"Ranma? Ukyo? How did you guys get here before me?" I ask.

"You flung me right in here…" Ranma mumbles and sifts through his pocket for something. I notice the Ranma sized hole in the ceiling.

"Haha.. Sorry about that. Not my fault you're a lecher." I laugh under my breath.

I smile, and notice a small little man approaching from behind a bookcase.

"Hi! Are you Mr. Madachi?" I smile sweetly, hoping to get on his good side.

"Yes, I am. What can I do for you?" He smiles, bows his head, and a mass of wrinkles disturb his complexion.

"You see, the principal is making us do a scavenger hunt, and we were wondering if you happen to have a quill feather tip pen?" I beam with joy. He looks me up and down as if assessing if I'm good enough to have it.

"I have it," He begins. "But only one of you can have it. And if I'm not mistaken, they're 4 of you here," He chuckles. "I'm going to pick who you're fighting against."

Ranma glances at me for a split second, and then he's locked onto the old man again.

"You against her, and you and him." She points to Ranma, then me, then Ukyo, then Kuno, who somehow came in when I wasn't looking.

"I hope you know what you're getting her into, old man." Ranma grimaces and stands in a ready position, opposing me.

"Ms. Tendo is a great martial artist. Let's wish you good luck, then m'boy." He chuckles. What did he just say?

"Mr. Madachi, I've never met you before," I scowl under my eyebrows. "How do you know who I am?" The smile on his face fades. "Were you expecting me?"

"You're not going to have to force it out of me," He pulls out a little cane from his belt loop and leans on it. "I'll tell you. The principal told me that you'd be one of the first to arrive. I already knew Ukyo, here, from her wonderful restaurant! Why, her Okonomiyaki is the best in world!"

"Oh. Okay, that's not too bad, I guess," I scratch a burning point at the back of my head. I shift my gaze to Ranma. "Ranma! I want that no uniform pass! Why would you need it? You never wear the uniform anyway! Neither does Ukyo!"
"Remember, keikies, if you get da scroll before everybody else, well… You get to say what your brotha keikies have to wear to da school for da rest of da month! Goooood luck!" Principal Kuno pips over the loudspeaker. It crackles, pops, and its off.

"Well, now I have a reason to want it, don't I?" Ranma snickers and raises his hand to his face. "I'm trying to be as involved in as many 'extracurricular activities' as I can."

"You may want to hurry up. Ukyo and the boy are almost finished and they won't want to wait for a winner of your match." The elf says, picks up a tea glass, and positions himself at his desk.

"Huh?" Ranma and I say. I look around for Kuno and Ukyo to notice that they're fighting each other in the back of the room. Man, this room is huge! Ukyo has a bruised Kuno tied up in a wrap of Okonomiyaki! I guess I didn't hear them when I was talking to Ranma.

"Okay, Ranma. Let's do this!" I smile and get in ready position. He laughs and comes running at me. I spring in the air and kick for his head. He dodges

I attack again. He dodges. This pattern keeps going on and on… Why doesn't he attack?

"Now you're gonna get it!"
"Oh, am I?" He mocks. I charge at him and jump into the air. My hair flaps in the rushing wind. He looks up and puts his fist out, almost waiting for my foot.

"I've got you now, Ranma!" I shout. My leg comes hurtling towards his head. Wait.. At this rate, my foot will be stopped by his fist! In the last instant, I swerve my foot out of the course and slam into his face. Gotcha. Before I can comprehend what happened, his fist pushes the air out of my lungs and I feel the flesh around my stomach begin to bruise. Damn you short legs! In an instant, I'm falling and I hit the ground. My elbow takes a hit on the polished wood beneath my body and I hear a crack. I… I can't breathe!

The pain is so unbelievably intolerable… A little dribble of blood escapes down the side of my mouth. Ranma sits up and rubs his head. He has an evident footmark on his face. He glances over at me, his expression full with fear, and quickly becomes concerned.

