mother?"
The solemn look on the man's face suddenly changed. He laughed at the question, not knowing why. "You could say that I was," he said then his face returned to its serious look.
" How come I didn't see you at the service?" she inquired persistently. Her face mirrored her mind: full of questions.
"She wasn't speaking to me when I left. When I returned, it was too late," he answered quietly.
Her heart ached for the man as he spoke those words. She could see the intense longing reflected in his eyes. The man's face remained grave and serious. His eyes were so full of pain and regrets that anyone looking into their depths would drown into the same oblivion of loneliness that the old man himself had fallen.
Turmoil wracked her mind as she grappled to remember him. But she could not recall the slightest detail about this man. A lifetime with her mother and still the woman managed to keep secrets from her. The silence dragged on before the man spoke. "Your mother was pretty stubborn when she was younger. She does…did…whatever she decided on doing even if you don't…sorry, didn't…want her to. She was so selfless when it came to the people she loved."
The woman did not interrupt nor made any distractions to disrupt the man. She stood there intently listening as he started pouring out his words.
"Akane gave up her crush to Dr. Tofu because she knew he liked her sister, Kasumi. I had to cheer her up back then. The stubborn mule told me she didn't need any help to deal with her trampled heart. But I couldn't just leave her like that. At the end of the day, I just wanted to make her smile. Eventually, I did," he said with a smile on his lips as he remembered the memory as clear as if it just happened yesterday.
" I didn't know that her first crush was my Uncle. If I had known, I would have asked her how it all happened." She smiled regretfully..
The man took a moment to pause to gather his memories before shrugging. "I don't know how long she had a crush on him before I showed up, but I know she grew her hair for him. She was so desperate for him to notice her that your mother actually wanted to be as feminine like as Kasumi. But she couldn't do it…once a tomboy, always a tomboy," he added with a sad chuckle. "So she instead grew her hair longer than Kasumi since it was the only thing she could beat her eldest sister at. She didn't realize until later that she never had a chance with him. Still didn't cut it, though, until Ryoga accidentally cut it off with one of his ki-enhanced headbands. It was then that I learned the saying that "a woman's hair is her life." She was mad as hell that day."
"I wondered why father didn't mention that. He told me a lot of stories about Mom, but I think he forgot to tell me that. He must have been so ashamed of doing it, even if it's by accident. I'm glad she forgave him." The woman said contentedly.
The old man looked at the woman beside him earnestly before saying, "Your mother can hold a grudge, but not for so long. She may be stubborn, but she isn't that stubborn. She gets angry at first, but eventually she cools off."
"How long have you known Mom?" She asked, realizing that the man would not go further.
He took a moment to reply. "Met her when I was 16. Boy, was it one hell of a meeting."
"How come no one told me about you?" she pressed further, her curiosity growing.
"Child, there are things best kept hidden. I'm one of them." The man said without hesitation.
When she didn't reply, he continued. "Besides, my story isn't that important. I have the same story as every martial artist in the world, but your mom had a different one and hers is much interesting than mine."
His answer did not stop her wondering; If anything, her curiosity and confusion only grew. The fact that he did not want to be known made her want to learn everything about him. As she continued to rifle through her memories, she made a leap of logic that let everything else fall into place. There was only one person her mother refused to talk about. Her uncles and aunties avoided the name like the plague. She never questioned it; she barely knew the person who owned the taboo name. She quickly learned of what the name meant to her mother and soon learned to never ask nor speak of it.
She should have known that she'd meet him here. She should have expected him to come. As she stared onto those blue eyes for the first time, she should have guessed who he was. Slowly, a strong burst of anger erupted through her heart like a fire. She wanted him to suffer just as her mother suffered – just like how they all suffered because of him. "She loved you," she said plainly.
When he didn't respond, she pushed further. "Even at her death bed, she waited for you. My father held her hand, yet she asked for you. Do you know how he must have felt? How I felt?" The man remained quiet.
"Mom suffered because of you, but we suffered more. Her husband, her sisters, her daughter! To see someone you love destroy herself for someone who is worthless and uncaring…it was beyond painful. I kept asking myself over and over: why would you let anyone wait for anyone when he doesn't even have the decency of wanting to come home? I want to know, no, I demand to know what lie you used on her that kept her up every night waiting for you." Her voice grew louder with every word. Gone was the bright smile on her lips and the cheerful aura that she radiated not minutes before. The anger that she stored for all these years suddenly came like a tidal wave which was now giving her the strength to confront the man who is the source of it all.
When he finally found his voice, she was shocked to discover it was laced with steel. "I loved her."
"I wanted to say it to Akane years ago, but couldn't do it. I was young, stupid…and afraid. So afraid. It so often got stuck in my throat. Every day, I regret not saying it to her."
"Such a great love for my mother to wait for you for an entire lifetime, Ranma Saotome," she said sarcastically, her voice turning to bile as she spit out the name. Her eyes blazed with anger. Her hair, which was earlier been tied into a ponytail, had fallen onto her shoulders as she yanked the ribbon from it.
Ranma took his time when he answered. He wasn't doubtful or hesitant at all. He knew that what he had with Akane was something special. "It was. That's why I never married. I could never find anything like it. It is the thing that makes you want to continue to fight when all other hope is lost because you know someone's waiting for you. " Clutching his chest, he felt the aching of his heart. It was the same ache he felt whenever he remembered the emptiness he felt all those times that he was away from her.
