This and all my other fanfiction is available at
http://www.furinkan.net
From ffml-bounce@fanfic.com Mon Oct 9 12:43:14 2000
Ohayo, minna!
Here's the second part of 'Ranma's Apartment'. It looks like
everything's on track for a Friday release of RA4. (Thanks for all
the corrections, Vincent!) Along with Vincent, I'd like to thank
everyone else who wrote about Ranma's Apartment, too.
Now for the good part:
----------------------------------------
Ranma's Apartment: 2 - Curses
a Ranma 1/2 - Aa! Megami-sama Fanstory
by Chris Jones
revised 10-09-2000
----------------------------------------
Genma Saotome woke with the sun as he always had for as long as
he could remember. He stood, letting the blankets slide off of his
immense furred belly and stretched several times to work the kinks
out of his muscles.
He pulled his gi out, and laid it on the dresser beaureu along
with a light colored bandanna. Gathering those, and his bath things
together, he made his way through the narrow hall and down the
stairway to the bathroom. Several minutes later, he emerged clean and
human, and ready for his morning sparring session for his son, just
like he always had for as long as he had had Ranma.
But Ranma wasn't in the guest room, and hadn't been for over a
month.
It just wasn't the same. Genma sighed and went down to
breakfast.
Kasumi had made a lovely combination of rice, misu, and baked
fish. He ate with relish, but wasn't able to finish what was on his
plate. He hadn't for several days now. It just wasn't the same
without Ranma. He breifly considered snagging a slice of pickled
daikon from Tendou-kun's plate, just for fun. The fatherly martial
artist was buried deep in his paper, however, and wouldn't even
notice the theft.
Genma sighed and ate one last slice of his own pickle. "Say,
Tendou-kun, how do you feel about going to the park to play shogi
today?"
"Mmm..." Soun nodded and turned a page in the paper. "Rice is
up again. Amazing how well the economy is doing after such
depression."
"Father, Uncle Saotome, are you done?"
Genma sighed and nodded as Kasumi took his plate.
"Hey, everybody, how do I look?"
It was Akane. Genma sighed as he took in her outfit. As she had
most days since Ranma left, she wore black. Today it was a black
leotard and tights with a short black skirt. She said she was
'mourning her engagement'. It was obvious however, that she had
already given up on his son and moved on to greener pastures. She was
gone until nine or later every night, "Studying," she always said.
He had also accidentally overheard once how her new boyfriend
liked her in black.
"Akane!" Kasumi exclaimed, "Your hair!" Apparently, the young
man also liked very short hair, because now, Akane's hair was only
about five or six inches long, carefully arranged in a very
fashionable page boy style. What kind of boy liked short hair on a
girl?
"I got up early and went to the stylist. How does it look?"
Nabiki sleepily gave her sister a 'thumbs up' and went back to
her homework. Kasumi set Genma's dirty plate back down and fussed
over Akane's hair for several minutes. It was a very attractive
style, but far too daring for the eldest girl's taste.
Within an hour, all three girls had left. Kasumi went to the
market and both her sisters boarded a train for their school.
Soun continued to read the paper. Genma walked into the kitchen
and poured a cup of cold water over his head.
Shambling out into the living room, he turned on the small
television and stared at a gameshow.
*There's no dwelling on the past,* he told himself. You went on
from day to day, and fought for what you know is right. Right?
No, things just weren't the same.
* * *
Tofuu Ono stood in front of the jewelry store window gazing at
the myriad of junk jewelry, and the few precious items locked into a
plexiglass box. When he dared to go so far as the entrance of the
store, he could see several more of the long, gilded display
cabinets.
He kept telling himself that his future lay in one of those
cabinets, but he just couldn't bring himself to open the door and
walk inside.
*I must look like a criminal,* he thought, *casing out the
target for a robbery.* He paced back and forth in front of the store,
avoiding making eye contact with its patrons and employees. Once, he
even went so far as to walk around the block. Telling himself that he
should just give up only made him frustrated. Within minutes, he was
back in front of the doorway. Cautiously, as if he were to be shot
for a wrong step, he opened the glass door and stepped inside.