"Akane? Akane! Answer me!" He shouts, shaking my shoulders. I just lie there as one of the living dead. Aware of my surroundings, yet unaware of how to stay alive. I've given up. It sounds like he's talking to me through a bubble, or I'm underwater and he's trying to say something. I can't really hear anything. He's really blurry too. I can't see his eyes anymore. Just two, blurry dots of blue. A few more people come. They're kind of fuzzy, but I sort of recognize them. I close my eyes.

"Akane!"

Ranma, really it's not as bad as it looks. I know you can't hear this, but I'm fine. Where am I? I sit up and look around. It's really dark, wherever it is. I don't know for sure where I am, though. I try and call his name, but no voice comes out of my mouth. Strange. I walk for a few paces until I see a red lump a little ways ahead. How curious! I better check it out. I run up to it and the silly grin on my mouth fades. It's Ranma! His cherry red t-shirt is tattered and his hair his disheveled. He's lying face down on the blackness beneath my feet... I flip him over with my foot to notice his eyes are open. They're pitch black! I attempt to scream, but no sound comes out! I scream as loud as my lungs let me but I hear no noise! I take Ranma's pulse, or at least I think I did. His blood isn't circulating. He's dead. Ranma? Oh no…

"Akane…" I hear Ranma say. "Why would you do this to me? Why would…"

I would never do something like this to you! Some hot tears sting my eyeballs. I collapse on top of his body. It turns to ash. I scream. No sound. Ranma!

"Akane!" A voice calls. "Akane, wake up!"

"Akane, wake up!" Someone says. I gasp for breath, and open my eyes. I'm covered in sweat, and panting as if I've just run 3 miles. "Akane… I woke you up because you were screaming." It's Ranma.

"Ra-" I begin, clear my throat. "Ra-ranma?" I rub my eyes and blink a few times. There he is, all alive and real. His black bangs fall over his face to conceal most of his eyes. "Oh, Ranma. I'm so sorry I kicked you in the face… I guess I got caught up in it and-"

"Shut up, Akane!" Ranma interrupts and scoots in a circle so I'm facing his back. "Why would you apologize to me?!" I'm taken aback by his rudeness.

"Well, excuseee me for trying to improve our relationship!" I rant.

"Shut up, Akane!" He's really mad, now. He shakes his head as if to shake the topic out of the conversation and under some cliff very far away. "Did you know how worried I was?"

"Ranma!" I say and hobble over to his side. "What's a matter with you? Wait.. You were worried.. about me?" I stare at the hair covering his face. "Ranma?"

"I did this to you… Mr. Madachi said you have a shattered elbow, swollen muscles and internal bleeding. And it's all. Because. Of me." He punches the ground. He turns his shoulder so I can't even see his bangs.

I stand up and walk over to his front.

"Lie down! You should be resting!" He barks and stares angrily up into my face. Now I know why he didn't want to show his face to me. There're tears streaming from his eyes and dotting his blue navy pants. I sit down in front of him and reach into my robe. I fumble around, looking for something. Grasping a small handkerchief, I pat his eyes dry. I give a faint smile.

"Akane," He's starring straight into my eyes. I blush a little. "I can never tell you how sorry I am."

"It's fine, Ranma.. I'll be better in a few days. The whole thing was overrated, anyway." I laugh anxiously and scratch at a little dribble of sweat that's rolling down my temple. Wow. My hair has really thinned out.. "How long was I asleep?"

"4 days. Incase you didn't notice, we're back at the house." He says quietly. I look around to notice I'm in my room. I don't know why I didn't notice that before. I guess that's because Ranma's here. Either that, or my senses haven't fully revived yet.

"And the scavenger hunt…?" I ask, unsure if the time is right but I do it anyway.

"After I…." He begins, twiddles his thumbs. "I took you straight home. Ukyo ended up winning. She likes the current dress code so that stayed the same."

"Oh… That's nice." I grin as big as I can, and my bottom chapped lip splits. A dot of blood trickles down and onto my hand. "Oh, sorry. I'll be right back."

"You dare get up and make sure you fall asleep permanently." He cocks his head to the right on his way out. I smile. I move to the plush chair near my desk and rest my head on my hands. 4 days, huh? I couldn't have eaten when I was asleep. That's probably why my hair thinned out so much. There's a knock at the door. I sit up and try to look presentable, brushing through my hair with my fingers, noticing some of it comes out in my hands.

