Ranma struggled to breathe as they leapt through the house, their father hot on their heels. They knew something was not right. They had been sparring with Genma for only half an hour, and already their lungs were burning, and they didn't usually have this kind of trouble breathing. But, regardless, they couldn't let their father beat them. They'd never hear the end of it. They spun around, prepared to aim a kick at Genma's chest, only to double over as searing pain bloomed in their chest and their breath became shallow rasps. Genma paused in his pursuit to look at his child in confusion, then worry as he realised they were having trouble breathing. Rushing up, he rubbed soothing circles on their back, until their breathing evened out.

"Tell me when you're not feeling well." He chided, worry etching his voice. "If your mum found out I was training you while you're sick, she'd have my head."

Ranma let out a chuckle, which quickly devolved into a coughing fit. Their chest felt like it was on fire and their lungs felt like led. Why was it so hard to breathe? They were half grateful, half embarrassed when Genma pushed them towards their room, telling them to get some rest.

Once they were in their room, they pulled off their usual blue Chinese outfit and slipped into a night gown. Ever since they'd come out to their parents about being gender non-binary, their mother had insisted on taking them shopping for some more 'girls clothes', since they'd be wearing them more often. Not that Ranma would complain. They liked how girl's clothes complemented their figure in their female form, and the silky fabric felt nice.

Climbing into bed, they felt another coughing fit tickling their throat. Just as they'd settled under the covers, their whole body went rigid as hacking coughs racked their form. They felt something land in the hand that was covering their mouth, but didn't have time to think about it as another wave of coughs hit them. As the fit finally subsided, they pulled away their hand to find a pile of flower petals in it, and on the floor where they'd fallen. They looked like… teal freesia petals. Okay, that was defiantly not normal.

Rolling over, they reached out and grabbed their laptop. There had to be something on the internet about this. The search result was instant and not something they wanted to see.

'Hanahaki disease, the magic based disease that targets unrequited love, causing flowers of varying type to grow in the victim's lungs until said lungs were torn apart.'

Ranma did not like the sound of that. After about an hour of research, they found out as much about the disease as they could. It usually took several months to reach its final stage, and there were only two ways of curing it. Either a: have the object of the love return the victims feeling, or b: surgery.

Of the two, Ranma thought that surgery was their best option, until they read the possible side effects. In removing the flowers from the victim's lungs it was guaranteed that their love for the other would also be removed as a by-product, however there was also the risk of losing memories of the individual, losing feeling for everyone in their life at that point, or loss of the ability to feel at all. No, they were not having that. They'd rather die than lose everything they had. There were so many people in their life that they cared for, and the thought of losing that made them feel even sicker than they already did.

Sitting in their bed, they slowly began to think things through. They couldn't let the Tendos or their parents find out, they'd insist that Ranma get the surgery or confess. And neither of those options where at all promising. They'd need to start on a will or something, for everyone to read once they were gone. Then there was the question of what they'd do once it got to the point where it wasn't hide-able anymore. Maybe they could call in a favour from Ryu, they had a few month so they could get everything organised and ready to go.

They were honestly half surprised that they were taking this so well. But, then, they'd almost been killed at least twenty times before, what was more surprising was that of all the godlike entities, nut jobs, and magical hijinks, it was flowers that would be their down fall. It was honestly a little funny, and extremely ironic.

They chuckled, but stopped when they felt it aggravate their throat. With all of the fiancés that they've had and all the 'love confessions' thrown their way, when they finally did fall for someone, not only was it was someone that wouldn't in a million years return their feeling, it was also literally killing them. Though they did have to wonder why they had contracted Hanahaki when none of those that had tried to win their hand had.

Putting down their laptop, they set about cleaning up all the fallen petals stroon about their bed. Step one to hiding their condition, dispose of the evidence. Putting the petals in the bin, they heaved a sigh of exasperation. Of cause the flowers would have to be teal, of all colours. Screw what colour the flower actually came in; let all rub some salt in an open wound.

Lying back in bed, they pulled the cover over their head to help cover up their loud coughing fits. Every few hours, one of the people they'd come to call to call their family would poke their head in and ask if they needed anything. Ranma would always say either 'no, thank you' or 'glass of water/ something to eat, please', depending on how many petals had gathered under the covers before they could throw them out.

It's been two months since Ranma found out they'd contracted Hanahaki. They've, thankfully, been able to hide it from their friends and family thus far. But, they could tell the others were starting to suspect something was up. They'd probably need to make a move soon.

