Forever Bound
Chapter 15, The Heart Has It's Reasons Which Reason Can Not Know
Author's Notes: Okay, this one took me a bit long too, but I guess I was just lazy and probably a writer's block. I am really happy since well, my city doesn't sell Ranma 1/1 stuff, not that I know of. Then, yeasterday I went to the bookstore and there it was, a Ranma 1/2 manga. I was beyond thrilled. Anyways, the flashbacks between Ranma and Akane are important and I'm sure some of you have already guessed who Larchlarn, Marshidi, and Grenada is. If you haven't I suggest you e-mail me because it is vital you know who they are.
Disclaimers: Ranma 1/2 belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Ah!My Goddess belongs to whoever made them and Little Women belongs to Louisa May Alcott.
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Akane stared wide-eyed at the tarred, black ruined space that she used to call her bedroom as the people of her family stood behind her ready for her reaction. Akane just gave a sigh and turned to them as she said, "I guess me and Bell can always get a hotel room near here." Before anyone could say a word, Nodoka put her arm around Akane's shoulders and said matter-of-factly, "Now dear, don't be silly. You and little Belldandy are going to stay at my house." AT Nodoka's firm tone, nobody, not even Akane said a word. (Well, actually Genma was about to protest since there will be more people there to eat his food, but one look at Nodoka's katana shut him up. Of course his wife would never harm him, but well, he didn't want to risk it.)
So with that matter at rest everyone set about in the task of cleaning what used to be Akane Tendo's room, Kasumi went downstairs made sure that there will be food when the hard work had everyone hungry, and Nabiki sat in the living room discussing with the insurance company. Ranma watched Akane discreetly at the corner of his eye as he cleaned and wondered at her sad expression.
Akane walked over to the corner where her desk used to be and picked up the charred pieces of wood, she coughed at the dust and ash. She suddenly saw some color behind the dull brown and black wood so she picked the large piece of wood out of the way. Akane gasped. There lying beneath the rubble stood out five beautiful, unflattened roses, three yellow ones and two white ones. *The same one the stranger at the theater gave me...* Akane heard the laughter of her daughter and Keichii in the room and remembered there were others here. Akane took the five roses and hid them inside her coat hoping no one noticed.
Akane thought about the anonymous person that had been throwing her those roses and she remembered the dream she had had before the fire. One face from the dream stuck in her head and Akane whispered softly, "Larchlarn." Then, for some uncomprehendable reason, Akane felt a tear slide down her dry cheek. Akane remembered one thing Larchlarn had said in the dream: "Each rose has a meaning. The white one is purity, the yellow one is friendship and the pink one is innocence." "What about the red one?" "...Love..."
Suddenly, like unbidden though uncaring a memory flooded through Akane's mind...
########Memory, 1500 years ago########
Marshidi leaned back on Larchlarn's body as she shivered. Larchlarn looked down at his wife and asked in a tight whisper as he hugged her tighter, "Are you cold?"
Marshidi shook her head, "No, 'tis fear that I feel." Larchlarn remained silent, his face cold and emotionless though his eyes betrayed the torment he felt inside. After another while of silence Marshidi could not take in anymore and she said in a choked sob, "Larchlarn, will you come back with Urd? Will you come back at all?"
Larchlarn looked down at his wife's tear streaked face and his eyes misted over but he refused to allow the tears to fall. "Marshidi, I will try my best to come back."
Marshidi stared urgently at his eyes hoping for any indication that he was lying, she found none and so she said, "Try?! Try, Larchlarn? I do not want you to try, I want you to succeed. I want you to promise me that you will come home safely with Urd." Larchlarn smiled sadly, "I promise I will return Urd home." Satisfied with the answer for now, Marshidi leaned back against her husband before whispering softly, "Remember, how when you showed me the roses you told me that each rose symbolised something. You scoffed at love then, that it was only for poets and daffled idiot fools. Do you admit you are wrong now?"
Larchlarn laughed and said, "I do not admit I am wrong, but I do admit that you have made me a daffled idiot fool." With that he made a red rose appeared and presented it before his wife.