* * *
Ranma was having a difficult time concentrating on his
psychology class. It wasn't that he had an easy time in *any* of his
classes, but he was having an exceptionally difficult time today.
It started with a bit of homesickness earlier that morning.
Ranma had never really had any home other than the Tendou house. He
could barely remember the place he lived in with his parents before
the training trip, and any place he stayed with his father since was
only temporary.
Ranma found that he missed the early morning bustle of the
Tendou home. Sparring with his father every morning, the loud,
sometimes violent conversation over breakfast, and running to school
or the train station with Akane every morning.
Since he had moved out a month ago, all that was a thing of the
past. True, he saw Akane every day, but he had actually managed to
avoid all his enemies for the entire month. Life was becoming...
peaceful.
Peace was nice but it was hell if you were trying to stay in
shape. Ranma felt like he was losing his tone. He still made every
step a balance excercise, just the way Oyaji had taught him when he
was six, he still did more calesthenics every morning than the most
rabid soldier, and he still participated in every contest he could
find. He rapidly found that without constant challenge from martial
artists of his own level or above, like Ryouga or Happosai, he was
losing his razor edge.
*Maybe I should hunt down Pig-boy and pick a fight,* He thought
as the professor drew a diagram on the blackboard. *Maybe make a
delivery order from the Nekohanten, and see what happens?* Ranma
smiled as he considered the chain reaction explosion of violence that
would happen if all his fiancees and enemies actually managed to
track him down.
He missed the end of class in his reverie. He noticed the other
students filing past him, and leapt up to join them.
Suddenly, he didn't have time to worry about his skill level
anymore. Today was the first day of his new job, and he had to be
there in an hour.
It wasn't martial arts, but it was something that he had
experience in, and considered himself skilled at.
* * *
Tofuu stared intensely at the selections of rings. He had to
select one, and he knew it. Every time he thought of the person he
wanted to give it to...
"Kasumi!"
The clerk looked at the odd man who was browsing her jewelry
display. He had been there for hours, ever since the beginning of her
shift. Every few minutes, his glasses would fog over and he would
shout that same name.
Finally, the man pointed at one, seemingly at random, and
gestured to the clerk. After taking it out of the case and handing to
him for closer inspection, she noticed that he held it like it was
about to explode. After a few seconds of careful examination, he
gingerly placed it backed on the counter in front of her.
"Is this the one you want?"
The man nodded maniacly. He looked like he was on drugs.
With some interest, she noted that it was one of the most
expensive rings in the display. The man had taste. He also was only
wearing a simple martial artist's gi. The kind of people who usually
bought that kind of ring came into her store wearing expensive suits,
and frequently had a limousine waiting just outside.
"With tax, this ring comes to 319,000 yen," she said, worrying
that the man might not be able to pay.
Still smiling that same insane grin, the man pulled several
items out of his pocket. His house keys, wallet, a plastic finger
bone, two buttons, a business card--
*Hmm... Tofuu Ono, Chiropractice and Shiatsu. Man's a doctor.
Looks like I make my commision today!*
-- a prescription tablet, a worn paperback novel, a
stethoscope, and thirty two 10,000 yen bills.
The clerk quickly rang up the sale in case the frazzled doctor
started wandering the shop again. "All set! Engraving is free with
purchase. Is there anything you want on the ring?"
The man's expression became terrified, but quickly manic again
as he pulled out a piece of paper.
The clerk read the paper, and almost started to cry. "To my
dearest Kasumi. I love you, and always have. Please be my wife."
"Ah, honey, this is just a little long to put inside one ring.
Can you shorten it?"
"Ah... Ah... I love you, Kasumi. Marry me?"
The girl smiled and went to work while the doctor sat down on
the floor and nervously began to pull up tile.
* * *
Megumi pondered her English homework over laundry. Laundry day
was the time she sat aside each week to do her non-engineering
homework, and she had plenty of it.