They were currently at Neko Café for their weekly hang out with Mousse. Sitting at a table in the back corner, they absently played Pokémon Picross while they waited. Occasionally clearing their throat and popping stray petals in their pocket. They knew they should probably go home and hide in their room until this disease ran its course. But, they hadn't missed a single hang out, and they didn't intend to start now.

They looked up with a smile as they saw a familiar shadow passed over them. Mousse returned the smile as he placed the food tray on the table and sat down.

"How are you feeling, Ranma?" He asked.

Ranma looked up from the skewer they'd just grabbed with a raised eyebrow. "Fine, I guess. Why?"

"Akane told me that you've been getting sick a lot lately. And, you've been clearing your throat since you came in."

Ranma made a mental note to pay Akane back for telling Mousse. The last thing they needed was him getting suspicious.

"It's just all the freaking pollen in the air. It's messing with my throat." They said, taking a bite from the skewer. "On to more interesting things, how are things going with Shampoo?"

"They're not." He said simply, almost sounding annoyed.

"Aw, don't worry Mousse. She'll come around." They tried to encourage.

"Well… maybe I don't want her to." He said under his breath, clearly not expecting Ranma to hear.

Upon hearing this, the currently raven paired teen choked on the piece of chicken they were currently eating. Once they recovered, they turned to Mousse.

"What chu talkin' about, Willis?" They asked, trying to play of their choking fit.

Mousse seemed to be too occupied with being embarrassed to notice Ranma's poor attempt at diversion. "Just… maybe I don't care if she likes me or not."

Ranma frowned. Mousse wasn't a tsundere, far from it. So that meant he was being 100% honest here, and didn't care about winning over Shampoo. That could only mean…

"Mousse," They said in a low voice. "Do you like someone else?"

Mousse flushed even more, confirming their suspicions. They put on a cheeky and teasing smile to cover up the painful feeling in their chest. Whether it was caused by the Hanahaki, their feelings or both didn't seem to matter.

"So, what's her name? Do I know her? Are the feels real? I need to know so I can appropriately tease you later." They grinned.

Mousse leaned back with his arms folded, his face still red. "I choose not to answer any of that."

"Buzz kill."

They said it teasingly, but in all honesty they were relieved. Even the little they had talked about had not been pleasant for them, leaving them feeling like their chest was being constricted and it was hard to breath. Wait… That wasn't just their imagination, it was actually harder to breath, and their throat was burning. Not good.

"I'll be right back."

Standing up, Ranma headed to the toilets as calmly as they could. It wasn't easy, as they were beginning to feel like they were suffocating. Then again they probably were.

They barely had enough time to get to the men's, quickly check no one was there and lock the door, before they collapsed to the ground. Hacking coughs racked their form as their lungs tried to rid themselves of the invasive flowers. Red and teal freesia petals fell to the ground as they desperately tried to breath.

The part of their brain that was still able to think, despite the oxygen deprivation, was currently freaking out over the red spots on the petals. They were starting to cough up blood, along with the petals. That meant they'd hit stage three already. Either their case of Hanahaki was extreme, or coming to Neko was a very bad idea.

They heard someone try to open the door, then knock. They would have ignored the other person, if they didn't speak.

"Ranma? Why's the door locked?" Mousse called through the door. "Are you okay, in there?"

Ranma was about to attempt a response, when another coughing fit hit them like a truck. They heard Mousse's panicked voice on the other side of the door. He tried to open the door again, before calling for Cologne and Shampoo to bring the key. All the while, telling Ranma that they were coming.

Their lungs hurt worse than anything they had ever endured before. It was almost impossible to breath, their breathes coming in shallow rasps. They felt light headed and their vision was darkening at the edges. Petals and spots of blood littered their hands and the floor. They barely had time to hear the door being unlocked, before they fell unconscious.

Yep. They should have just stayed home.

Ranma regained consciousness slowly. The first thing to come back was feeling, unfortunately, since their throat and chest hurt like crazy. The next was their hearing, as they slowly became aware of frantic voices talking just out of ear shot. Finally their sense of awareness kicked in and they became aware of a few things. First, there was something like a choker around their neck, second, they were having an easier time breathing than they had had in weeks, third, they'd passed out after coughing up a truck load of petals and some blood, and there was no way that Mousse, Cologne and Shampoo didn't see it. They just wanted to go back to sleep, but they knew they'd have to face the music sooner or later. Besides, they wanted to know just what was around their neck.

With extreme reluctance, Ranma forced their eyes open, wincing as the light from the window hit them. They were laying on a futon in what seemed to be in a room above the Neko Café, if the smell of cooking was anything to go by. The talking voices were coming from the other side of the door on the right side of the room, which they guessed led to the rest of the building. Another door led to what looked like a bathroom.