Marshidi took the rose and said wistfully, "I have never noticed it before, but the red rose resemble the color of blood. It is true then that blood shall shed and that the heart shall bleed for love."
"When have you become such a poet?" he asked, but she just ignored his question with one of her own, "Will you stay with me forever Larchlarn even...if...even after we're gone."
Larchlarn hugged his wife and said confidentally, "I will stay with you forever, Marshidi and even after for I fear that forever is not enough time. Remember, Marshidi, death may claim us and others may too. Hatred will tear us and pain will divide, but no matter what happen, nomatter who, we will always come out with each other in the end. I promise you."
And Marshidi believed him for Larchlarn could lie to his waters, lie to his people, lie to himself, but he can not lie to her.
#########End of Memory##########
Akane's eyes streaked with tears and a sob broke through her followed by many others. She felt her energy drain from her and Akane collapsed her back against the wall as she slided down it, her face in her arms. Akane's brain idily noted Soun crying at his daughter's unhappiness, Nodoka and Akari standing beside her asking her what was wrong, Ryoga patting her back calmly, and Ukyo soothingly stroke her hair, but at that moment her heart only took notice of two people in the room, Ranma and Belldandy.
Belldandy had crawled into her mother's lap and just sat there hugging her, but that strangely calmed Akane. Akane soon stopped crying hysterically and just hugged Belldandy close as she whispered in her daughter's soft blonde hair, "Tell them to come back, Bell. Tell Larchlarn and Urd to come back. Urd, my daughter...my sweet little daughter. Larch-chan, Urd..." Belldandy just whispered softly, "I can't Mommy." Too bad, Akane did not hear her.
Soon, Akane calmed herself and looked up, her large brown eyes finally noticing everyone else in the room. Akane gave them all a weak smile and said, "Can you guys please all leave. I promise I'll tell you about it later, just I need sometime alone now." No one in the room had a chance at refusing those pleading eyes so they all left. All except Ranma who finally got out of the shadows.
"Ranma!?" Akane said surprised at the sudden appearance of him even though her heart knew he was there all along...like he promised. Ranma narrowed his eyes and for once Akane actually feared to look into them for the turbulent storms that lay behind those crystal grey-blue slits made for captivation. Ranma sat down in front of Akane, staring intently at her.
"Akane, what's wrong?" asked Ranma.
"Noth-" but before Akane could finish Akane cut her off, his eyes narrowed even more and Akane could clearly *feel* the powerful emotion of anger in his eyes.
"Don't you dare give me that, Akane. You could lie and give that story to the crowd downstairs, but don't you dare lie to me," Ranma stressed tensly and Akane visibly flinched, from what she did not know.
Akane's tears fell again, "Ranma..." From instinct, like talking or walking, Ranma put his arms around her, hugging her tight to him as she cried in his shoulder.
"Shh, shh, it's o.k. Akane. Everything's o.k," Ranma soothed his anger gone, although he still had to mask the fear and uncertainty in his voice. He knew who was the cause of this, but that was for later.
Akane cried even harder, "No it's not o.k, Ranma. You don't understand. Everything is just so confusing lately, but I promise to tell you everything when I sort it out."
Ranma nodded, accepting that answer for now. He wanted to comfort her, tell her he knew how she felt, that he had problems and emotions that confused him, but...he couldn't. He couldn't drag her down into his problems, he couldn't tell Akane, his Akane, that he had been dreaming and remembering about another woman.
Akane stopped crying after awhile and the two just sat there, Akane leaning on Ranma. The scene sent a strong sense of deja vu coursing through them and a bittersweet memory resurfacing. Maybe if it was in another time, things would have been different. Maybe, if the circumstances were different, they would not have fallen in love. Maybe, but not likely. For, it already happened, in another time, in a different place, two different people had shared the same intimacy and uncontrollable emotions as these two do. Strange, for this to be able to happen for it was not the work of Fate, Destiny, or Time, but of something much stronger. It was the work of something much stronger that even the gods/demons/ or mortals, it was the work of true love.
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Author's Notes: Send all comments and criticism to silverflame_maiden@hotmail.com.
