Nakano City, December 31st. . .

Traditions were the staple the Kimura estate was so famous for. Unlike a year filled with all manner of confrontations and new developments, Takeda and his family busily worked in preparing the enormous house into a temple most citizens in town could attend into.

There were chores for every teen, including the angel as well, from decorating the house to get a giant bell situated right outside the property, but regardless of their responsibilities as active members in society what kept them preoccupied the most resided in a certain fanged girl.

Ryoki Hibiki enjoyed the times around her new family thanks to all the traditions Hana and Takeda taught her along the way. She could be seen like a kid in a candy store, enjoying the smiles and ambiance between them and other friends pitching in.

It all seemed so unreal, specially after the horrible confession she made about her original gender, and the awkward environment she and the young priest developed the past few months.

Ryoki had finally confessed about her Yaomo status, and although Bella and the teens accepted her confession, the fanged girl couldn't shake that strange sensation to be kissed and utterly cared the way Takeda did during that moment.

Of course her mind warped into a world of questions and doubts. She wasn't someone who could relate with a female mindset for obvious reasons, still Ryoki felt a tremendous need to consider external advice from anyone capable to understand her dilemma.

Eiko had restless nights talking with the new girl, who until this year considered her feelings only for girls. The nineteen year old explained something similar to what Chingensai told her not long ago.

For impossible as it can be, girls can like other girls, and boys can do the same, although being born as one and suddenly transforming into a woman didn't help to apply those same rules in her.

Ryoki absently pondered mindlessly while her hands served cup after cup of warm tea to the guests who admired the valiant girl for her efforts on the matter.

Mr. Hisao: "You ok girl?"

The question was easily answered with a smile and a respectful bow, but the older man could see how the young heroine had more pressing worries in her mind. He tried to delve into things after Takeda never mentioned anything about her as a prospecting fiancée, but was easily persuaded when he considered that point a private thing for them to resolve.

Mr. Hisao: "Hang in there kid. . .You are a very beautiful young girl. I don't doubt everything will work out just fine!"

Ryoki: "T-Thank you. . .I guess."

The fanged teen still tried to understand what just happened, but after the old man left to mingle with other people Ryoki decided to finish her job and move on into a more secluded area.

Ryoki: "What is going on in my head!. Things were a lot easier back with Ranma and Akane-san, but once I became a part of this family, not only have I gotten accustomed to the treatment, but I think I'm starting to like being like this."

The girl finally served every cup with either sake, strong alcohol or sweet tea to the several dozen people attending the Kimura Bonenkai this year. A tradition made to commemorate past mistakes and make a clean slate for the new year.

The girl couldn't help but chuckle at the preposterous idea though. Maybe for the regular people, raising their cups and getting drunk was a way to see past their errors, but for someone who lied, and changed teams such celebration seemed pointless.

Takeda: "Everything Ok?"

The girl instantly turned around and watched with surprise at a boy dressed in a black, flowing robe and an impressive kasa, or ceremonial hat used by a certain type of priests near these parts.

Ryoki: "I-I. . .I guess. . ."

It was a daunting sentiment to see a boy who rejected a rule Ryoki believed to be standard knowledge among society. She fought within her mind about genders and how far would she be willing to accept her new form, not after she acquired it mind you, but ever since a certain pigtailed boy threatened to mess with her mind long ago.

In fact, that had to be the main reason why Ryoga wanted to experience this new development in his life. The lost boy found certain discrepancies along his life ever since Ranma messed with his logic. It made some sense at first, but the more he thought about it, fear began to creep into the back of his head.

Thus, the fanged boy everyone took for granted needed to vanish, granting him with this new female form a peace of mind Ryoga so desperately needed for years.

Once again her wandering mind snapped into reality when Takeda's hand grabbed her shoulder and the girl saw him leave towards the crowd.

Takeda: "I promise to talk about this in a moment. More guests are arriving and I need to greet them for now."

With that, the boy rushed towards the door, leaving Ryoki with her thoughts until another hand grabbed, and pulled her towards the back patio.

Gina: "C'mon Ryoki-chan. We need to talk."

It was the youngest of the five teens pulling her outside the house. For some time now Gina had become the child Eiko and Takeda cared the most, winning some jealous stares from Hana, and Bella, but not to the point like Shampoo or Ukyo would make against Akane.