Getting up with a sigh, they made their way to the conjoining room. There they found a wall mirror above the sink and stood in front of it to examine their neck. They frowned as they saw the black silk choker around their neck, three teal mini freesia flowers on the front. Ignoring the fact that chokers did not work with their male form, why was it even there?

They were so absorbed in their confusion that they didn't realise that the talking had stopped, until they heard the door open and Mousse's shout of concern.

"Ranma?!"

They nearly jumped out of their skin as they heard the shout. Heart pounding wildly, they cautiously poked their head out of the bathroom. In the bedroom was a wide-eyed and panicked Mousse, a frowning Cologne, a red-eyed Akane and an angry Ryoga. Yep, they were screwed.

"Hey, guys." They said trying and failing to keep the nervousness out of their voice. "What brings you all here?"

Ryoga the first to react, marching right up to Ranma, and punching them square in the chin before they could react. They staggered back a little, clutching their now bruised chin they gave Ryoga a half-hearted glare.

"Ryoga, what the hell was that f-"

Before they could finish, their best friend pulled them into a tight bear hug. For a few seconds they just stood there dumfounded, then they heard Ryoga's mutters of 'you idiot' and felt the tears on their shoulder. With a tired sigh, they retuned the hug.

"I take it you know." They said simply.

Akane nodded, looking like she was about to burst into tears again. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"Because there's nothing to be done."

Ryoga quickly detached himself, holding Ranma's shoulders at arm's length. "Bull shit! You can get surgery."

"Have you read the side effects that the surgery can cause?" Ranma asked, half sarcastic. "Loss of the unrequited love, I can live with. Loss of memories, awkward, embarrassing, but again I can live with. But what I cannot, and will not live with, is the loss of my emotions all together."

Ryoga gritted his teeth, "Fine. Then why aren't you trying the confession. She could say yes."

"He," Ranma corrected with a roll of their eyes. "And no he won't."

They rolled their eyes again as everyone stared at them slack jawed.

"Seriously, guys? Haven't you learnt by now that I don't operate under the 'normal' rules? And before anyone makes comment, I'm not homosexual, I'm Demisexual. I had to look that up." They added the last part with a small hint of pride.

"This explains so much." Akane said absently.

Ryoga shook his head and fixed Ranma with a hard look. "Okay, whatever. How do you know he won't say 'yes'?"

"I just do." Ranma said, refusing to meet his eye. "Okay?"

"You don't know that Ranma." Akane tried. "Just look at me and Ryoga. We didn't know the other would respond to our feelings, and now look at us."

"Akane, you two were the only ones that thought that. Everyone else could see you both liked each other from space."

"Then tell us who it is and let us be the judges of that." She pressed.

"Not happening."

"You won't need to."

Everyone in the room turned to Mousse in confusion. He was currently holding his phone in his hand with a slightly smug smile on his face. Pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose, he turned back to the screen.

"Demisexual: Someone that does not feel sexual attraction to another, without first having a strong emotional bond." He read aloud. "You shouldn't have given us that little snippet, Ranma."

"I've been doing a lot of things that I shouldn't have today." They mumbled miserably. "I should have just stayed in bed. On a slightly different topic, what's this collar for?"

"That," Cologne began. "Is an old artefact designed just for Hanahaki. It slows the spread of the flowers and helps with breathing. It also tracks the progression, with the flowers."

Akane leaned in close to look at the flowers on the collar. The teal freesia flowers in full bloom gave her an idea. But, she'd carry that out later. Ranma looked like they were about to have an amorism, from all the interrogation. Still, if Cologne was right, that meant they were in stage three. They didn't have much time to work with. But, she was determined to save her sibling.

Ranma breathed a sigh of relief as they stopped in the park. They'd just managed to escape from their family, who were becoming more and more persistent in their questions of, whom it is, that they like. They understood that they were just trying to help, but why couldn't they just accept that even if they did know, it wouldn't make a difference. He just didn't like them in that way. End of story.

They sat on a bench with a flop, pushing their currently red fringe out of their eyes. They'd decided that they'd stay in their girl form while they had the collar on. Collars look better on them that way. It was late autumn and the wind had a bite to it, but they didn't want to go home yet. They shivered as the wind cut through their thin blue clothes, until they felt something being placed around their shoulders. Looking up in surprise they found a soft winter coat draped across their shoulders, and standing behind them was Mousse, holding a steaming coffee cup in each had.

"You should dress properly for the weather." He said simply. "You're sick enough without adding the flu on top of that."