She couldn't believe him. Not now. Not ever. After all the pain he had caused to her family, she couldn't ever forgive him. She wanted him to suffer. She wanted him to feel the pain that she in her father and saw when her mother continued to wait for such an irresponsible man. "I thought Ranma Saotome wasn't good with words, how come you suddenly became a poet now?"
He darted his eyes away from her and let it rest on the vastness of the sky as he remembered the way things was when he was travelling. "Those were the words that I was trying to remember as I made my way back to her. I wanted to say them in person, but I was too late. If I had known, I would have come earlier."
"What good would it had been if you came earlier? My mother suffered for years. Your presence wouldn't save her. You couldn't even help yourself. How could you help her?" She asked,.
"I never intended on helping or saving her. I wanted only to suffer with her and die with her. It's the only thing I ever wanted," he spoke softly, regret lacing his voice.
Her voice finally broke and tears started streamed onto her cheeks. "You don't deserve to suffer with my mother. You left her, remember? You chose to find the cure for your curse instead of being with her. You chose to be a 'man among men,' rather than being a real man. You ran from your responsibility."
He listened to her intently as she voiced the words that had been nagging him for the past waking days. "I did do that, didn't I? I was a coward and was irresponsible, but your mom didn't know that I'm also a curse – her curse. Do you think she would have lived an entire lifetime if I was with her? She wouldn't have. Trouble always has a way of finding me and if I stayed with her, she would have died. I would've been just a little too slow once – and once is all it'd take – and she would've died. I couldn't bear that guilt. It would be like I was the one to shove the sword through her chest myself." He felt the aching once again – the one that would wake him up every day. A burden that he would bear until the end of his days.
"Do you think so little of her that you thought she couldn't protect herself? She was strong, stronger than you ever were. She couldn't bear all the pain you inflicted on her if she wasn't. But you saw her as weak, didn't you? You only saw her as a burden to your grand adventure; another obstacle to your greatness. If you really loved her, you wouldn't belittle her so."
Ranma could not stop himself from laughing out loud. "You're your mother's daughter. Same stubborn mule."
As if the years had never passed, he was there inside the Tendo Dojo once more, telling Akane that he was leaving. He remembered her saying those exact same words, the exact same expression on her face. She was angry – very angry. He thought he'd see the mallet once again, but it never came. What happened next made him felt worse than being pounded by the hammer. He saw tears drop from her angry brown eyes. It made him felt weak, weaker even than when he had been hit by the Moxibuston Weakness Point. Seeing the girl in front of her doing exactly the same thing as her mother did several years ago, Ranma felt his heart beat rapidly. Now, he saw every each of Akane within her. "I'll answer the same way as I answered her before; I wanted only her in my life. I would have gladly given up everything, even the Art, for her even my life. But that wouldn't make her happy. I needed to cure myself in order for me to live a normal life – a life where I can be sure that she'll be safe and hunted by no one. I wanted her to be at peace and not constantly worry if I would be able to come home to her safely."
Her sudden outburst earlier made her breathless but it didn't diminish her strong disgust with the man who stood before her. Gathering her strength, she softly said, "You talk as if you knew what was good for her. But do you really know what makes her happy? Did you ever know?"
The man stared at her, caught completely off guard by her question.
The look of shock on his face made her smile. She thought that she would never going to get through him or hurt him anymore than he already was since he was doing fine in hurting himself. Yet, that brief look on his face told her that he had a lot to feel regretful for that still he didn't know. "My mom was at her happiest when she was with the people she loved. Holidays had always put a smile on her face because she knew that her family would be coming home. Sometimes she went to great lengths to buy gifts or cooking their favorite food. She wasn't a very good cook, but she tried so hard. When I asked why she wants to be good at it, she told me that she was cooking ever since high school and even though it wasn't that good, only one boy had the courage to taste every bit of it. She wanted to be good so she could impress the boy at what she had done. At first, I thought it was Grandpa Soun, but he was not that boy. It was you. She did everything just so she could impress you. All these years, she was waiting for you to come home."
As the truth overwhelmed him and waves of emotion came rushing on him, he stood still taking it all in like a little boy who would lick his fingers just to get to taste the sweet chocolate that he ate minutes before. "I'm sorry," he finally said after collecting his composure.
"Sorry won't do anything," she said firmly.
"I know. But I'm sorry still," he persisted.
"I'm glad you're not my father." Just as she struck the final blow that she thought her mother kept from him, she had just denied her own biological father. For all those years of longing to meet him and tell him how proud she was of being his daughter, she had forgotten it all just so she could inflict more pain upon him.
"So am I. Because if you were, you'd only hate me as I hate myself." He knew who she was the minute he saw her eyes. Akane wrote so many letters about her and how her eyes reminded Akane of him. She was apparently well by Akane and Ryoga and for he'll be forever grateful to the man. He took care of Akane and brought Ranma's daughter as his own.
Those were the last words he spoke before he walked away from her. His walked was different from his usual one. Now, he walked in different tune – different from the one before.
Author's Note: I had a title in mind a few days ago, but when I was ready to post it, I changed my mind and wrote the new title. The ending isn't clear according to Kooshster (my beta-reader) and he suggested I should add something to it. I tried to let some days pass so I could think of something but sad to say I failed. Well, I guess I'll just leave the ending on what you want to interpret it.
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