The young brunette led Ryoki near a few bushes, and after a minute or two, the girl asked what the others wondered for months.

Gina: "Sis. I know you were a boy and all that, but. . .Why don't you give a chance to Takeda-kun?"

Ryoki staggered back a few feet after the questioned deemed to be answered, not only from her heart, but it had to be explained from a male standpoint as well.

Ryoki: "I. . ."

Gina: "Don't take it wrong sis, but I feel like you want to be more a girl than a boy, and for what your Sensei told us, your male body might not be usable on a regular basis."

Ryoki: "I have been a boy for almost sixteen years Gina-san, and despite being alone and lost most of those years, I thought being a male was something I needed to take for granted. Now, after what happened with Takeda and me, I am very confused. I wish I could close my eyes and let go into my life, but what if I'm wrong?"

Gina: "Wrong?. . .I have never seen you as happy as you are with us. I feel a lot of questions in your head ruin what your life enjoys in this family, but I assure you. You were destined to be a girl."

Gina: "You are well behaved, respectful and hard-working. Your cooking is amazing and you accept being a girl with pride. At first it was weird to see you with all the guys at cram school instead of the girls, but it all makes sense now."

Ryoki managed to remember that as well. Being reborn as a girl not only clashed with her previous mindset, but acting as a boy with a female body sure raised more questions about her identity.

Ryoki: "I think I like being a girl despite all the chores to keep me presentable, unlike the easy way guys have it. Still, becoming someone else and accepting a boy in a relationship are two very different things."

Gina: "Is that what scares you?"

The fanged teen could do nothing more than to nod, stare at the grass and curiously expect a sarcastic response about her inability to cope with her new life.

Gina: "It scares me too. Don't you see!, I'm born a girl and finding a boy I like, and share that idea with him it's an enormous step we take regardless of who we really are inside."

Ryoki found no argument strong enough to counter that logic, and what it meant for her troubled mind. Women and men alike have to take that jump on faith mostly hoping the other person could respond favorably to the one jumping in the first place.

The girl questioned these past few months about a boy turned girl and her desire to be loved by another boy, but in reality what Ryoga didn't get is that love is a compromise between two people who really like each other.

Ryoki: "It's sounds so easy to just "plunge into the abyss", but in my case things become increasingly hard. Takeda shows me so much respect and at the same time accepts me for who I am. Me on the other hand can't seem to accept that for. . .Um."

Suddenly something didn't ring well in Ryoki's confession. Gina raised a brow puzzled by the change of subject, approaching her doubtful mind with a more direct inquiry.

Gina: "For. . .Who?, Tell me sis. Is there someone else in your heart as of now?"

Ryoki tried to laugh herself away from the question, nervously scratching the back of her herd and back tracking her steps into the house.

Hana: "Yes, Ryoki-chan. . .Who do you have feelings for before Takeda?"

The fanged teen turned to see a beautiful priestess dressed in white and red stand right behind her getaway. The girl apparently heard enough to fill the rest of the conversation, giving her a better chance to press in Ryoki's predicaments.

Ryoki: "I. . ."

Nothing worse could happened now, thought the girl who found both teens obstructing her escape path, and forcing her to reveal the truth with the only weakness Ryoki had either as a boy or a girl. . .Their intrigued cute faces.

Ryoki: "O-Ok, I will tell you, but you need to promise me not to tell any of this to Takeda."

Both Hana and Gina were close enough to swear their silence until another voice made Ryoki face palm in failed defeat.

Takeda: "Not to tell me what?"

That was it. Ryoki found the situation one for letting all go, and accept the truth had to come out sooner rather than later. The girl sat near the fragrant bushes made to titillate peace and harmony, giving a few seconds later for the others to sit near her.

Ryoki: "Ok, it's like this. . ."

The fanged girl began to recant the incredible story of her life as a boy. The times she passed mostly alone in the wilderness and the rare method she used to learn about the bees and the flowers.

It wasn't really a big deal once a book or two would clear most basic questions, but something changed once she was forced into a new precedent relationship as a male.

Ryoki: "Ranma Saotome happened. He managed to get himself thrown into a magic pool which changed his form into that of a girl. . .A very beautiful redheaded girl."

