Disclaimer: Ranma ½ and its characters don't and never will belong to me.
No more pussyfooting around: a Ranma ½ fanfic
By Indygodusk
Chapter 37: The Earring
Akane tapped Ranma's shoulder in a signal to be let down since they'd reached the cabin. In response, Ranma pouted and dropped her feet, letting her slowly slide down his body until her feet rested firmly on the floor. "Tease," she scolded breathlessly.
Inside, Nabiki sat in the armchair. She glanced Akane over without comment, though her expression said volumes, and then went back to the book she was reading. Since Akane didn't feel up to her sister's prodding, she really appreciated it.
Now that they'd returned, she'd started to feel wobbly. Even her thoughts seemed sluggish. Akane had pushed herself too hard today. Maybe she should get ready for bed, but she didn't want Ranma to know how weak she'd gotten.
Ranma gestured her into the kitchen and she followed, pride battling with practicality. He handed her a glass of cool water. Dipping his head to her ear with a warm puff of air, Ranma murmured, "I do still need to talk to you about what I found in the mountains."
A shiver raced down Akane's back as the edge of his lip slid along her ear. Akane turned away to hide her breathlessness and gestured to the porch. She took a gulp of water to cool her heated cheeks and left the cup on the counter as she exited the room.
Grabbing his pack, Ranma followed her outside. "You're still barefoot," Ranma grumbled as he sank down by her side.
"So?" she raised a confused eyebrow.
"Your toes are distracting," he griped.
Akane couldn't help her amused snort. "My toes? Really?"
Blushing, Ranma looked away and scratched his head. "They're cute, alright?"
"Well, thanks," Akane grinned.
Rolling his shoulders awkwardly, Ranma turned to his pack and pulled out a small leather pouch. He weighed it in his hand for a moment before shaking his head briskly. "So while I was up in the mountains training, I learned a ki binding technique. The origins are a bit messed up, and it isn't the cure we'd hoped for, but I think it will help slow the demon down. It's the best I could find to protect you."
Untying the cord, Ranma opened the pouch and shook out three metal circles and a capped needle onto his palm. Looking closer, Akane realized that the metal circles were earrings. Each earring held a small, clear glass bead. Ranma held his breath.
When the silence stretched, Akane impatiently prompted, "What are they?"
"Earrings," Ranma gestured.
Akane shot him a look of annoyance and frustration. "Yes, obviously, but what do they do? How will they help?"
Dropping his hand, Ranma shifted uncomfortably. "They're kind of like birth control. They bind up the energy related to fertility while you wear it. I got some for both of us."
"So I just have to put the earring in and it keeps me from getting pregnant?" Akane's brow wrinkled. "I mean, I'm glad you took those educational pamphlets I gave you seriously, but I don't see how that helps me out with the demon."
Taking a quick breath, Ranma leaned forward. "They said that you're not supposed to get the piercing if you're pregnant because it can injure a baby's lifeforce. I'm hoping it will hurt or even kill some of the demon offspring trying to infiltrate your core. Even if it doesn't, it should hopefully make it harder for them to keep growing."
"It's worth a shot," Akane said, trying not to feel too hopeful in case it failed. "Sure, let's do it."
"Great." Tension drained from Ranma's shoulders. "I'll show you how to do mine first for my boy- and girl-sides so I can make sure it's really safe. Then I'll do you." He fiddled with the earrings in his hand, not meeting her eyes.
Suspicions rising, Akane asked, "If you can teach me how to do it, why can't I just do it on myself? I can use the bathroom mirror to see my ear."
Ranma wiped his hands on his thighs.. "The technique can't be cast on yourself. Someone else has to do it, someone of the opposite sex."
"Really?" Sighing, Akane opened her mouth to agree when Ranma added a caveat.
"Well," Ranma fidgeted, "someone of the same sex can do it, like you with my girl-side, but the chance of hurting the demons that way is smaller." Mouth and eyes going tight, he leaned forward. "I'm protecting you the only way I know how."