"Come… in." I barely get out. My voice is practically gone. Must have been the screaming, I suppose.

"Oh, Akane. Feeling any better?" Kasumi tilts her head in a sympathetic, motherly way. She carries a tray with fresh porridge, greens, and sweet tea. "Here."

"Thank you," I say, and smile. "Has much happened while I've been asleep?"
"Father had a doctor come in and check on you on the first day. He said you were in a coma, of sorts. He said there was no telling when you'd wake up. We're very lucky to have you wake up at all." She smiles.

"Did.. Ranma know that?" I say slowly.

"Yes. If I recall correctly, I remember he left the room and went straight to bed that day, without any dinner."

He must have worried so much. It hurts, it hurts a lot. Not my body, but my heart, knowing that I made him hurt more than I'm hurting now.

"In fact, he stayed home from school looking after you every day. He'd get you hot cloths, change your covers, feed you medicine. He could be your mommy!" She laughs. "I have to go prepare dinner for the rest of the family. I told them they can see you later, but right now, you need rest. Ring this bell if you need anything." She gracefully walks one foot after the other. She stops at the door.

"By the way, grandfather Happosai is locked in a crate, so he shouldn't be bothering you." She giggles and leaves.

Ranma… Were you that worried about me?

"I got you some ice water if you need it." Ranma pushes the door open with his elbow and sets the glass down on the tray. "You should eat."

"Ranma, did you eat while I slept?" I say in a serious tone. Ranma looks at his hands.

"Nevermind me. How are you feeling?" He quickly changes topic.

"Ranma. Did you eat while I slept?" I say slowly.

"Yes." He says, smiles. His lips are chapped too. In fact, he's really pale and skinny. You didn't eat, Ranma..

I walk over to my bed, sit, and dangle my short legs off the side.

"I'm going to let you rest." He gets up to leave.

"I want you to eat. Otherwise I'm not going to bed." I say. Ranma scowls under his brow. He walks over and sits at my desk. He eyes the porridge as if it was some sort of poisonous concoction. He grapples for the spoon and it falls between his fingers and onto the floor.

"You really are weak…" I gawk. Ranma gives me an angry glare. "Don't worry, I'll feed it to you." I pick up the spoon and dip it into the liquid mush. It smells like fresh grown carrots, corn, and clams. I couldn't eat fish even if I wanted to. It'd come right back up. I raise the spoon to his mouth and he slurps it up. I help him cup the glass of tea in his hands, raise it to his lips, and slowly tilt it so he can drink.

"Thank you, Akane," He smiles and already looks a million times better. "I really don't deserve this…"

"Nonsense. Stop talking Ranma." I say and spoon-feed him another gulp of porridge. Spoonful after spoonful, the porridge is gone and the bowl is scraped clean.
"Okay, you promised me you'd go to sleep now." He pushes my head down on the pillow. I snuggle up under the covers and close my eyes. A shiver goes down my spine. I start to shake uncontrollably. I'm so c-c-c-cold.

"Oh, are you cold Akane?" He says. He walks over to the side of my bed and sits down on the edge. He rubs some heat into my arms and legs.

"Thank you. I know I've been a bother recently." I frown.

"Not at all, Akane. It's my fault you're like this anyway." He says. "Go to sleep, piggy."

"Okay." I pull up the blanket to my chin. I heave in a big gulp of air, and out again. Minutes pass and I feel myself drifting off into sleep.

"Man, she's cute when she sleeps." Ranma grumbles. My heart skips a beat and I'm wide-awake. I don't open my eyes. He just… called me cute… I wait a few moments before opening my eyes. Ranma's nose is almost touching my nose. I feel his heat.

"What are you doing…" I yawn and blink my eyes clear. He jumps back and falls on his bottom. "I'm going to sleep now. Good night." I flip over on my shoulder to face the wall.

I feel myself falling and falling, when I hit something hard and cold.