*ding*
The dryer politely informed her that her clothes were warm, and
hopefully dry. She piled the mass of clothes into a plastic basket,
and made for the elevator that would take her back to her floor.
*Another load, another lesson,* she thought sarcasticly.
When she reached the fifth floor, she spied a buxom redhead
coming in from the stairwell. The girl was wearing a waitress
uniform, a frilly white blouse, a short red skirt, and red pumps. She
seemed tired, as if she had just worked a full shift, which Megumi
reasoned was probably the case.
Megumi picked up a basket of laundry from just inside her door,
and started back for the laundry room. As Megumi turned to go back
down the elevator, the girl waved and smiled wanly at her and let
herself inside an apartment.
Megumi smiled back. It must have been a new tennant.
Then, as the door closed, Megumi realized what was wrong. That
was *Ranma's* room!
She scampered back for her own room and grabbed a new handlebar
she had bought for her brother's motorcycle.
Several possibilities ran through her mind. The way the girl
was dressed could mean any of a dozen things. The two that seemed the
most likely were that the woman was a thief masquerading as a
delivery girl or she was one of the *other* fiancees.
Her eyes narrowed at the thought of the martial aritist
cheating on Akane. More than likely, the girl had tracked Ranma down
and was laying in wait for him, but Megumi had become good friends
with the drama student, and would be most displeased with her suite-
mate if he were to toss her over.
She decided on a simple course of action. She would walk in
with the handlebar behind her back, kindly ask what the girl was
doing there, and chase her from the apartment with the steel bar.
Nervously, she made her move. She darted in through the shared
bathroom and stepped out into Ranma's room.
"Oh, hi, Megumi. 'Sup?" The girl was sprawled out on Ranma's
futon, reading a manga. She had kicked her shoes off, and was
absently rubbing her stocking feet together. "How'd you do on your
test today?"
"Huh?" How did the girl know that she had taken a test today?
For that matter, how did the girl know her name? "Who are you and
what are you doing in here?" Megumi considered bringing the handlebar
to bear, but decided to hold back in case the hussy was armed.
"I live h... Oh. Hell, this looks awful, don't it?" The girl
smiled up at Megumi in what she assumed was meant to be a reassuring
fashion. "I can explain, really!"
"You better explain, or I'm going to make you wish you had!"
"Megumi, now..."
"Don't you 'now' me, Miss. Start talking!
"Okay. First, bring me a glass of hot water. Then I'll explain
everything." The girl cautiously stood to her full height. Megumi got
her first real look at her. She was about a hundred and sixty
centimeters tall, with flaming red hair and a slightly pouty
expression. She stood casually, with her hands on her hips like a
boy. While the girl appeared to be rather soft skinned, Megumi noted
a certain tenseness at her joints. With a sinking feeling she
remembered that all of Ranma's fiancees were skilled martial artists.
Megumi began to feel her grip on the handlebar loosen.
"Hot water?" She asked nervously.
The red head nodded.
Carefully keeping the girl in front of her, Megumi filled a cup
with warm water from the sink. She looked away for a second to turn
the faucet off, and when she looked back the girl had stripped off
her blouse, and was preparing to drop her skirt as well.
"Pervert! What do you think you're doing?" Without thinking,
Megumi brought the handlebar to bear against the girl.
Without so much as a breath, the girl's hand whipped out and
snatched handlebar away from her. "C'mon, Megumi. I ain't gonna hurt
you or nuthin'. Okay?"
Megumi started to tremble as the girl pulled her skirt down.
Oddly enough, the girl was wearing boxer shorts and a man's
undershirt under her uniform.
"Here, lemme have that and..." The girl took the full cup from
her and upended it over her head.
"Viola!" said Ranma as he rose to his full height.
Megumi fainted.
* * *
Genma watched the Tendous prepare for an outing the next day.
The weather was starting to turn colder, so this would be the last
chance they would get to go to the beach this year.