Inside her core, she felt her feline companion bristle. She wouldn't have noticed in the past, but all the meditation had made her a lot more sensitive to the state of her ki. Akane looked at Ranma's face and then dropped her eyes to the sharp angle of his shoulders. His neck bobbed as he swallowed.
"Ranma," curling her hands into fists, Akane looked into his eyes, "you're lying to me again."
Flinching hard, Ranma dropped the pouch. Turning his face away, he scooped everything up off the ground and cinched the pouch tight. "A-A-Akane, no." His laughed shrilly. "Nothing I said was a lie. No." He wouldn't meet her eyes.
"Ranma, can I still not trust you?" Akane felt a catch in her throat and stinging in her eyes. She was so over letting Ranma make her cry. Pain spiked through her head and exhaustion made the world sway for a moment.
Did she even have the energy to be angry at his betrayal? Protective anger swelled loyally in response. What a silly question, of course she did. Akane's knuckles popped with the tightness of her clenched fists. If Ranma didn't have a good answer, she was going to punch him in the face.
Swallowing down a groan, Ranma went pale and grabbed the back of his neck hard in one hand. "You can trust me, you can," he answered desperately. "I didn't lie! I just… left out a few things. I'm sorry." His face looked tortured. "I'm afraid you won't do it if I tell you all of it, but I don't know how else to protect you right now. I need you to do this."
Teeth gritted, she breathed in sharply as the pain in her head and heart swelled. "That's my choice to make, not yours, Ranma." Rage boiled up from her stomach. "Lies of omission are still LIES!"
"I'm sorry." Ranma hunched his shoulders. "I know."
Akane snapped. "Do you? Do you really? Because you certainly don't act like it! This is the same thing all over again. I should have known better. I'm starting to wonder if I should just assume that everything you say is a lie. For a while I let myself forget, but to you, I've always been the uncute, violent, pitiful one who needs saving, right? In fact, you're probably only saying you love me because I'm dying. You certainly never said it before that little fact came out."
"Hey, that's not fair," Ranma straitened up with a scowl. "I screwed up and I'm sorry, but I do love you. You know that."
The bitterness spewing from Akane's mouth refused to settle down. "What do you know of fair? My whole life is unfair right now! I should've known better." Shame and hurt seared black trails across her thoughts. How could she have been so stupid as to believe he really loved her? Stumbling to her feet, she jerked her head away from his outstretched hand. Akane didn't even want to look at him right now. "You don't really care about me. All you care about are yourself, stuffing your face, and martial arts. Raised the way you were, with parents like yours, you probably don't even know what real love is. You're not normal. Maybe you're incapable of love."
The words stabbed into Ranma's chest like blades of ice. Ranma's lungs froze and his mouth filled with frost. He had to look down to make sure he wasn't actually bleeding because it felt like she'd carved out his heart.
In the echoing silence, Akane's face turned pale and stricken. Her fisted hands loosened and began to shake. She opened her mouth to say something more, but he'd had enough. The wound she'd dealt already felt mortal.
Ranma cut his hand through the air sharply and Akane closed her mouth with a click. He jumped to his feet, leaving a metaphorical puddle of blood on the ground. "I screwed up again, okay? I'm sorry. I'm just trying to keep you alive, but I should've told you the whole thing. I'm sorry. I'm not perfect, but neither are you. You always lash out like this! Maybe I don't know what love is like for most people. Maybe my parents didn't love me the way most parents do. Maybe my love isn't normal or I'm not normal. I don't know. I just know that you're the most important person in my world and that I would do anything to keep you safe. I would die for you. Without you, my world would shatter. I'd act like a fool to earn a single smile from your lips. It's true that I've done everything in my power to keep you alive, but I want you happy too. I need you. More than anyone or anything else in my life, I need you—alive and happy. That's what I call love, even if it's wrong. I love you and I'm trying. I'm sorry I messed up again. Believe me or not, but don't you dare tell me how I really feel!"