The teen explained how later on that same girl inadvertently sunk him accidentally into the piglet pool, and that's how Ryoki sought revenge from such humiliating affront.

Ryoki: "In time we met again, and during those years I met Akane Tendo as his fiancée. We became good friends in time, but there was something I couldn't understand or deal with the second Ranma started to use his female form in a more weird manner."

She told them about Ranma's ill conceived ideas to act in disguise as his long, lost fiancée. As his little sister or even a girlfriend with personal privileges.

Ryoki: "That idiot made me court him, and even accept him, well. . .You know how."

The young fanged teen tried to continue but her tremendous blush across her face, her eyes falling to the ground ashamed, and the lack of a finishing statement were enough for Takeda and the girls to realize Ryoki was actually falling for the miscreant as a boy himself.

Takeda: "Is this why you feel so terrified for what I did back then?"

Ryoki: "I-I'm sorry Takeda. At this moment, I'm very confused on what I feel for you so I hope that won't affect our friendship."

The boy simply smiled and assured her that nothing would make him stop feeling the way he does. He already stated how he sees her, and regardless of being a boy or a girl, what Takeda wants the most, is for the girl to be happy.

Hana: "Well, what did you do after you began to fall for him?"

Ryoki: "What could I do. I picked as many reasons to try and erase those feelings once and for all. I managed to meet Akane as a piglet once, and after she took me in as her pet, I realized that to be the solution to my problems."

The fanged girl explained that, before Ranma could realize her feelings and ridicule her even further, the then lost boy used Akane as an object to that misguided affection.

Ryoki: "She accidentally kissed me on my snout, mostly like a loving pet than a girl to a boy, but that was a strong enough act for me to tell Ranma I was in love with his fiancée. From then on we became rivals for the same girl, and the idiot was never the wiser about the other curse he forced into my heart with his shenanigans."

It all made sense now, agreed Takeda and the girls. They all realized Ryoga ran from a confused identity way before she confessed about her original gender. The priest bowed to respect and protect Ryoki for as long as she felt comfortable by doing so, and the group decided to rejoin the party once again.

It was so strange for Ryoki to admit fault after everything that happened this past year, but the girl began to see why this was going to be the best time of her life, until her Yaomo side would be discovered anyway.

Once inside, the festivities had reached well above two hundred persons celebrating in a way only seen during a Bonenkai party. Older bosses from the local stores and businesses mingled trustingly with its employees unlike any other time where a certain respect had to be maintained.

They all patiently waited for tonight when the large Buddhist bell would be revealed and one hundred and eight lucky citizens could knock once against its lucky vibes.

Eiko, as the responsible for giving the tags began to share those assigned numbers in a random fashion. Some would land on important people while others were held by old and young alike.

And as the afternoon slowly died into a peaceful night, the vacillating chatter from the crowd slowly was left behind after the fanged teen procured a solitary time for herself. The girl walked closer to the giant bell, watching it with determination for the space of hours while wondering if in her madness the object could answer her own fearful questions.

Ryoki: "Old year, old sins they say. I wonder if changing into this form is the right decision?"

There were some ominous sounds here and there coming mostly from the wind whistling across the lip's bell and bouncing from its empty insides, but beyond that movement the bell seemed like listening mostly at the girl.

In the distance Takeda, Hana and Gina watched a busy fanged teen waving her hands and talking to the bell in such a way, all three teens smiled at the strange conversation.

Hana: "You think she's trying to strike a deal with the bell?"

Takeda: "I think she's trying to get in terms with a new change, Hana-chan. Regardless of what the town thinks about her, or how we see her, I think a change this important scare her a lot.

Gina: "You have no idea Take-kun. She is trying to deal with her past, resolve her present and endure a future affected mostly in what others see on her, and not what she really wants to be."

Both Takeda and Hana turned to see a very mature Gina who, until recently learned about the hardships of life thanks to Ryoki and her own mistakes. Still, there was something in her words that made Hana tilt her head in puzzlement and ask what she knew that they didn't.

Gina: "Sigh. . .She told me a while ago that her male body can't be used for long periods of time. That the Yaomo thing is too exhausting and the best course of action is for her to stay as girl indefinitely."

