To SUSU : I truly believe that Ranma respects Akane, in a way that he'll never let anyone hurt her, and he'll never hurt her himself either (well except with words, but that's because he's clumsy in love :p)
By the way, this chapter is the second to last...
--
Jusenkyo Springs, 08:20 A.M
« Honored guests can now use springs, everything back to normal ! » the Jusenkyo Guide said happily, waking up Ukyo, Shampoo and Mousse.
They all looked at each other, hesitant. After the incident with Akane, the three of them had decided to spend the night at Jusenkyo, waiting for the springs to become effective again, but also for Ranma and Ryoga to come back.
« I... I think you should wait for Ranma, he's the one who's had his curse for the longest time, he deserves to be the one to reverse it before anyone else » Ukyo spoke.
Shampoo nodded in agreement.
« Not go without Airen »
« Why wait for this insignificant lout ? » Mousse replied « Shampoo, let us go and change ourselves back, once and for all ! Then we can... »
« We find Ranma » Shampoo declared, ignoring Mousse.
« How ? He's been gone since yesterday... since Akane... I don't know what happened between the two of them but I have a bad, bad feeling... » Ukyo said, shivering.
« Maybe I can help » a voice suddenly said behind them.
« Ryoga ! » they all exclaimed.
« And how can pigboy help ? » Shampoo frowned.
« I've seen him on my way back here earlier, while still in my cursed form. He didn't seem his usual self »
« Where was he going ? Why didn't you follow him ?! » Ukyo yelled.
« I thought he'd just deliberately ignored me, so I squealed to catch his attention, but he just passed me by... » Ryoga explained.
« That doesn't mean... that doesn't mean anything » Ukyo tried to reassure herself.
« There's more » the pig-boy declared, « he kept mumbling something about honor and how he'd screwed everything up. »
He bent his head and added : « Ranma... has always followed every martial commandment word for word. He'll probably do what it takes to... avenge his honor »
Ukyo's face turned pale. « You don't think he would... »
« Seppuku ? » Shampoo asked, familiar with the japanese tradition that she had seen practiced herself at the Amazon village, when a woman was beaten by a man and chose death over consenting to marry him.
« We have to find him » Ukyo whispered, her right hand covering her mouth, « we have to find him, come on people move !! »
Three days later, Nerima, Tendo House
After three whole days of total isolation from the outside world, Tendo Akane finally emerged from her room.
Nothing showed that she had been crying, apart from her still-a-bit red eyes. She had put on a yellow summer dress and her dark hair was hanging down on her shoulders.
« Good morning, Oneechan » Akane said, walking into the kitchen where her big sister was preparing lunch.
« Oh my ! » Kasumi exclaimed, almost dropping the pan she was holding in her hand. « Akane... are you alright ? »
Akane laughed. It was a bittersweet laugh, even though she tried hard to make it sound cheerful. « I'm fine, everything's just fine » she assured.
When Akane had gotten back home on her own, everybody had wondered about what had happened in China, but none of them had dared to ask questions, not even Nabiki. The only thing they knew was that it obviously involved her husband-to-be, Ranma.
« I'm gonna strangle him ! I'm gonna kill that unworthy son ! » Genma had thundered.
Soun had kept sobbing about how powerless he was, faced with his beloved daughter's situation. Kasumi had brought all her meals to Akane's room, every time with a little note of comfort. As for Nabiki, she hadn't spoken a word about her little sister or her fiancée, but anyone could see that she was affected by the situation as well. Everytime she would see something belonging to Ranma in the house, she would utter a curse under her breath and put it away immediately. The Ice-Queen wasn't so cold-hearted after all.
« I was just about to call everybody for lunch... do you want me to give you your meal so that you can eat in your room ? »
« No, I'll eat with you all, as usual » Akane replied, shaking her head.
Kasumi looked concerned. « You don't have to pretend everything's alright, little sister, we all know something happened between Ranma and you »
« How... how do you know ? » Akane wondered out loud.
« You only act like that... when you're hurt. And nobody's better at hurting you than Ranma, right ? »
Akane smiled. Her big sister reminded her so much of their mother, she could see right through people.
She shook her head : « I don't wanna talk about it. I just wanna move on, please. »
« Don't worry, Akane-chan, nobody'll annoy you with their questions » her big sister reassured her, patting her on the shoulder.
Soun suddenly appeared in the doorway, followed by Ranma's father in his panda form, and Nabiki.
« AKANEEE !! » Soun cried as soon as he saw his youngest daughter sitting in the kitchen, « Tell meeeeee !! Tell me what happened ! I was so worried about you, aaaaaaaaaahhh »
--
During lunch, Akane managed to elude everyone's questions by just saying they'd have to ask Ranma about it.
Now they were all strangely looking forward for Ranma to get back home.
The young girl spent the rest of the day training in the dojo. It was the only way she managed to keep all sorts of haunting thoughts out of her mind. It was the only way she could stop the bleeding of her heart for a little while.
« Kiyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa !! » she screamed, breaking five bricks at a time.
Exhausted, the young girl collapsed on the tatami, catching her breath. Suddenly, she heard voices coming from outside. She glanced out the window and felt her heart miss a beat.
Ukyo, Shampoo, Mousse and Ryoga were out there, speaking to Kasumi, who was hanging out the laundry. Akane felt anger spread through her whole body. She still hadn't forgiven the pig-boy his betrayal, and could probably never face him again. Her face reddened with shame and humiliation everytime she thought about P-chan : she still couldn't believe she hadn't been able to figure out who he really was by herself.