Breathing harshly, Ranma felt a desperate need for physical violence instead of this vicious verbal battlefield. "I don't like you right now, but since I refuse to hit you even when I'm angry, I'm gonna go." Ranma pivoted on his heel and disappeared into the trees, deliberately not looking at Akane's reaction to his parting shot.
As Ranma disappeared into the dark forest, Akane tried to remember what had possessed her to say such things. He'd screwed up, but so had she. Big time. Although Ranma often sucked at talking, his actions always showed the truth of his character. Breathing hurt. Everything hurt. Any moral superiority she'd initially held had completely crumbled.
Ranma was right. When hurt, scared, or angry, she still lashed out. She'd stopped physically hitting him, but now she'd turned to verbal attacks.
The insecure little girl huddled inside found it hard to believe anyone could love her so fiercely, that someone as amazing as Ranma might actually find her useful. She was such a hypocrite. Rama's actions lately had been completely consistent with his words. Although Ranma was a master of misdirection when he fought, he had a fierce and straightforward honor.
She never should have said those things about him or his parents. It made her feel sick. When she'd physically hit Ranma in the past, it hadn't been because she was good enough to get through his defenses. In fights, people rarely landed a hit on Ranma and insults usually slid right off. Yet for some reason, Ranma had chosen to place Akane inside his defenses, making himself vulnerable to her attacks because he cared about her. He put up with her bad for the rare good moments. He'd said it himself, "he needed her," and, for better or worse, Akane needed him too. She loved the idiot.
Akane felt terrible. She didn't want to return to those miserable months of anger, silence, and distrust. Not talking to Ranma had almost killed her. Literally, considering how close she'd come to returning to Okinawa by herself. Fighting like this wasn't fun. She wanted to go back to how they'd been an hour ago.
Yes, he'd tried to hide things from her again. That was wrong. Wrong wrong WRONG! Akane refused to put up with that, even, or perhaps especially, in some misguided attempt to protect her for her own good.
However, Akane was responsible for her own words and actions too. All of the books said that. Sometimes, being an adult sucked. Nevertheless, it meant facing up to her mistakes. Instead of reacting with maturity and teaching Ranma that she could handle whatever tough truth he was concealing and that full honesty was always best, she'd reached for something to say that would hurt him because she felt angry and hurt.
Her anger hadn't made anything better. In fact, it had just made everything worse. She'd screwed up. They both had.
Akane needed to apologize. She couldn't justify her bad actions based on what other people did, even Ranma. Isn't that what all her self-help books said? This was about her personal honor and self-control. Ranma deserved her apology. Somehow, she had to make this right.
Taking a deep breath, Akane gathered up all of her negative feelings and blew them out in a steady stream, filling an imaginary bubble. She repeated the breathing exercise three times until she felt more in control. Then she popped the pretend bubbles with sharp jabs.
Although the woods had become a pot of black ink, her eyes couldn't help but stubbornly search for signs of Ranma's dark hair in the shadows. There wasn't enough light. The crescent moon shone but dimly just above the horizon and the light of the stars, while plentiful up here in the mountains, failed to penetrate the forest canopy. How could she track Ranma when she couldn't see? Especially when he was just as likely to be bouncing through the treetops as running on the ground?
Something soft and furry uncurled begrudgingly from where he'd wrapped around her shoulders and throat, nudged her ki, calling attention to the perpendicular spirit cord stretching out into the night. Akane felt a surge of hope, followed by crippling doubt. She could follow it into the night, but she was still barefoot. He'd call her an idiot and she'd lose her temper again, bringing them back to square one. Besides, Ranma didn't want to see her right now. She probably shouldn't bother him yet. But how long would it take for his temper to calm down? Dropping her face into her hands, Akane groaned. She ground her palms against her eyes to press back her pounding headache and incipient tears.
Fur slid across her spirit soothingly and then nudged her awareness wider. Gliding down the cord binding her spirit to Ranma, she felt an echo of his hurt. The confirmation made her feel even worse, but it also gave her an idea of how to compromise. Akane swallowed hard.