Hana: "I see. So, regardless of Ryoki's desire to be a boy again she has to be a girl permanently. Well, she has remarkably progressed a lot as a young woman, but I wonder what would happen when boys try to hit on her, or if the situation between you and her will become a serious thing."

Takeda nodded at the statement Hana made about the biggest problem they had as friends. In a fit of rage Bella revealed to the fanged girl about the ancient law for the priest to receive a new fiancée according to angelic rulings.

The boy felt the need to explain her about the new deal all teens reached over the past few months. Takeda really liked Ryoki despite her original gender, and although Hana saw his actions daring at times, the girl realized that rule to have several girlfriends left her with little room to appeal.

That's why, when the boy kissed Ryoki, the priestess felt a pang of natural jealousy and anger at first, but as she got along with a confused Ryoki and understood nothing else could come from them as an item, her feelings shifted into remorse.

The same dilemma still remained though, and at some point during the last month all three teens established a resolution they were about to tell Ryoki now.

Takeda: "It's time. . .Let's go."

On the other side of the garden Ryoki saw the three teens approach into her crazy act. With nervous laughter and softly kicking the grass Ryoki tried to explain what was she doing until Gina rushed at her side, hugging her by the waist.

Hana: "What were you wishing to the Bell, Ryoki-chan?"

Ryoki: "Oh, no much. . .I asked it if being a permanent girl was the right choice to take, that if I were to be a woman, would it be Ok for me to like boys, and more importantly, if all these nonsense could be a forgiving sin after it becomes my future."

Takeda: "I don't think believing in yourself and choosing happiness is really a sin, Ryo. Besides, I think you will make a beautiful girlfriend, wife and mother in time. . ."

All four teens nervously laughed at the occurrence but each of them understood the point the priest tried to make.

Ryoki: "Well, thanks anyway. Maybe this isn't the right moment to ask, but I was wondering about that little detail we've been missing for some time now, and the one deal I'm not ready to obey just yet."

Hana: "Yeah, we reached a decision as well, and agreed to let each and one of us follow our heart."

Takeda: "We'll keep appearances with Avaron and the angels for now, but if Gina, Hana or you want to pursue someone else, I am Ok with that."

Ryoki tried to say something. . .Anything, but her voice left her and the girl couldn't do a thing, but nod and agree quietly with the idea.

Gina: "I really like that idea, even though I still like Takeda a lot, I want to search and make my own decisions in life, you know?"

Ryoki: "Yeah, that sounds perfect for me too."

By the time the teens reached a new understanding about their situation the night had almost reached well into the midnight. Takeda and Hana were called to preside with the ceremony and call the one hundred and seven participants in order.

The crowd slowly gathered around the bell, and for half an hour a man, a woman and a teen respectfully stepped into the tall stand, bowing before the bell before hitting it, and bowing again after giving the turn to someone else.

At the stroke of midnight the last person was called to make the one hundred and eight, and last hit for a bright new year against the bell. It was perhaps luck, or maybe Eiko was up to something, but Ryoki timidly walked the few fly of stairs, and swallowed fearfully as her hands reached for the wooden beam and stroke the bell with a thought in mind.

Ryoki: "Here goes for a bright new future."

Nothing could top what the teen had experienced that night, but at some point she knew change and new challenges were about to unfurl in her already happy days.

Nerima city, December 31st. . .

More than a year had already passed for a family who searched far and wide for a good friend gone missing. Nabiki Tendo, a detective in her own right failed numerous times in finding any clue at all, despite every contact she managed to gain around the several districts in Japan.

To Akane Tendo, the loss from such important part of her life slowly turned the girl into a force of reckoning. A tremendous girl who rebelled back into the young tomboy before meeting Ranma and that stupid pledge to marry him in behalf of joining two martial art schools.

Back then she had no one to ease her pain over insecurities about boys, no one who she could cry at night, or hug desperately when the girls she knew would call her unrefined and blunt. Back then she relieved her stress by breaking bricks but this time not even that would calm the frustration to deal with a jerk living in her own home.

Akane: "Ranma!, where do you think you're going!?"

Ranma: "Like you care!. . .J-Just leave me alone!"

