Disclaimers: I do not and will not ever own Ranma ½ in anything other than book form. All characters are property of Rumiko Takahashi, not myself.
Warnings: Uhm. Shounen ai, and slightly twisted at that. There may be some language, and almost definitely some lewdness. Somewhat depressing theme throughout, I think. Yeah.
Notes: This story has been running through my head for God knows how long. And I don't know why. This is set somewhere somewhat early in the series, probably a little after volume nine (yeah, that one). Well, anyway, I hope that you enjoy it! Somewhat surprise pairing, but I bet it's been done. If it hasn't, I'll... I'll... eat something! eats a lot anyway
EDIT 6-25-05 - Thanks to some constructive criticism from BTB, this segment has been altered to be a little less... well, OOC, I suppose. Thanks very much, and I'll keep working on improving my work. Not to mention a few grammar corrections for a poor little fourteen-year-old's paltry attempts. XD I hope it's more enjoyable now. :)
EDIT 3-18-07 - I guess even seventeen-year-olds make mistakes. Brushing some stuff up a little, and also planning on fleshing out some of the chapters some more. I never realized before how short most of them are! I'll see what I can do.
Prologue
Akane glared challengingly at the gently swelling waters. She had always felt stupid and burdensome; Ranma constantly had to save her, and it drove her crazy. The present proved no different. When that shriveled old hag and Ranma had been fighting, he had saved Akane from the sea instead of focusing on his opponent. She had wanted to help, but instead ended up being saved like a stupid child and costing Ranma more than anything else in that fight - and in general, it seemed. She shook her head to try and fight off the dark thoughts; the ideas themselves left, but the miasma of grief remained around her, darkening the sky.
No one knew that she was going to be here. At least, she didn't think that they did. The fact that she couldn't swim made it uncommon for her to go to the beach. After all, being at the beach embarrassing enough without other people, especially friends and family, to be there to mock her when she failed. Which would most likely be very frequently, she thought sadly. She didn't even bother trying to shake the thoughts this time.
More than anything, Akane wanted to be useful to people. That was why she was here today; the crash of the waves on the shore brought her away from her bitter thoughts and back to the present.
She was going to learn how to swim.
Feeling embarrassed even though there was no one watching her, Akane hesitantly pulled on her floaties and held the kick-board in front of her somewhat like a bokken. She had seen children practicing in the school swimming pool with similar equipment, and so decided it would probably be a good place for her to start. After all, a little kick-boarding in shallow water had never hurt anyone.
Akane edged slightly, slowly toward the ominous gray waters, sand slipping between her toes as she cautiously advanced. She approached it as she would an opponent in a battle; she in no way trusted water, unless it was confined. And preferably in bath form.
Resolutely, she continued to creep toward the water, lost in thought, until the water brought her back to reality again by lapping up against her toes. It was a little bit cold, but definitely bearable. After having assessed the situation, Akane resumed her forward crawl, wading in with more confidence as she reached ankle depth. When the water lapped against her chest, however, she began to falter, and came to a standstill. She felt the water lightly tugging on her, encouraging her to move forward. Ignoring it, she turned parallel to the shore and began kicking with all of her might, clutching the kick-board just as fiercely.
Her intent focus on her swimming attempts kept Akane's attention from the fact that the tide was slowly pulling her into deeper waters, despite her initial efforts. She only noticed when she fumbled with her kick-board and found that her feet did not touch the bottom when she tried to stand.
Panicking, Akane scrambled to reach her kick-board, but the waters held it barely beyond her grasp, taunting her, and slowly but surely carrying it further away. The hysterical girl reverted to simply flailing her arms as she sank inevitably under the surface of the water. She wished, hoped that someone was there, but knew no one was, it was still too cold for anyone to be swimming and she hadn't told anyone, why, why hadn't she -
The rest of her thoughts quickly reverted into the depths of her mind, as the focus on her need to breathe took over. Her hands clawed above her as she was pulled even deeper, leaving trails of minute air bubbles to rend the tranquil blue. So much blue.
She opened her mouth to gasp for breath, knowing and yet somehow discovering anew that there was none there. The lukewarm waters flowed into and past her mouth, salty and bitter. Everything shifted, spun. Her arms fell as though in slow motion, slowed by the water and her own exhaustion. She was too weak, too weak.
--Ran--!
Suddenly, the world went black.