Kicking her pride behind the knees, Akane tried to find strength in humility as she walked to the middle of the clearing where no shadows fell. The grass rasped against her bare ankles. A croaking toad went silent at her approach. Exposed, she turned to face the cord linking her to Ranma. Shaking the tension from her wrists, she pushed her pride down again. As ready as she could be, she knelt down with hands on her thighs, dropped her head, and humbly focused on their spiritual tie.
Gathering her feelings of regret, sorrow, and affection, she pressed them into the cord. At first, nothing happened. Firming her chin stubbornly, Akane kept trying. Her knees went numb and a rock dug uncomfortably into her shin. Ignoring it as best she could, she focused harder. She had to make this right.
Just when she was about to give up, she felt a muted throb of surprise travel up the cord. Curiosity overtook Ranma's pained feelings. Akane tried to reach for more, but fumbled and lost sense of the cord completely. Her frustration surged, making it even harder to regain the connection again. Huffing, she ran her hands through her hair and glared out at the forest.
In the distance, a nightbird burst into flight and momentarily blotted out the stars. Akane blinked. Then she saw him. Ranma wove silently between the trees like gray smoke, moving in and out of sight between the few shafts of light breaking through the branches. Afraid to blink lest she lose him, Akane kept him in sight until he loped into the clearing.
Not even breathing hard, Ranma came to a stop in front of her kneeling figure. Expression opaque, Ranma folded his arms. He didn't say anything.
Akane had to smack down her annoyance and pride. Calling him a jerk would not help things right now. Ranma didn't have to make things easy for her. It would be nice if he did, and just as easy to slide back into anger at his lies of omission, but she had to remember her purpose. Akane needed to apologize for what she'd said. Despite her good intentions, the words got stuck in her throat. Her mind spun uselessly with a mishmash of pride, shame, frustration, and the burning desire to find the perfect thing to say, but having no idea what would actually fix this.
Ranma's weight shifted. Was he impatient? Annoyed? What if he turned and left again before she got her tongue to cooperate?
Akane sucked in a deep breath. Actions speak louder than words. Actions! She had to make things right with Ranma. She had to show him.
When she bent forward into a deep and humble bow, Ranma gasped. It gave Akane the push to speak. "I'm so sorry, Ranma." The scent of crushed grass and dry earth flooded her nose. She squeezed her eyes shut to keep the painful sting from turning into a torrent of tears. "I didn't mean what I said. I just lost my temper and I feel terrible about it. Please forgive me," she finished in a small voice.
Releasing a long sigh, Ranma lifted her up by the shoulders until she met his soft eyes. "Of course I forgive you, Akane. Heaven knows that I certainly provoked you. I shouldn't have tried to lie again. I'm sorry too, really sorry, and I'm going to tell you everything from now on. I promise." Then he tipped his head to the side and sent her a breathtaking smile, "Friends again?"
Reaching out, Akane rose up on her knees and cupped his face in her hands. "More than friends," she asserted firmly, watching his eyes go heavy-lidded with relief and desire as she leaned forward with slow and steady intent.
Eyes sliding closed, Akane kissed Ranma to seal her promise and comfort them both. Sighing shakily, he leaned into the kiss and responded with pure devotion. It sent warmth exploding through her chest. Stroking her fingers down his cheeks, Akane pressed forward, licking into the hot, slick cavern of his mouth and doing her best to prove just how much she needed him too. Ranma responded with a needy growl, yanking her convulsively against his body. Bare fingers slid scaldingly across the small of her back as he surrendered to her kiss and conquered her soul.
Abruptly the clearing flooded with harsh yellow light and the blare of a car horn. Breaking away in shock, their heads swiveled to squint at the disturbance. Ranma twisted defensively so his body blocked Akane's, but relaxed as Nabiki stomped out, her body backlit by the car headlights.