They had asked him to come, but he really didn't feel much like
it. It was too hot, wet fur wasn't all that comfortable, and
sunscreen always turned his white fur to an odd shade of green.
Besides, Ranma wouldn't be there so there would be little opportunity
to train.
He sighed and went back to his gameshow.
Kasumi smiled as she polished the table and looked out the back
at the sky above. The moon and stars were just starting to come out.
They were so beautiful, just like glittering diamonds.
Nabiki and Akane both came down the stairs in bikinis. Nabiki's
was a bright red color, with lace trim. It looked a little much like
lingerie for Kasumi's taste, but she smiled her approval. Akane's was
of course, black. Kasumi worried a bit about her sister's sudden
change of wardrobe, but apparently Ranma, and more importantly Akane,
were happy with it. They were trying so hard to be nice to each
other. The dark swimsuit really did go well with her new hairstyle as
well. She wondered in the back of her mind if her sister had invited
Ranma. Dismissing the thought, she saw Akane glance at the clock
hanging behind her.
Akane's expression became a bit worried, and a little expectant
as she noted the time. Kasumi watched her little sister run up the
stairs. A few minutes later, she came down dressed in the leotard and
skirt she wore to school. Picking up her bookbag, she ran out the
door.
"Where is she going?" Nabiki wondered aloud.
"To study, of course," Kasumi answered cheerily. She grinned at
the petulant expresion on Nabiki's face.
"Please!"
Ranma's departure had deprived her sister of her favorite
source of spending money. On top of that insult, She hadn't been able
to locate the martial artist when he wasn't at school, and couldn't
find out who Akane's 'new boyfriend' was either. Nabiki had been left
out of the loop, and was not happy about the situation. Someone would
have to pay. If nothing else, her ongoing investigation was getting
expenseive.
"What Akane does is her own business, Nabiki. She's an adult
now, you know."
"I don't buy it, Sis. She's up to something and you know it!"
"Akane's just maturing. You should respect that, Nabiki."
In their discussion, neither girl heard the nervous doctor
pacing back and forth in front of the dojo walls.
* * *
"It has to be a trick! You're an escape artist, or you have a
sister who knows..."
Ranma dumped the cup of cool water over his head. Almost
instantaneously, his tall, masculine form was replaced by that of the
young, redheaded beauty. She was had on the same wet undershirt and
boxers Ranma was just wearing, and was adjusting the drawstring.
Megumi heard a low moan come out of her throat. "This is
impossible!"
"If only it were," the redhead answered sadly.
"What...?"
"I been stuck like this for almost four years. I've kinda had
to accept it."
"Who... are you?"
"Ranma. Who else. This is just my cursed form... you see--"
"CURSED FORM?!?!" Megumi shouted. "MAGIC?!?! IMPOSSIBLE!!!!"
"You all ready said that.
"THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING!!!"
Ranma shrugged in response. "Megumi--"
"I mean, it violates every physical law there is! You can't
just make thirty or forty kilograms dissapear that way!! What about
Conservation of Mass?! What about the first law of Thermodynamics?!"
"Megumi--"
"You can't expect me to just believe in 'magic' like some fairy
tale! It's insane!"
"Tell me about it. I don't know about all the physics or
chemistry or biology. I just know it happens. The only way I have to
explain it is 'magic'." She poured another cup of warm water over to
punctuate her statement.
Megumi was about to protest further, but the sad look on his
face halted her speech. "This is somehow your father's fault, isn't
it?"
Ranma smiled sardonically and nodded. "Bingo. It was about
three and a half years ago, at the tail end of my trainin' trip. Old
man had been looking for this mystic trainin' ground most of his
life, so when we found it, he didn't bother to read the signs, or
even listen to the guide. Just started fightin' over those damned
pools. He got Chaunmauniichaun, Spring of drowned panda. He gets
wet..."
"He turns into a panda bear. And you have...?"
"Nyaniichaun."
"Spring of drowned girl."