Chapter 15, The Heart Has It's Reasons Which Reason Can Not Know
Author's Notes: Okay, this one took me a bit long too, but I guess I was just lazy and probably a writer's block. I am really happy since well, my city doesn't sell Ranma 1/1 stuff, not that I know of. Then, yeasterday I went to the bookstore and there it was, a Ranma 1/2 manga. I was beyond thrilled. Anyways, the flashbacks between Ranma and Akane are important and I'm sure some of you have already guessed who Larchlarn, Marshidi, and Grenada is. If you haven't I suggest you e-mail me because it is vital you know who they are.
Disclaimers: Ranma 1/2 belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Ah!My Goddess belongs to whoever made them and Little Women belongs to Louisa May Alcott.
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Akane stared wide-eyed at the tarred, black ruined space that she used to call her bedroom as the people of her family stood behind her ready for her reaction. Akane just gave a sigh and turned to them as she said, "I guess me and Bell can always get a hotel room near here." Before anyone could say a word, Nodoka put her arm around Akane's shoulders and said matter-of-factly, "Now dear, don't be silly. You and little Belldandy are going to stay at my house." AT Nodoka's firm tone, nobody, not even Akane said a word. (Well, actually Genma was about to protest since there will be more people there to eat his food, but one look at Nodoka's katana shut him up. Of course his wife would never harm him, but well, he didn't want to risk it.)
So with that matter at rest everyone set about in the task of cleaning what used to be Akane Tendo's room, Kasumi went downstairs made sure that there will be food when the hard work had everyone hungry, and Nabiki sat in the living room discussing with the insurance company. Ranma watched Akane discreetly at the corner of his eye as he cleaned and wondered at her sad expression.
Akane walked over to the corner where her desk used to be and picked up the charred pieces of wood, she coughed at the dust and ash. She suddenly saw some color behind the dull brown and black wood so she picked the large piece of wood out of the way. Akane gasped. There lying beneath the rubble stood out five beautiful, unflattened roses, three yellow ones and two white ones. *The same one the stranger at the theater gave me...* Akane heard the laughter of her daughter and Keichii in the room and remembered there were others here. Akane took the five roses and hid them inside her coat hoping no one noticed.
Akane thought about the anonymous person that had been throwing her those roses and she remembered the dream she had had before the fire. One face from the dream stuck in her head and Akane whispered softly, "Larchlarn." Then, for some uncomprehendable reason, Akane felt a tear slide down her dry cheek. Akane remembered one thing Larchlarn had said in the dream: "Each rose has a meaning. The white one is purity, the yellow one is friendship and the pink one is innocence." "What about the red one?" "...Love..."
Suddenly, like unbidden though uncaring a memory flooded through Akane's mind...
########Memory, 1500 years ago########
Marshidi leaned back on Larchlarn's body as she shivered. Larchlarn looked down at his wife and asked in a tight whisper as he hugged her tighter, "Are you cold?"
Marshidi shook her head, "No, 'tis fear that I feel." Larchlarn remained silent, his face cold and emotionless though his eyes betrayed the torment he felt inside. After another while of silence Marshidi could not take in anymore and she said in a choked sob, "Larchlarn, will you come back with Urd? Will you come back at all?"
Larchlarn looked down at his wife's tear streaked face and his eyes misted over but he refused to allow the tears to fall. "Marshidi, I will try my best to come back."
Marshidi stared urgently at his eyes hoping for any indication that he was lying, she found none and so she said, "Try?! Try, Larchlarn? I do not want you to try, I want you to succeed. I want you to promise me that you will come home safely with Urd." Larchlarn smiled sadly, "I promise I will return Urd home." Satisfied with the answer for now, Marshidi leaned back against her husband before whispering softly, "Remember, how when you showed me the roses you told me that each rose symbolised something. You scoffed at love then, that it was only for poets and daffled idiot fools. Do you admit you are wrong now?"
Larchlarn laughed and said, "I do not admit I am wrong, but I do admit that you have made me a daffled idiot fool." With that he made a red rose appeared and presented it before his wife.