"In case you've forgotten, I'm still here!" Nabiki gave a sarcastic wave. "I want the whole story of why you're first arguing about Ranma's trip and then suddenly making out on the lawn, but I'm tired. Since you aren't interested in telling me tonight, I'm going to read for a while and then go to sleep."
Raking their intimate position with a snide look, she added, "Unexpected as the role of chaperone is, I have to remind you that you aren't married to my little sister yet, Ranma, and I'm not interested in listening to the two of you fumbling around all night or the inevitable recriminations when you say something stupid in the morning. Or when Akane freaks out and starts smashing things. I don't have the patience for it. None of us want to get the parents involved in your relationship right now, but don't push me. You have one hour to 'talk about things.' Keep it above the belt." Smirking at their mortification, Nabiki gestured over her shoulder. "Then I expect both of you to be back inside the cabin. Otherwise, there will be consequences. If I hear any sounds tonight except talking or snoring, I will throw ice cold water at both of you. Got it?"
Cheeks burning, Akane watched as Nabiki stalked back to the car, turned off the headlights, and disappeared back inside the cabin. "That was awkward," Akane said.
"I didn't even notice her until she turned the lights on," Ranma admitted sheepishly. "Do you want to go in now or talk for a while longer?"
"Talk?" Akane couldn't help but ask archly.
Chuckling, Ranma bumped shoulders with Akane. "Yes, I meant just talking, you minx, but if you're willing to tempt Nabiki's temper, I won't resist. She'll probably kill me, but making out with you is worth it."
Giggling, Akane shook her head. "Unfortunately, I'm too scared of Nabiki and we probably do need to talk." Sobering, she sighed. "We definitely need to talk."
Ranma squirmed uncomfortably and folded his legs beneath his body. "What do you want me to say?"
"How about everything you didn't want to tell me about those earrings? I assume some of it has to do with the messed up origin you mentioned earlier." Akane folded her arms and reminded herself to keep her temper, no matter what she learned. "Be completely honest with me."
Ranma wiped his hands down his thighs before beginning. "Okay, everything. So the village is isolated pretty far up in the mountains. Through the centuries they've had regular periods of famine. The village leaders up there think men are completely superior to women in every way. I've seen dogs treated better than the women up there. When things get hard and food scarce, the men, especially those in charge, get priority over the women in everything."
Grimacing, Akane said, "It sounds like an awful place to live, but where do the earrings come in?"
Distaste twisting his lips, Ranma explained. "They village created the earrings to reduce the number of babies being born only to die during famines. It sounds good at first, but then come the details. As soon as a woman's ear is pierced in ritual, energy is pulled away from her womb and starts building up within the confines of the spell. It does keep pregnancy down. However, the men eventually learned how to steal that stored energy for themselves. The piercing doesn't have to be voluntary either."
"That's awful! Why would you want to do that to me?" Mind racing, Akane struggled to keep her tone even. "Besides, you can already take my energy with the bond we have. How is this any different?"
Unhappiness carved lines across Ranma's face. "I wouldn't purposely take your energy, not if I could help it. The earring is different. It doesn't just take your physical energy. It siphons the potential to make new life and eats away at your lifeforce too. In their village, women have died, though it's considered sloppy and looked down upon by the community."
"How inconsiderate for the community," Akane said bitterly. Putting a stranglehold on her temper, she took a deep breath and spoke evenly, "Ranma, I still don't understand how this will help. I mean, I'm not worried about you trying to drain away my lifeforce or anything. I've already got a bunch of parasitic demon babies for that. I know you'd never do that to me. I know you're trying to save me, so explain this to me. Please."
