Smile like you mean it
They were all standing at the middle of the junkyard. The slightly chilly wind played with their hairs, sending a chilly silence through the junkyard. They were standing there; ready to fight against the Demon before them.
No, really, only one of them was going to fight, but the others were there to support him. He had been against small and big opponents, but none of them counted against the demon standing before him.
The demon was eight feet tall, and it had red blackish scales all over its body. It had a long tail, and claws, both covered by shiny metal blades. He decided that standing in the silence, and watching the leaves play in the air before them was no use, and attacked.
Ranma fought bravely, that was to be said, but he still didn't win. No one could. The demon before was indestructible. The fight was brutal. Ranma was being slaughtered.
It wasn't before Ranma was about to die that from somewhere, from someone, he drew power. He saw Akane cry.
His power increasing, his speed increasing, he became faster, and faster, and faster, until he was no more than a red and black blur. The demon seemed even surprised for a moment.
Round-a-house kick, hit to the abdomen, duck, duck, slash, vertically, kick, high-kick, chestnuts-on-open-fire-technique, kick, punch, punch, hit, hit, high hit, kick, kick, round-a-house-kick, duck…
The list went on and on as Ranma used every trick on his book, and he was relief when he finally succeeded in trapping the demon in a position where it could not move and Ranma's chi attack was taking care of it in nanoseconds.
Nanoseconds were all the time the demon needed. It threw its claw forward, releasing his blades, and sending them trailing through the air towards Akane.
Ranma didn't think about the pain in his dozens of wounds. Ranma didn't think about what he was trying to he was impossible. He didn't think about the fight's he and Akane had. He didn't think about how much it was going to hurt if he succeeded…
Ranma was thinking about Akane's smile. The way her hair smelled, the way her fingers welt as they hade once caressed his hand. He was thinking about the beautiful colour of her hair. He was thinking about the shade of her eyes.
And he decided he didn't want that shade to go grey as the live would leave Akane. He didn't want an end like that to her. Not to HIS Akane. His beautiful Akane, whose lips tasted like sherbet lemon, and whose smiles brightened his day.
He regretted the days, minutes, seconds, when he had not been with Akane.
He finally reached Akane, after an eternity of trying, and pushed her to the ground.
He fell on top of Akane, sending out a silent scream, as the blades hit his back, and started filling his lungs with blood.
Akane's head was between his elbows, their face almost touching. To his honour, Ranma didn't even flinch, as they rolled over, moving Akane on top of him.
He was looking up to her, as the sun finally sent its first rays to the sky, and they shone through Akane's beautiful blue hair.
Ranma just drew Akane to his chest.
"You okay?" He asked worried, groggily.
"Yes, Ranma" Akane answered, wondering why Ranma was behaving like this. He had saved her before.
"Would you do me a favour?" Ranma asked, his voice already fading away, as he fought not to cough up blood. Akane nodded. Ranma didn't see, as the blackness shifted on his sight for a moment.
"Yes." Akane answered, as she got no reaction from Ranma.
"You have a really beautiful smile, did you know that?" Ranma asked, not really waiting for an answer. "It always brightens up my day…" Ranma continued, rambling up different thoughts about her beautifulness, and about how he loved her. Akane frowned, now she knew for SURE something was wrong.
"Ranma, is something wrong?" Akane asked, toughing almost his lips with her own. Ranma let out a murmur that meant nothing as he looked at her lips in a daze. She took it as an encouragement, and moved her lips to touch his.
And, so they kissed, for the last time.
Ranma didn't care about the shards of the demon claws digging in more painfully in his back. He cared about the fact that his sherbet lemons were back. He was complete, because his other half was here.
"Would you smile for me? Smile like you mean it?" Ranma asked desperately, as his voice gave finally out, and he could feel his throat starting to fill with blood. Akane smiled the brightest smile ever, and answered:
"I love you too. I always have. The smiles were always real, for you. I love you, Ranma." Akane said, hugging his tightly.
Ranma didn't even cough as he felt his lungs needing the air they weren't getting because of the blood.
His world went black, and the last thing he saw was Akane Tendo's smile.
Akane smiled. It was finally happening. Her happy thoughts died when she drew her hand back from Ranma's back.
It was full of blood.
And so she screamed, and screamed, and screamed to all eternity, but Ranma didn't hear that.
Because Ranma was already gone, in a world of sherbet lemon and warmth.
The End