And by that simple exchange of anger the supposedly pre-arranged couple separated in a day when old bad habits were to be forgotten and new wishes could be attained at the stroke of one hundred and eight bell hits.

Akane: "Ranma, you jerk!, we're supposed to be together for the end of the year."

Ranma: "Yeah, yeah. . .I'll be back tonight. . ."

The youngest Tendo wanted to leave him alone and go back into the house where old guests started to join the festivities as they had done in the past. A few years back, almost all young enemies and friends alike made a fabulous celebration, ending on the pigtailed boy hugging her while contemplating the snow fall for the first time that year.

Sadly enough, the same memory triggered something she despised deep in her heart. She knew Ukyo and Shampoo had left to their respective homes, and that she had won Ranma's love for the girl in the end. That was all good for her ego, but what about "him".

Akane's tears began to roll down her cheeks after a certain boy who stayed all day helping in the house making sure the colorful lights illuminating her singing act wouldn't falter, and attentively waiting to give her a gift all night long had suddenly disappeared at the end of the party.

Her teeth clenched in ire at her own stupidity because she ignored the poor boy turned into a piglet pacing sadly into the night, defeated because he loved her just as much as Ranma, but she only cared for the pigtailed boy and not him.

Her hands hardened into tight fists and the hiccups came back with force after she closed her eyes, and let it all out in a fit of whimpering sobs. She didn't know back then, but the second Kasumi found a white box wrapped with a red ribbon on the grass, she knew that present belonged to Ryoga.

Kasumi: "It was strange, but when I opened the present, a bright light came from it, and snow began to fall." Explained the oldest Tendo on the first day from that year.

Akane tried to stop the pain in her chest, but it was impossible at this point. She knew deep in her mind that Ryoga must have defied incredible odds to obtain the best gift possible for her. A tear from a goddess, or a bright gem made to make snow appear out of nowhere, something so special the lost boy wanted to share only with her.

But the girl didn't care one bit about that boy. She had finally triumphed over the others to pass the end of the year with her loving partner and nothing else mattered.

Akane: "This is all my fault. . .I-I deserve this hell a-and. . .A-and more. . ."

The girl promptly fell on her feet, bitterly wishing to have paid more attention on the only teen who understood her aching heart every time that idiot hurt her feelings. The only friend who despite being a piglet and loving her deeply, instead played the part of a trusting pet cheering her up and swallowing his own feelings in the process.

Kasumi rushed at her aid, but even the older sister knew what affected Akane's behavior. She asked her to have faith and remember how strong Ryoga is. Nothing could ever stop him from coming at her aid when the time would be right, but Akane simply hugged her sister and loudly cried into her apron.

Akane: "Nothing is stopping him, but what I did to him. . .T-This is all my fault."

Kasumi tried to answer that desperate plead with her own wisdom, but after time and again watching her use Ryoga like a trap to get back at Ranma, the girl opted to massage Akane's back and let the girl sob herself back into a calm state.

Away from the sad girl, a pigtailed boy rushed across the streets with fury in his eyes. The teen had already tried to defy everything that moved with the goal to enjoy a good thrill. His own fighting skills had reached its peak not long ago after a few demons here and wild beasts there were easily dispatched and taken care of.

But that wasn't enough for the boy. He should have defeated them a lot easer and faster only if Ryoga had been back into town nearly a year ago and they would raise his abilities further up.

He punched the corner from that block as he made his way to the crowded part of town, searching for the only capable to satiate his need for improvement. A tiny lecher who busily skipped across the sidewalk and carried a more than average load of garments on his back.

Happosai: "Oh!, what a haul, what a. . .", PoW! !

Crash!

The sudden stomping of a foot against his face forced the old man to crash and bounce back into the street, allowing all the victims to reach him in time to beat him to a pulp, and getting their stolen property once again.

Happosai: "Damn it Ranma!, why did you do that!?"

Ranma: "Shut-up you old man, I am tired of waitin' an' I want that challenge you promised me last week!"

The old Sensei couldn't stop thinking about a boy who had reached all his potential without a worthy sparring partner to help him further his abilities, leaving him with no other choice but challenge him as the strongest opponent in town.

Happosai: "I already told you, m'boy. I can easily beat you if I get serious, and if I joke around with my bombs you get all mad and ask me to get serious. . .Why don' you just get a friend who can help you get stronger, and then we can try again?"