Marshidi took the rose and said wistfully, "I have never noticed it before, but the red rose resemble the color of blood. It is true then that blood shall shed and that the heart shall bleed for love."
"When have you become such a poet?" he asked, but she just ignored his question with one of her own, "Will you stay with me forever Larchlarn even...if...even after we're gone."
Larchlarn hugged his wife and said confidentally, "I will stay with you forever, Marshidi and even after for I fear that forever is not enough time. Remember, Marshidi, death may claim us and others may too. Hatred will tear us and pain will divide, but no matter what happen, nomatter who, we will always come out with each other in the end. I promise you."
And Marshidi believed him for Larchlarn could lie to his waters, lie to his people, lie to himself, but he can not lie to her.
#########End of Memory##########
Akane's eyes streaked with tears and a sob broke through her followed by many others. She felt her energy drain from her and Akane collapsed her back against the wall as she slided down it, her face in her arms. Akane's brain idily noted Soun crying at his daughter's unhappiness, Nodoka and Akari standing beside her asking her what was wrong, Ryoga patting her back calmly, and Ukyo soothingly stroke her hair, but at that moment her heart only took notice of two people in the room, Ranma and Belldandy.
Belldandy had crawled into her mother's lap and just sat there hugging her, but that strangely calmed Akane. Akane soon stopped crying hysterically and just hugged Belldandy close as she whispered in her daughter's soft blonde hair, "Tell them to come back, Bell. Tell Larchlarn and Urd to come back. Urd, my daughter...my sweet little daughter. Larch-chan, Urd..." Belldandy just whispered softly, "I can't Mommy." Too bad, Akane did not hear her.
Soon, Akane calmed herself and looked up, her large brown eyes finally noticing everyone else in the room. Akane gave them all a weak smile and said, "Can you guys please all leave. I promise I'll tell you about it later, just I need sometime alone now." No one in the room had a chance at refusing those pleading eyes so they all left. All except Ranma who finally got out of the shadows.
"Ranma!?" Akane said surprised at the sudden appearance of him even though her heart knew he was there all along...like he promised. Ranma narrowed his eyes and for once Akane actually feared to look into them for the turbulent storms that lay behind those crystal grey-blue slits made for captivation. Ranma sat down in front of Akane, staring intently at her.
"Akane, what's wrong?" asked Ranma.
"Noth-" but before Akane could finish Akane cut her off, his eyes narrowed even more and Akane could clearly *feel* the powerful emotion of anger in his eyes.
"Don't you dare give me that, Akane. You could lie and give that story to the crowd downstairs, but don't you dare lie to me," Ranma stressed tensly and Akane visibly flinched, from what she did not know.
Akane's tears fell again, "Ranma..." From instinct, like talking or walking, Ranma put his arms around her, hugging her tight to him as she cried in his shoulder.
"Shh, shh, it's o.k. Akane. Everything's o.k," Ranma soothed his anger gone, although he still had to mask the fear and uncertainty in his voice. He knew who was the cause of this, but that was for later.
Akane cried even harder, "No it's not o.k, Ranma. You don't understand. Everything is just so confusing lately, but I promise to tell you everything when I sort it out."
Ranma nodded, accepting that answer for now. He wanted to comfort her, tell her he knew how she felt, that he had problems and emotions that confused him, but...he couldn't. He couldn't drag her down into his problems, he couldn't tell Akane, his Akane, that he had been dreaming and remembering about another woman.
Akane stopped crying after awhile and the two just sat there, Akane leaning on Ranma. The scene sent a strong sense of deja vu coursing through them and a bittersweet memory resurfacing. Maybe if it was in another time, things would have been different. Maybe, if the circumstances were different, they would not have fallen in love. Maybe, but not likely. For, it already happened, in another time, in a different place, two different people had shared the same intimacy and uncontrollable emotions as these two do. Strange, for this to be able to happen for it was not the work of Fate, Destiny, or Time, but of something much stronger. It was the work of something much stronger that even the gods/demons/ or mortals, it was the work of true love.
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Author's Notes: Send all comments and criticism to silverflame_maiden@hotmail.com.