Part the Second- Akane's Turn
Author's notes- I do intend to make this a multi-parter, but not too long. As I said none of this is mine, Ms. Takahashi would probably be scandalized by my use of her characters anyway, but that's beside the point. This chapter will be from Akane's point of view, so enjoy. By the way- I realized today that tomorrow (April 26) is my one-year anniversary of being a member of fanfiction.net.
She really didn't think it work when Mousse began to tell her his idea, but now that she'd seen it in action she figured that poor blind guy had a point.
Akane gently touched her lips for the umpteen time since last evening. She still had no idea what made her kiss Mousse the first time, much less the second time. It had been… kind of nice. She smiled, trying to imagine Ranma's reaction if he's been in the same position. Hell, she knew what his reaction would've been. Hadn't she seen plenty of evidence on a number of occasions? Including that time he thought he'd be sent to China if he'd just kiss her. But he didn't did he?
Mousse had though. She'd enjoyed it as well.
"Not too bad for a first kiss," she muttered to herself.
But was it really her first kiss? There had been that time when Ranma had been in the Cat-fist… Yet she hadn't kissed him back, so it probably didn't count. Right?
"Damn!"
Wait a minute. Wasn't she doing this to get Ranma? She told herself that it was to get rid of Shampoo, but having Ranma to herself would be a side effect of Shampoo's leaving with Mousse. (If you didn't include Ukyo…)
Was it wrong to enjoy this so much? She thought that Ranma was the only one she would ever want to kiss and yet… what was the real reason she'd kissed Mousse? She was finding it hard to separate her acting and her true emotions. 'This must be one of the hazards of acting- becoming your character.'
"Akane?"
"Come in Ranma."
She didn't even try to hide the smirk in her voice. Ranma was hanging upside down outside her window. He slipped effortlessly in after her affirmative.
"Akane?"
She was slightly surprised at the uncertainty in his voice.
"What's wrong?"
"I just got this from Nabiki."
"How much did she charge you?"
He was holding a small photograph in his hand. Akane was burning to know what he was holding, but refused to show it on her face.
"It was free."
That didn't sound good. When did Nabiki ever give out anything for free?
"What is it?"
"Here."
He tossed the picture at her. She caught it with one hand and brought it down to her face. She inhaled a quick breath- it was from the night before. She looked up quickly to check Ranma's reaction.
He wasn't looking at her. Instead he was staring at his feet.
So many answers went through Akane's head, excuses, cover-up stories, and denials.
"So?"
That made Ranma look up.
"Bu… but Akane."
"What's the big deal?"
That shut him up sufficiently.
"So I kissed Mousse. Did you expect me never to kiss anyone my entire life?"
"Well… I thought, I mean. I never thought about it I guess."
"Liar. You expected me to wait for you didn't you? You expected me to wait until you ready to use me. You play with me, and Ukyo, and Shampoo. Ranma, you have no honor when it comes to women. You leave all of us dangling."
She paused for effect; her voice had been admirably steady throughout the entire speech.
"I was sick of waiting for you Ranma, you've lost your chance."
She stood up and held the photo to him.
"Would you like this back? If you don't I'd like to keep it, it's a nice picture of the two of us."
"Keep it."
"Thank you."
Akane tacked the photo above her desk. It was a good picture. The two of them actually looked rather sweet together.
"What should I do then?"
Akane closed her eyes and her grasped the edge of her desk for a second to gather mental support. Then she turned around to see those lovely eyes staring beseechingly at her. 'Not quite as pretty as Mousse's though,' she thought without meaning to.
"I'll talk to my father, we can probably get them to release us from that ancient engagement wouldn't you think?"
"Dunno, they were always pretty stuck on the idea weren't they?"
"As long as I marry a martial artist Daddy should be fine."
"You're going to marry Mousse?"
Akane laughed gently.
"Marry Mousse, what an idea. It's a possibility I guess, but I'm really not ready to think about marriage, I'm not even eighteen yet."
"Ah… but what will I do?"
"You can continue your training I guess, or you could marry Ukyo. Or even Shampoo."
Ranma spun around and grabbed her arm rather roughly.
"I'm not going to marry that homicidal bimbo. Ever."
"O…okay."
Ranma's eyes softened at her frightened face. He let go of her arm.
"Did I ever have a chance?"
Akane felt the tears form in her eyes at that question.
"Of course you did Ranma. If you had even once shown that you wanted to be with me, that it wasn't just our father's… then, well then-"
She was cut off suddenly by Ranma's lips.
It was a fierce untrained kiss, with more desperation than affection in it. He pulled back and looked hopefully in her eyes. For a moment she felt at a loss. Then she let the first tears fall and leaned her forehead onto his shoulder.
"Ranma, had you done that even last week it would have fixed everything."
"But now…?"
The answer was in her eyes as she looked up at him.
"I'm sorry Ranma. I… really thought I was in love with you."
"What?"
She sat down on the edge of her bed.