She realized that they were about to enter the dojo when she heard footsteps approaching. Quickly, she jumped into the closet where Kasumi kept all the cleaning products, the vacuum cleaner and the brooms. The same closet she had once dragged Ranma into, so that his mother wouldn't see him. Not the moment to think about that... she scolded herself.
The footsteps came closer and Akane heard the door open.
« Ah ? I was sure I could hear her training just a moment ago, before you came » her sister's voice said. « She might be in her room, or in the bathroom taking a bath... I'm gonna go check »
Kasumi left the dojo, leaving the four visitors behind herself. Immediately, they started whispering fretfully.
« ... I insist that we should wait a few more days... it'd be stupid to alarm her for nothing » Mousse said.
« Maybe need time for think after the way violent girl treat him » Shampoo's high-pitched voice replied.
Akane held her breath. They were talking about Ranma.
All of a sudden, it struck her. Where was Ranma ? How come he hadn't gotten back home yet ? How come he wasn't with the others ?
« Well we don't know what happened between the two of them, that's the problem » Ukyo's voice said, « but she has to know that something might've happened to him, and not only her, we're gonna have to tell the whole family too that Ranma's been missing »
Ranma's been missing.
That sentence kept repeating itself in Akane's mind over and over again, until she heard Kasumi get back in the dojo and tell everyone that she was nowhere to be found.
« She must've gone out for her evening jogging. I'll tell her you passed by »
« Thank you, sorry for any disturbance »
« Before you leave » Kasumi began, « Hibiki-san... you're the one who left with Ranma a week ago, do you think he'll get back home soon ? »
...
« Uhm, yeah, I'm pretty sure he's on his way home right now » Ryoga responded.
Liar, Akane thought angrily.
« Akane was very upset when she got back home... do you know what happened between her and Ranma ? »
« Not really, that's what we would like to know » Ukyo responded.
Akane waited a minute after they left the dojo before getting out of the closet. Her heart was still pounding in her chest. Ranma... where are you ?
--
The next two days were very important for all Japanese high-school students : they had to take their university placement tests. Akane mainly aimed for Todai, the most reputable university in all Japan. Nabiki was currently studying economics there, but she had struggled to get in, and nearly hadn't made it. She had tried to reassure her little sister, a few months ago, when Akane had had her nervous breakdown caused by school pressure.
« You'll see little sister, once you're in, it all becomes easier, it's just hard to actually pass the tests »
But lately, Akane had completely forgotten about the tests. So much that she didn't even set her alarm clock for the next morning. It was Kasumi who woke her up in a hurry.
« Todai tests ? » Akane asked with a sleepy voice, and then with a much louder voice : « TODAI TESTS ARE TODAY ?! »
« And tomorrow... » Kasumi responded.
Akane jumped out of her bed.
« But I'm not ready ! I haven't even... I don't even... GOD WHERE ARE MY CLOTHES ?! »
« Calm down Akane-chan, you've been working hard these last two years, I'm sure it'll be alright »
But it wasn't alright.
Akane spent the whole day ticking boxes at random. She had no idea what the questions were about, it was like her brain had erased everything she had learned these past two years.
The next day, after the last tests, Akane collapsed in her room, tears flowing down her cheeks. How could this have happened to me ? I was ready, I've always been ready... What am I gonna do ?
All of her plans were falling apart. Studying at Todai, becoming a teacher while also teaching martial arts, marrying Ranma...
Ranma no baka ! All that is because of you...
A part of her truly hated him for what he had done to her, and all the trouble he had caused in her life, but another part - the part that had been there since the first day they'd met - missed him excruciatingly and was afraid that something might have happened to him...
--
The next day, after school, Ukyo told Akane the truth.
« Ranma never came back after you found out about Ryoga's curse. We've looked for him everywhere near Jusenkyo - but we failed to find him... »
« But where could he be ? Why would he stay in China ? » Akane queried.
« That, we don't know, but... may I ask you what happened after the... incident, with Ryoga ? »
Akane bent her head. « Well, Ranma and I... got into this awful fight, and I... ended up telling him the engagement was over, that we were over »
Her dark eyes filled up with tears at that thought. She so wished she could take those words back, those words that she hadn't meant the least bit, those words that had slipped out of her mouth and had made everything worse...
« Oh no... » Ukyo whispered « Akane... Ranma was shattered after you left him – Ryoga saw him – we thought he might... »
The long-haired cook covered her face with her hands and started sobbing. Which was very unlike herself.
« You thought he might what... ? » Akane queried, her heart pounding in her chest.
« We thought he might commit seppuku »
Akane's face turned pale, and suddenly, - despite herself -, she burst into laughter.
« You're joking, right ? »
« How can you laugh at this ? I thought you cared about Ranma ! »
« Come on... Ranma, killing himself ? That's... that's just not... like him »
Akane stopped laughing. It wasn't like him, right ? Okay, he had lied to her, one could even say that he had betrayed her in many ways - and she had called off their engagement - but killing himself ?
It was simply inconceivable.
« No... no he wouldn't ! »
Or... would he ?
--
Ranma will be back in the next – and last – chapter, but alive or not, I don't know yet...
Review! and stay tuned for the next update.
Thank you for reading, it means a lot to me.