"I appreciate that you trust me that much," Ranma sent her a half smile before his eyes fell back to darkness. "Let me just tell you the last bit and hopefully it'll start to make sense. The earring keeps you from getting pregnant, but you also should know that as soon as it gets taken off, any stored up, unused fertile energy immediately breaks free, flooding your body. Almost every woman in the village gets pregnant the first time they ha-," Ranma's words stumbled and his cheeks reddened, "do stuff after the earring's gone. At least, if the stuff happens with the man who pierced their ear. If they sleep with a different man, their fertility actually gets damaged, making it extremely difficult to get pregnant with anyone. The men of the village use the earrings to both control and threaten the women there. Fathers sell their daughters to other men and use the earrings to guarantee their faithfulness, or at least the identity of heirs. Only mothers have any status, but even that isn't much. Most of the women are treated as little more than slaves."
His words made Akane feel cold.
Ranma swallowed. "Nevertheless, if I pierce your ear, I really do think it will damage the demons growing inside you. I believe it will siphon away the energy they need to grow and give us more time to find you a full cure and save your life. That said, it also means that your future children would have to be mine or else you'd risk never being able to have children at all."
Looking away, Ranma added in a choked voice, "You should also know that if another man took off your earring and forced you, it could destroy your ability to have children forever. During feuds in the village, they said that sometimes men do that on purpose, to punish a family."
"That's sick," Akane said, mind reeling from all of the implications. She asked a question to stall for time. "You made it sound like I could pierce your girl side, though. Wouldn't that be better? How are earrings from women different?"
Fingering the leather pouch, Ranma explained. "A piercing by a woman isn't as effective. The ties aren't as greedy, I guess you'd say. Sometimes mothers would try to protect their daughters by piercing them at puberty before a man could, but it was rare and could bring punishment, from what my source told me. Mothers and fathers did sometimes pierce their sons too, to keep them from impregnating a girl unexpectedly. Piercings done by females only make it harder, but not impossible, to get pregnant or impregnate someone else. Energy can still be taken, but not nearly as much. When the earring is removed, the fertility bounces back to normal within a few months, without an initial surge or the chance of damage. None of the other side effects seem to apply."
Ranma thinned his lips and met Akane's eyes intently. "I honestly don't think that type of piercing would be enough to damage the demon's offspring, but," taking a deep breath, he clenched his fingers into the fabric of his pants and seemed to force himself to finish, "it is your choice. You don't have to take an earring. Alternatively, we could try with just my female side piercing you first and see if it helps at all."
When Akane frowned, Ranma added, "Whatever you choose, I'd still like you to pierce me if you're willing. I'd like the protection. It also gives you the ability to take my energy if you need it instead of waiting for me to send it to you."
Hugging herself tight, Akane asked, "Do I have to decide now?"
"The sooner the better if we want to slow this down, but it is your life and your choice," Ranma said. "I want to respect that. I'm trying."
"I need to think about it more, but... I can do yours tonight, if you want," she offered.
Ranma nodded. "Let's go over to the porch where the light is stronger. You'll need to watch my ki while I explain what to do. Most of the men there are dumb as rocks and they can do it, so you should pick it up quickly. We can start with my girl side. That should be easier with the complementary yin energy, too."
Ducking into the kitchen, Ranma came back out as a busty redhead. She plonked down a bottle of ethanol and a thermos as she sat down across from Akane. "Alright, watch how my ki changes as I reach out for you," Ranko ordered. "I'm going to yank at your fertility energy, but without the earring to loop the energy through, it'll just snap back. Ready?" Nodding with more confidence than she felt, Akane turned her attention to the spiritual plane.
They went over the ritual several times, until Akane became bored and impatient. It really was simple. "Alright, I'm ready to try. Let's do it."
"Just make sure you pull the energy as tight as it will go. And remember to pierce my tragus and not my earlobe," Ranko nagged.
Giving Ranko an aggravated look, Akane snapped, "I know." She hated being nagged. Akane sterilized her fingers, the needle, the earring, and Ranko's entire left ear, lingering on the earlobe (just to mess with her). "Here we go," Akane warned. Seconds later, she pushed the needle through Ranko's tragus, the flap of skin in front of the ear canal. Ranko didn't even flinch at the piercing, though Akane couldn't help but grimace in sympathetic pain. Fine red hair tickled across her wrist as she secured the first earring through Ranko's tragus and closed the metal circle, flicking the clear bead with her fingernail in the process.