"The whole thing was a plan concocted by Mousse, so that he could get Shampoo and could win you over. He thought jealousy was a great motivator."
"It is."
Akane allowed herself a small smile.
"But somewhere along the way I think it may have worked too well."
"You love him?"
"I don't know, I really don't."
"What do you mean?"
What did she mean? She thought for a moment. She had loved Ranma for months and months hadn't she? She knew now that she'd definitely felt something for the beautiful and self-confident martial artist at the beginning. After everything though… was she just sick of it all? Of being rescued by him because she wasn't good enough; of having to compete with girls who were prettier, who could cook and fight better than she could. She believed that if she worked hard enough she could learn to love him again, but then there was Mousse. Mousse was intelligent, sweet, charming, and gentle- everything that she despaired of Ranma ever being.
Still… she barely knew Mousse right? Sure they'd been on adventures together, but he almost never paid her any attention, always trying to get Shampoo's notice. Maybe it was just the acting. Or was it? She'd always counted Mousse as a friend and maybe now that she had the chance to get to know him…
"I just don't know."
"Could you ever like me again?"
"I think I could probably love you again, if I tried."
"Are you willing to try?"
She stared up at him. For a moment she was tempted to say yes. But something stopped her. What would loving him again accomplish in the long run? Would he suddenly get over his girl-phobia? Would he dump all his other fiancées? Would he start acting like a boyfriend? Did she want him to?
"What would it do Ranma?"
"Huh."
That elegant reply showed so much. Ranma really didn't see a problem. She'd tried to spell it out for him before- all the girls, the fighting.
"Ranma- I don't like who I am when I'm in love with you. I become jealous and possessive and unsure of myself. Can you promise me that things will be different if I love you again?"
He said nothing for a second.
"I… I don't know how to act around girls Akane. I never have."
"That's not a very good excuse."
"I know. I'm sorry."
"Don't be sorry."
She grasped a sudden idea.
"Ranma?"
"Yes?"
He looked up at her.
"Why don't we take a break?"
"A… break?"
"Yeah, couples do it all the time. They separate and try spending time with other people- to see if they really want to be with each other."
"So… you'd date other guys and I'd spend time with other girls?"
"Yep, and I promise not to mallet you for it."
For the first time that night Ranma smiled. Akane was frightened to realize that his smile didn't start her heart aflutter.
"I guess that could work."
"Good."
They smiled at each other.
"Good-night Akane, see you in the morning."
"'Night Ranma."
And Ranma left, via the door. Akane flopped onto her bed and softly touched her lips once again.
"Damn, now I'm really confused."
Author's notes- I do intend to make this a multi-parter, but not too long. As I said none of this is mine, Ms. Takahashi would probably be scandalized by my use of her characters anyway, but that's beside the point. This chapter will be from Akane's point of view, so enjoy. By the way- I realized today that tomorrow (April 26) is my one-year anniversary of being a member of fanfiction.net.
She really didn't think it work when Mousse began to tell her his idea, but now that she'd seen it in action she figured that poor blind guy had a point.
Akane gently touched her lips for the umpteen time since last evening. She still had no idea what made her kiss Mousse the first time, much less the second time. It had been… kind of nice. She smiled, trying to imagine Ranma's reaction if he's been in the same position. Hell, she knew what his reaction would've been. Hadn't she seen plenty of evidence on a number of occasions? Including that time he thought he'd be sent to China if he'd just kiss her. But he didn't did he?
Mousse had though. She'd enjoyed it as well.
"Not too bad for a first kiss," she muttered to herself.
But was it really her first kiss? There had been that time when Ranma had been in the Cat-fist… Yet she hadn't kissed him back, so it probably didn't count. Right?
"Damn!"
Wait a minute. Wasn't she doing this to get Ranma? She told herself that it was to get rid of Shampoo, but having Ranma to herself would be a side effect of Shampoo's leaving with Mousse. (If you didn't include Ukyo…)
Was it wrong to enjoy this so much? She thought that Ranma was the only one she would ever want to kiss and yet… what was the real reason she'd kissed Mousse? She was finding it hard to separate her acting and her true emotions. 'This must be one of the hazards of acting- becoming your character.'
"Akane?"
"Come in Ranma."
She didn't even try to hide the smirk in her voice. Ranma was hanging upside down outside her window. He slipped effortlessly in after her affirmative.
"Akane?"
She was slightly surprised at the uncertainty in his voice.
"What's wrong?"
"I just got this from Nabiki."
"How much did she charge you?"
He was holding a small photograph in his hand. Akane was burning to know what he was holding, but refused to show it on her face.
"It was free."
That didn't sound good. When did Nabiki ever give out anything for free?
"What is it?"
"Here."
He tossed the picture at her. She caught it with one hand and brought it down to her face. She inhaled a quick breath- it was from the night before. She looked up quickly to check Ranma's reaction.
He wasn't looking at her. Instead he was staring at his feet.
So many answers went through Akane's head, excuses, cover-up stories, and denials.
"So?"
That made Ranma look up.
"Bu… but Akane."