Sheesh, it's dark in here. I look around the room. Where am I? Oh. I'm in my room. I should turn on a light. I flip the switch up, but no lights come on. I guess they must be broken. I leave my room and go into Ranma's room. Mr. Saotome's snores probably could be heard from miles away since he's so large in panda form. Ranma's lying against the far wall; he's asleep. I wonder why… I tip toe over the panda and reach Ranma.
"-" I try to speak, but no sound comes out. Did I lose my voice that bad? I brush Ranma's bangs out of his face and I fall backwards. His eyes… they're black! A single line of blood drips from his temple. He's dead. I start to scream, but again no noise! God, just wake me up! I can't stand this! I start shaking Ranma but he's still not waking up. I scream his name.. His body doesn't turn to ash. It turns to ice. It's so cold…

"Akane!" I hear someone saying. Yes?

"Akane!" I hear again. "Akane! Akane! Akane!"

My body starts to shake and my brain rattles around.

"Akane, snap out of it!" Ranma shouts and grips my shoulders so unbelievably hard. I hear a noise. It's annoying.. It sounds like a high-pitched squeak. It's me. I'm screaming. I open my eyes to be greeted by two big, blue ones. "Akane, thank god."
"Akane, are you all right?" Father leans on the bed with his knee. He pats my forehead with his palm. He quickly takes it away and waves his hand in the air. "Well you've got a temperature, for sure."

"Oh, no. Did I wake you?" I bite my lip. "I'm so sorry." I notice that everyone is here; Kasumi, Nabiki, father, Mr. Saotome, and even the old bat Happosai.

"Okay, everyone. She's all right now. We should all just go back to bed and try to get some shut eye." Mr. Saotome smoothes some wrinkles in his pajama pants.

"Yeah," Ranma says, as he gets up.

"Son, you should stay here and keep Akane comforted." He says and pushes him back down.

"Thank you, Mr. Saotome, but it's fine. Please don't deprive Ranma of rest because of me.." I cough and swallow some saliva. It hurts. I must be coming down with something… A bead of sweat trickles down my temple. "Plus, I don't think Ranma would like to stay in a tomboy's room." I chuckle at my own joke and clear my throat. Everyone seemed to have left now, except for Mr. Saotome and Ranma. Ranma's peering over the side of my bedspread every now and then to make sure I'm okay while his father lectures to him why he should stay.

"I trust that you'll make the right decision, Ranma." His father leaves the room. A few silent moments pass by, like in the hallway at school. Tranquility.. I peek out the window and notice the flurries from school are now coming down in sheets. I couldn't tell the house was so cold since my body is so hot. We don't have much heat in our house.

"Akane?" Ranma eventually says quietly. "Can I stay here for the night? I just want to make sure you won't have a bad dream again."

"You're welcome…" I start.

"What should I be thanking you for?" He howls, interrupting me. He's so immature. That makes it funny.

"You're welcome to stay here whenever you like."

"Uhhhh," He stutters awkwardly. "Sorry. I can set up a mat here on the floor and-"

"Ranma, you're cold. Just come and share the bed." I croak. "I promise it won't be weird. I'll pretend you're not there. It's more comfy I-" I say, but my throat runs dry. Ranma laughs and hops under the blankets. I turn to face the wall. Man, I'm so hot. I can feel Ranma shivering. I scoot into him and close my eyes.

"Uhh, Akane," He starts.

"You're cold, aren't you?" I force out. He quiets down. We lie there in silence for a while. Then something unexpected happens. He puts his arm over my shoulder, as if protecting me from danger. I pretend to be asleep and turn over to face his chest. I guess Ranma's asleep too. He's not moving. Only the steady pounding of his heart. It gets faster. Faster. I breathe in, and out, inhaling his scent of the cheap soap from the bathroom and some herbs used to block out stench. There's this one other thing… It kind of smells like fresh blueberries. Springtime, birds chirping, everything that is Ranma. I smile to myself.

"Man, I wish I could tell you," Ranma whispers. "I could never tell you this if you were awake."

What? Tell me what?!


Hi guys. It's Middletaker here. I've had a few people comment about my choice of leads, but I assure you that the leads will be changing all throughout the story. The only permanent one is Akane. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I have exams coming up so I won't be able to post much, at least I don't think... Anyway, feel free to leave a review! I look at them all! ^_^