Taking the wet needle, Akane pricked her finger and squeezed out a drop of blood. Carefully lifting her finger to Ranko's ear, Akane submerged the bead in her blood. The blood disappeared, but the bead remained clear, just like Ranma had said.
With the earring primed, Akane cupped her hands in front of Ranko's lower belly. The redhead's ki practically jump into Akane's palms, eager and trusting. Akane compressed the cords into a ball and then pulled them up towards the earring. Midway up Ranko's throat, they started to resist. Feeling almost guilty, Akane pulled harder, forcing the energy to go through the center of the wire earring and then looping it round and round until the clear bead turned a dark reddish brown. "Is that good?" she asked uncertainly.
"More," Ranko ordered tightly. Frowning, Akane looped more and more ki around the ring, until a twisted cord of energy stretched taut as a bowstring from Ranko's navel to ear and vibrated with each breath.
Panting, Akane sat back. "I don't think I can get it any tighter. I can sense your energy pretty clearly now. How does it feel?"
"A little weird, but it helps that I trust you," Ranko said, almost too lightly.
Akane frowned, but before she could ask more questions, the redhead picked up the thermos and dumped the warm water over her head. "Let's do the next one," Ranma said, flicking dark wet bangs off his face and touching the earring in his left ear briefly.
"Are you sure? Maybe you should rest first." Akane bit her lip uncertainly. She didn't want to accidentally hurt Ranma. Secretly, she also wanted a bit of rest for herself. The emotional and physical toll of the day had left her exhausted.
Waving away her words, Ranma pulled out another earring. "I'm fine, go ahead."
Sterilizing everything again, Akane repeated the procedure. The energy felt different this time, more hungry than friendly, but just as eager to jump into her hands. The strands of ki were also more like fine threads than thick yarn, clinging to her fingers as she forced it round and round the earring and resisting letting go. It took longer to get the cord of male energy to go taut and her fingers were shaking by the end of it. "Done," Akane finally announced, unable to hide the quaver in her voice.
"Good." Cracking his neck from side to side, Ranma seemed satisfied. "The earrings feel different, but it won't distract me in a fight. Thanks. Now, take energy from me."
"What? No. Why would I do that? I could hurt you." Akane scowled.
Exasperated, Ranma rolled his eyes. "You're exhausted and I've got energy to spare. You can either take some, freely offered, or I can send you some the old way, but it'd be silly to suffer needlessly. Besides, we should test the earrings. C'mon, Akane."
Akane wanted to argue more, but she didn't have the energy even for that anymore. "Oh, fine," she said crossly. Rubbing her fingertips together, she gathered up a string of his energy and tugged. A pulse of warmth slid into her finger and up her arm to her chest, like a gulp of hot apple cider on a crisp fall day.
"You can take more, go on." Ranma nudged her foot.
It had felt good, really good. Carefully Akane pulled on the cord again, soaking in Ranma's energy until she no longer felt wobbly. Stopping, she made sure to carefully release the cord so it didn't accidentally snap back at Ranma. "Thank you."
"Anytime," Ranma said, "and I mean that with all seriousness. You take as much as you need from me. My energy is your energy, alright?"
"Thanks." Looking away uncomfortably, Akane wondered at the great trust Ranma placed in her. She hoped she proved worthy of it.
"You can do me," she offered.
"What?!" Ranma choked, coughing and sputtering with red cheeks and wide eyes. His gaze flicked up and down her body.
"My earring, I mean!" Akane clarified in a rush. "You can do my earring."
They both coughed and looked away.
Ranma cleared his throat. "Are you sure? This isn't something you can take back and I don't want you getting mad at me tomorrow. Just because you did mine doesn't mean you have to do yours. This wasn't about a guilt trip. I was serious about letting you choose," Ranma said, clearly trying to do the right thing.