Ranma boasted his indignation when the tiny master refused to acknowledge his abilities, but the man had a point. In time, fighting at the side of Ryoga could have helped him to become strong enough to eventually take on the old lecher, but now everything seemed lost.

The pigtailed teen found no reason to stay, so he stomped his way towards the old bridge where the running water from the river could calm his nerves before going home and, unintentionally pick a new fight with his fiancée.

That's when things went from bad to worse. The boy mindlessly thought about the lost teen more often than not. He contemplated why would anyone kidnap the idiot, and how would they do so after the power Ryoga was capable to dish out.

That's when it hit him.

Ranma: "He ain' in trouble, or was taken by no one. I think the idiot finally gave up on us."

It wasn't really hard to come at that conclusion, after all, Ryoga showed signs of distress during the last fights, and his attitude reflected how tired he was of dealing with his and Akane's ignorance over his own problems.

Ranma: "Damn it man, why didn' you come clean first an' let us help you?"

His eyes fell at the constant moving of the water, hoping no one would hear his pleas and confessing at the river what his heart really felt.

Ranma: "I miss him. Sigh. . .He is like a brother ta me, an' I would give my life for the oaf any time. . ."

It was a rare occasion when his male bravado and his ego would fall into manageable levels, and his true feelings as a human being flared on the open.

Memories of old resurfaced into his head, from the hugs, tricks to be courted in his female form by the lost boy, and other close calls attempting to end his life, to a sentiment of care Ryoga always showed him behind his own penchant to be a tough guy.

They had very close calls in the past, moments when a redheaded girl was saved from ice attacks, giving the then girl to dare becoming a real female and throw caution to the wind, hugging and even kissing him like the amazing couple they became over the years.

Suddenly, his prideful ego came crashing into his mind when those memories weren't supposed to be interpreted that way. He is a man amongst men, and thinking girly stuff like that is not part of who he is. Ranma simply shook his head and pushed those feelings away, hoping to never call them out again and stay true to be a man.

Frustration to feel weak as a girl, and dealing with the constant rejections from Akane slowly began to build into Ranma's diminutive patience. He started to loose it for Ryoga and the kind of power the lost boy could help him accomplish, not to mention how well they treated each other. . .Perhaps in an intimate manner if the idiot could pass up he being a guy and all. . .

There it went again. That stupid notion to let his female urges get the better of him. The boy forced his head into a rush of shakes trying to forget that forbidden feeling, and instead declare the one thing he came to accept so far.

Ranma: "I'm goin' crazy. . .If I don' fight a worthy opponent soon, I might just lost it for good."

That's when all hell broke lose after Ukyo and Shampoo popped out of nowhere.

Ukyo: "Ran-chan. We've been looking all over for you!"

Ranma had little attention span to deal with the girls now, specially if Akane were to see them together, and blow a gasket in the process.

Ranma: "What do you want here?"

Shampoo: "Airen!, Shampoo have too good idea. We make husband stronger!"

It was an enticing enough statement Ranma swallowed in a heartbeat. The boy promptly joined the girls and paid all the attention he could summon about this new challenge. After a while, the babbling pair couldn't stop from talking about their own prowess as fighters and swore being able to hold a candle against him.

Ranma: "Gee, I don' know. I mean, with Ryoga I can go all out 'cuse he can take everything I dish at him, but you too ain' what he an' I can become during a fight."

Ukyo: "Nonsense. That jackass may be strong, but he is slow. . .Besides, we have our own skills, and fighting us together can help you further your own talents to deal with two different styles at once."

The idea merited some thinking which Ranma wasn't able to take. His need to improve were pressing in his mind, and who knows, maybe fighting them at once could break the boring notion to deal with a wimpy Kuno, or a blind Mousse.

Ranma: "I guess since the old Ghoul and the old lecher refused ta help me, I don' see what could possibly go wrong. . ."

The chef and the Chinese girl skipped in happiness at the chance to enjoy the festivities alone with their fiancé. They deduced that in time, and after a good spar either Shampoo or Ukyo could find a way to share him before Akane or anyone else would won him over.

All three left towards a field a few miles outside town. Ranma found the place deserted enough, and with several weapons already set for the girls to use.