He held out one of the cups to them and took the spot on the bench next to them. Ranma took a sip of the hot liquid and was pleasantly surprised to see that it was mint hot chocolate. The hot beverage burnt their throat slightly, but they didn't really mind right now. They sat there in silence for a few moments, before Mousse spoke.

"So… What's he like?" He asked slowly. "This guy you like?"

They gave him a flat look, to which he quickly corrected himself.

"You don't need to tell me anything that would distinguish him. I just want to know," He scratched the back of his head. "What you see in him to make you like him so much."

Ranma blinked. They weren't entirely sure how to react to this. Well, they guessed it did make sense for him to be curious. And this could be an opportunity to tell him about it, without actually coming out and saying it to his face.

"He's… the most loyal person I've ever met." Ranma began, looking down at the hot chocolate in their hands. "I'd never known what it was like to truly trust someone until he came along. I never trusted my dad, for obvious reasons. But, him… you could just tell that when he said something or did something, it was with all his heart."

Mousse sat there, listening to Ranma as they talked. Their eyes were distant and they had the faintest ghost of a smile on their face.

"But, not just that," They continued. "He's also a lot smarter than most people give him credit for. And, I can just sit down and talk to him. No guards, not fronts… it's rare that I feel so comfortable around someone that's not part of my family. I like him… because he doesn't expect me to be anything but myself."

"He… sounds like a really great guy." Mousse said slowly.

"He is." They agreed, throwing a quick glance at him.

They blinked, and then looked again. Mousse was frowning off into space, his own cup of hot chocolate forgotten in his lap. He almost looked upset. Then they shook their head. Yeah, he was upset. His friend was dying and they'd just 'poured their heart out' about how great the guy that was the 'course' of this mess was. Yeah, he was mad.

They were about to ask Mousse what he was thinking about, when they were thrown into a coughing fit. Their cup fell to the ground as they covered their mouth with their hands, the petals filling them fast. Mousse was at their side in a second, pulling them up and toward some safe shelter. At the collar around their neck, a fourth flower was starting to grow.

Ranma was depressed. They hadn't seen Mousse in over a week, the fourth freesia had bloomed and Akane was getting way too insistent on finding out who the object of their affections was. She'd actually gotten frighteningly close to guessing a few times. In short, it had been just about the worst week, and it was only about to get worse.

Akane had managed to corner them in the hall, when they were attempting to escape to their room. Her eyes were hard and determined, letting Ranma know up front that they were in trouble. She tapped her foot as she stared them down.

"Alright, Ranma," she stated firmly. "No more messing around. I know who it is that you like, and if you're not going to tell him, I will."

Ranma sighed and pinched the bridge of their nose. "Akane, for the last time. They don't like me. Why is everyone telling me that they do? If he did, don't you think I wouldn't be in this position?"

Akane growled. "It doesn't work like that, Ranma. Okay, yes, the feeling have to be one sided at the start. But, once the flowers have taken root, it doesn't matter if they become mutual, unless it's openly expressed. Even then, it can take months after the root have taken for the flowers to start growing."

"And you know this how?" Ranma asked sceptically.

"I asked Cologne about it." She explained. "I figured, since she had the collar you're wearing, she'd have more info than a quick Google search."

Ranma felt slightly stupid that they hadn't thought of that. But, on the other hand, they hadn't wanted anyone finding out, so naturally it wouldn't occur to them to as someone else. Yeah, that was the excuse they were going for.

"Okay," they began. "If that's the case, than I don't suppose that she'd have any idea as to why I got Hanahaki, an not say... any of the dozen people that have chased after me in the past?"

Akane sighed. "Hanahaki thrives off of repressed emotion. If you had been open about your feelings, even when they weren't requited, the flowers wouldn't have taken root. It's because you kept it bottled up."

Well, Ranma certainly had to admit that that made sense. And it did explain a lot. They sighed and rand their fingers through their hair as Akane continued.

"Ranma, Mouse really does care about you."

Ranma blanched and flushed a bright red at Akane's words. So, she really had managed to figure it out. They'd been hoping that she was just bluffing. She noticed the panic slowly creeping into their mind and quickly continued.

"Come on, Ranma." She pleaded. "The worst he can do is friend-zone you."

Ranma took a deep breath and clasped their hands together, before pointing them at Akane. "Akane, let me say this, just once. I am already in the friend-zone. I am very happy there. You want to know what the fastest friend killer is? Silence. Awkward, uneasy silence."

Akane gave them a flat look. "For someone surprisingly smart, you sure do say a lot of stupid stuff. I bet you any money, that if you told him how you felt, he'd be all over you in a second."

Ranma clenched their fists and turned away, heading for the door to the back yard. "That doesn't make it true."