A bittersweet smile curled one side of her lips. "I know. I trust you to do your best for me, Ranma. If the earring can help at all, I might as well try it. I want to live as long as possible. My future fertility is unlikely to be an issue, but if I do survive that long," heat flooded Akane's cheeks, "well, there's no one I'd rather have children with than you."
"No one?" Ranma asked with a vulnerable tilt to his mouth and brow.
"No one," Akane affirmed.
Mouth firming, Ranma gave her a nod. "Good. Then let's do this."
Positions reversed, Ranma sterilized everything again. It made Akane feel very vulnerable and rather uneasy when Ranma's fingertip brushed across the hairs of her ear canal. Suppressing the urge to flinch away, she kept still as he pierced her tragus.
"Sorry," Ranma whispered, slipping the needle out and the earring in in one smooth motion. He pricked his finger and pressed it to the bead. A pressure built in her head. Dropping his hands, Ranma kneaded the air in front of her navel, winding her ki around his fingers. It felt strange. She had to work not to fight against it. Lifting his hands, Ranma gently braided the strands of energy and then pulled them up to the earring. It felt unnerving to have someone else twisting her ki over, around, and through the earring in her tragus. The spiritual cord dangled between her breasts with just a bit of slack. Ranma pulled out one of the trailing ends from the back of the earring and knotted it around the cord at her neck. He sat back. "Done."
Akane wrinkled her brow. "I don't think it's tight enough. That's not how you had me do it."
"No, it's good. I want it this way so I can't accidentally take too much energy and hurt you," Ranma waved away her objection. "This will still starve the demons and my cat side can access it too."
Akane scowled. "Then why did you force me to make yours so tight? I could kill you if I took too much energy!"
Hopping to his feet, Ranma gathered up the supplies. "Better me than you."
"Ranma… you shouldn't say things like that." Akane rubbed her hands down her thighs and shifted her weight.
"Why?" Brow crinkled, he looked genuinely lost. "I thought it was pretty clear considering the way I tied you to me in the first place, but your life is my priority. I love you. No one is more important, not even me. I mean, I don't wanna die, but I'd rather keep you alive than live without you." Holding out his hand, he tipped his head to the side and smiled, as if he hadn't just offered to die for her, as if he wasn't the most wonderful and crazy man in the entire world.
Taking his hand, Akane surged to her feet and pulled Ranma's head down into a deep kiss. She loved this infuriating man so much. Lips slanting across his passionately, she did her best to show him how much he meant to her.
Reaching down, Ranma lifted Akane up his body. She wound her legs around his waist and licked into his hungry mouth. A pulse of pleasure vibrated down the spiritual cords linking their souls, making every touch even more intense. Akane moaned. Keeping her in place with one hand high on her thigh, Ranma buried his other hand in Akane's hair and deepened his kiss with an animalistic growl.
Ice cold water unexpectedly splashed across her body. Akane found herself gasping in shock against Ranko's smaller but equally plush lips. Jerking back, she saw Ranko's expression turn stricken and ashamed. Her hold on Akane's legs loosened and she looked down and away. It made Akane sad. Ranma's eyes should never look so wounded, male or female.
As Akane unwound her legs and slid to the ground, she deliberately dropped a kiss on Ranko's vulnerable-looking mouth. No matter the form, Ranma was Ranma and Akane loved him. Red lashes blinking rapidly in surprise, Ranko's blue eyes came back up and crinkled in shy pleasure.
"Excuse me," Nabiki snapped, "but I did not sign up for the growls and moaning! I get enough of that at college! I'm trying to sleep. Inside, the both of you, and you can just sleep like that, Ranko."
Separating reluctantly, they went inside, changed into dry pajamas, and slid into separate futons in the bedroom they shared with Nabiki. For the first time in weeks, Akane felt a sense of happiness. In the dark, Ranko nudged Akane with her toes. Akane smiled and nudged back. Lulled by the soft sounds of Ranko and her sister breathing, Akane dropped easily into a deep and dreamless sleep.
AN: Next chapter, the bad stuff starts to go down.