"What's the big deal?"
That shut him up sufficiently.
"So I kissed Mousse. Did you expect me never to kiss anyone my entire life?"
"Well… I thought, I mean. I never thought about it I guess."
"Liar. You expected me to wait for you didn't you? You expected me to wait until you ready to use me. You play with me, and Ukyo, and Shampoo. Ranma, you have no honor when it comes to women. You leave all of us dangling."
She paused for effect; her voice had been admirably steady throughout the entire speech.
"I was sick of waiting for you Ranma, you've lost your chance."
She stood up and held the photo to him.
"Would you like this back? If you don't I'd like to keep it, it's a nice picture of the two of us."
"Keep it."
"Thank you."
Akane tacked the photo above her desk. It was a good picture. The two of them actually looked rather sweet together.
"What should I do then?"
Akane closed her eyes and her grasped the edge of her desk for a second to gather mental support. Then she turned around to see those lovely eyes staring beseechingly at her. 'Not quite as pretty as Mousse's though,' she thought without meaning to.
"I'll talk to my father, we can probably get them to release us from that ancient engagement wouldn't you think?"
"Dunno, they were always pretty stuck on the idea weren't they?"
"As long as I marry a martial artist Daddy should be fine."
"You're going to marry Mousse?"
Akane laughed gently.
"Marry Mousse, what an idea. It's a possibility I guess, but I'm really not ready to think about marriage, I'm not even eighteen yet."
"Ah… but what will I do?"
"You can continue your training I guess, or you could marry Ukyo. Or even Shampoo."
Ranma spun around and grabbed her arm rather roughly.
"I'm not going to marry that homicidal bimbo. Ever."
"O…okay."
Ranma's eyes softened at her frightened face. He let go of her arm.
"Did I ever have a chance?"
Akane felt the tears form in her eyes at that question.
"Of course you did Ranma. If you had even once shown that you wanted to be with me, that it wasn't just our father's… then, well then-"
She was cut off suddenly by Ranma's lips.
It was a fierce untrained kiss, with more desperation than affection in it. He pulled back and looked hopefully in her eyes. For a moment she felt at a loss. Then she let the first tears fall and leaned her forehead onto his shoulder.
"Ranma, had you done that even last week it would have fixed everything."
"But now…?"
The answer was in her eyes as she looked up at him.
"I'm sorry Ranma. I… really thought I was in love with you."
"What?"
She sat down on the edge of her bed.
"The whole thing was a plan concocted by Mousse, so that he could get Shampoo and could win you over. He thought jealousy was a great motivator."
"It is."
Akane allowed herself a small smile.
"But somewhere along the way I think it may have worked too well."
"You love him?"
"I don't know, I really don't."
"What do you mean?"
What did she mean? She thought for a moment. She had loved Ranma for months and months hadn't she? She knew now that she'd definitely felt something for the beautiful and self-confident martial artist at the beginning. After everything though… was she just sick of it all? Of being rescued by him because she wasn't good enough; of having to compete with girls who were prettier, who could cook and fight better than she could. She believed that if she worked hard enough she could learn to love him again, but then there was Mousse. Mousse was intelligent, sweet, charming, and gentle- everything that she despaired of Ranma ever being.
Still… she barely knew Mousse right? Sure they'd been on adventures together, but he almost never paid her any attention, always trying to get Shampoo's notice. Maybe it was just the acting. Or was it? She'd always counted Mousse as a friend and maybe now that she had the chance to get to know him…
"I just don't know."
"Could you ever like me again?"
"I think I could probably love you again, if I tried."
"Are you willing to try?"
She stared up at him. For a moment she was tempted to say yes. But something stopped her. What would loving him again accomplish in the long run? Would he suddenly get over his girl-phobia? Would he dump all his other fiancées? Would he start acting like a boyfriend? Did she want him to?
"What would it do Ranma?"
"Huh."
That elegant reply showed so much. Ranma really didn't see a problem. She'd tried to spell it out for him before- all the girls, the fighting.
"Ranma- I don't like who I am when I'm in love with you. I become jealous and possessive and unsure of myself. Can you promise me that things will be different if I love you again?"
He said nothing for a second.
"I… I don't know how to act around girls Akane. I never have."
"That's not a very good excuse."
"I know. I'm sorry."
"Don't be sorry."
She grasped a sudden idea.
"Ranma?"
"Yes?"
He looked up at her.
"Why don't we take a break?"
"A… break?"
"Yeah, couples do it all the time. They separate and try spending time with other people- to see if they really want to be with each other."
"So… you'd date other guys and I'd spend time with other girls?"
"Yep, and I promise not to mallet you for it."
For the first time that night Ranma smiled. Akane was frightened to realize that his smile didn't start her heart aflutter.
"I guess that could work."
"Good."
They smiled at each other.
"Good-night Akane, see you in the morning."
"'Night Ranma."
And Ranma left, via the door. Akane flopped onto her bed and softly touched her lips once again.
"Damn, now I'm really confused."