Before she could respond, Ranma was already running. Jumping from one roof top to the next, in their mad dash to get away.

Ranma breathed in the cool, late autumn, night air, eyes closed, they thought back to Akane's words. They huffed in annoyance. Akane really could be clueless sometimes. Ranma had no doubt that Mousse would say he liked them, if they confessed, and that was the problem. It didn't matter if he said 'yes' now, because it would just be because of the Hanahaki.

They should really get back before anyone really started to worry. They were about to turn to head back, when they saw a familiar figure. Mousse was standing not ten feet away, looking up at the sky. Curious, and admittedly happy to see him, Ranma walked up and tapped his shoulder. Turning to them in surprise, Mousse stared at them wide eyed.

"Ranma? What are you doing out here?" He asked.

"Needed to get away for a bit. You?"

Mousse looked back up at the stars, avoiding Ranma's gaze. "I… needed to think."

"About what?"

"Just… things."

The two teenagers were silent for a long time, staring up at the stars. It was a tense silence, not exactly awkward, but not exactly peaceful either. It was the calm before a storm.

"You really aren't going to tell him, are you?" Mousse finaly asked.

"Nope."

"Why? The worst he can do is friend-zone you. Though he'd have to be a damn idiot to do that… An idiot that has the one thing I want." He added the last part in an absent minded mutter.

"I'll tell you, what I just told Akane. I'm already in the friend-zone…" Ranma pause as their brain caught up with what Mousse had said. "Wait… What did you mean by that last part?"

Akane couldn't have followed through on her threat, could she? No, she didn't have Mousse's number, and it's only been a few minutes since their argument. She couldn't have found him and told him with enough time for them to run into each other at the park like this.

Mousse's face turned bright red, clearly he hadn't expected Ranma to catch that last part. He put his sleeve covered hand to his mouth, in that way that meant he'd said too much.

"It's nothing. Pay it no heed." He stammered.

"Oh, no you don't Mousse." Ranma said firmly, placing their hands on their hips. "You are not doing that misdirection thing. Tell me what you meant, or I won't stop bugging you."

"Says the one that's been refusing to tell who their crush is."

"Because it won't make a difference, even if he did say 'yes' how would I know that he's not just saying it because I'm sick. I don't, and the only way for it to work is if I believe them." Ranma snapped. "Now, tell me what you meant by what you said."

"You… You won't like it."

"Mousse, I can assure you that nothing you say could possibly change how I think of you."

Mousse looked at them, his eyes searching for any signs that they might be lying. After a long moment he lowered his hand from his mouth and, before they could react, pulled Ranma into a tight hug. Ranma stood there unable to move from the tight embrace. They could feel Mousse trembling slightly against them. Slowly, he took a shaky breath.

"I… I like you, Ranma." He said slowly.

Ranma's thoughts all came to a screeching halt at Mousse's words. This couldn't be real. It couldn't…

"What?" They breathed.

"I like you. I… I might even love you." Mousse's words were slowly starting to come out easier. "That's what I meant. Because that guy, whoever he is, has the one thing I want… your heart."

Slowly, reluctantly, Mousse pulled back. He face was completely red and he refused to meet Ranma's eyes. Ranma just stood there, slowly trying to proses what had just happened.

"There… now you know. I'll… just go no-…"

Mousse was cut off by a pair of warm lips on his. Eyes wide in surprise, he stared at the current red head before him, whose lips had caused the interruption in question. In took several seconds for Mousse's mind to catch up that Ranma was, in fact, kissing him. If this were a dream, or his friend taking pity on him, in that moment he didn't care. Ranma was kissing him.

Gently, he wrapped one arm around their slender waist, as he brought the other up to cradle the back of their head. To his delight, Ranma responded, placing their hands on his shoulders and pulling him a little closer. After several long minutes, they pulled away for air, but only for a few seconds before immediately returning to kissing. Unbenounced to the two of them, the flowers on the collar around Ranma's neck withered and fell to the ground.

Several minutes later, they parted properly, both breathing heavily. Mousse was the first to fully regain his senses, and notice that the collar was now completely devoid of flowers. Smiling gently, he brushed some of Ranma's fringe out of their eyes.

"So… I take it you believe me."

At their confused expression, Mousse pointed at the collar. Ranma's eyes widened, before they flushed brightly, finally realising what had just happened. Mousse chuckled lightly, pulling them close again to hold them. All was right with the world. Ranma was going to be okay, and as a bonus they were now together. A smug grin came to his face.

"So… most loyal person you've ever met, huh?"

He laughed as he felt the light punch to his side.

"Shut up."