Shampoo: "Alright, we go all out, and Airen beat us if can"

Ukyo: "Ok sugar, this should be interesting."

Both girls armed themselves with all manner of cooking devices and Chinese blunt weapons. Ranma on the other hand simply went into his defensive pose and started to avoid the defying attacks from all sides.

Ranma: "It's workin'!, I can hardly sense their attacks, an' avoiding them is harder than I thought!"

The boy was extremely excited at the beginning of the match. A few hits here and kicks there were signs that he could improve his avoidance and evasion. Ranma found the match highly addictive, and before he could realize it, the teen began to raise his speed and attacks at an average level.

Ranma: "Yes!, At this pace I may just improve better than how I was last year. . .Ryoga, you idiot. I know we could have done it better, but I think I just found your replacement."

This was the best gift he could receive so far. His mind started to adapt against his opponents and his muscles could feel the pressure to be on his toes. It definitely made him understand how could this be his best chance to become stronger until his own euphoria deprived him of a very important point. . .He wasn't attacking, only defending.

Ranma felt so trusting over the situation that the teen began to move more mechanically than consciously. His body danced at the pace from so many attacks coming from everywhere, and before he could see it coming, a couple of screeching screams forced the teen to stop and open his eyes once again.

Ranma: "What the. . .!?"

There, right before his trembling eyes, the pigtailed fighter saw his fist raised above his head, a tremendous tornado ascending into the sky, and on top of it two girls riding the monstrous attack with no idea how to protect themselves.

Ranma: "Ucchan. . .Shampoo!"

It was a scary moment when sound vanished from his ears and time seemed to crawl to a halt. Ranma immediately jumped from branch to branch, and towards the top of trees trying to reach for both girls, managing to catch Ukyo on her descending fall, and watching Cologne do the same for Shampoo.

When they fell on the grass, the pigtailed teen stared in fear as the cook laying on his arms, her body all mangled by the impossibly strong technique and leaving the girl with nothing but a faint moving chest.

Cologne: "I told you to wait after the festivities for the training, dumb boy. Anyway, we need to take them to the hospital right away, Ranma."

The teen snapped and nodded at the woman, fearful for his friends and realizing something very important. The old hag stared daggers at him, and there was no "son-in-law" with her response.

Ranma: "D-Damn it, why did I have ta say yes."

The boy berated himself all the way to the hospital, hating his every choice and avoiding the venomous eyes from the old Amazon.

Cologne: "Ranma. Go home and stay with your family. . .I'll deal with the paperwork and explain a lie or two to the doctors."

Ranma: "But, I want ta stay an' see how they do."

Cologne: "No!, you better go, and leave this to me. You already did enough, and watching you here reminds me of feelings I don't want to deal with at the moment."

The pigtailed teen couldn't help but leave after the atrocious act he unleashed against his fiancées embarrassed him to no end.

It wasn't really his fault, or at least he tried to convince himself from what happened, but who was he kidding. He knew no one could take that attack but Ryoga, and still he let them into the fight.

A few hours later Ranma arrived into the Tendo's. The party couldn't be more happier with the presence of old friends, and new ones but he didn't feel like celebrating. The boy just walked mindlessly across the crowded hall and into his room, ignoring the cheers and shouts from them.

Akane: "It was about time!, where have you been all this time!?"

Ranma: "I don' want ta talk 'bout it."

Akane: "No!, you are going downstairs and help us with our guests. . .Ranma. Ranma!, stop ignoring me and pay attention."

The girl had suffered enough this day to deal with an arrogant jerk like him, but at least they needed to pretend being happy for their guests, and fake how well they got along. When Akane grabbed Ranma's arm, a sudden veer from the boy sent the girl spiraling against the floor.

The boy stared angrily at her until a moment later his eyes softened and a dry "Sorry" was all he could say before driving his door into a close. When he was about to vanish into his bedroom a sneering girl sat on the ground, tears falling down her cheeks, and her heart pouring into one single declaration.

Akane: "We are through. . ."

Ranma: "I guess we are. . ."

The door closed a second later, and despite the happy faces enjoying the last day of the year downstairs, Akane Tendo and family took a turn for the worse thanks to a friend they took for granted long ago.