Ranma nodded. "Yup, so anytime I get wet, I change."
To demonstrate, Ranma poured a cup cold water over himself.
*Herself,* Megumi corrected. "I... don't--"
As if to cooberate his story, Akane let herself in and sat down
next to the red head as if nothing were out of the normal. She looked
as if she had been running.
"Hi, Ranma!"
"Yo, Akane. WOW! You get a haircut?!"
Akane's slim hand went to the short, delicate, sweeping lengths
of hair that now framed her face. "Do you like it? It's like that
hairstyle I showed you in the magazine last week."
Ranma nodded. "It looks great. What'd Kasumi say?"
"She was a little shocked but I think she likes it."
Ranma nodded. "Sounds about right. How was the train ride?"
Almost experimentally, Megumi poured some warm water over Ranma
to gauge Akane's reaction.
Akane puffed a little. "I ran into Mousse on the train. I led
him back over to the high school. So far as I can tell, none of them
have even looked at this place yet."
Akane didn't so much as blink as Ranma shifted size and shape.
"How was rehersal?" Ranma asked.
Feeling a little more relaxed, Akane ran her fingers through
her short hair, and stretched. "Same-old same-old. I think I'm going
to pound that sexist old creep, Miramora, if he doesn't quit treating
me like a moron. He directs like he's doing a first grade play."
Megumi's jaw dropped open in shock. "This is absolutely normal
for you people, isn't it?"
"What?" Akane looked at her in baffelment.
Megumi poured another cup of cool water over the martial
artist. Akane shook her head but finally she got it. "Oh. She just
found out about the curse, didn't she?"
Ranma nodded, and returned to her manga.
In bemusement, Megumi entertained herself with a bucket of cold
water and a warm kettle. Ranma was obviously a little irratated, but
he bore the brunt of her bemused inspection with grace.
What really fascinated her was Akane's reaction to her
suitemate. She was able to treat the male Ranma completely the same
as the female. In fact, when she doused Ranma in the middle of a
sentance, Akane didn't bat so much as an eyelash as Ranma's voice
shifted octaves.
*What could be weirder?* she thought.
Ranma and Akane spent about an hour discussing what had
happened during the day at school. It was somthing that they did by
unspoken agreement to try and relieve their respective short tempers.
By venting about classmates and teachers, they managed to avoid
venting on each other.
Another facet of their conversation was that they did not
mention any of their rivals. Ranma's fiancees and Akane's suitors
were not discussed. Akane found that it was much easier to keep her
temper this way, and Ranma found that he had time to think about what
he wanted to say because he was much less defensive.
"So why's Yuki got the role if she can't do it right?" Ranma
asked.
*splash* Megumi poured cold water over her suitemate, trying to
examine exactly what was happening in a sickened manner. Ranma's body
merely flinched away from her. During the 'flinch' Ranma's skin grew
slightly paler, and the golden-copper highlights in his black hair
spread and shifted so that the entire mop was a bright scarlet.
"The director has the hots for her, that's why!" Akane drew a
doodle of a man being impaled with a megaphone in her notebook.
"Seriously, Ranma. If you heard *half* the rumours about this guy..."
"Hmmm... I have a pretty bad time with rumours myself, Akane.
You never know, the guy might just have a bad rep."
"I would be willing to beleive that if he wasn't such an ass. I
swear, he's even made a pass at me a few times!"
Megumi was fairly amused by the fact that Ranma, as a girl,
became quite defensive about Akane's statement. The redhead sat up
from her sprawl and loomed over Akane.
"Maybe I should go have a talk with this guy..."
Akane's eyes flashed, as did Ranma's. Something unsaid passed
between them, and Akane changed the subject. It was just too close to
their sore points.
"So, Ranma, are you having any trouble with the workout
facilites?"
*splash* The warm kettle did exactly the opposite of the
bucket. Ranma's body seemed to relax into its larger, more defined
state. His hair darkened as if the light were simply falling into it.
Megumi considered borrowing the kinetics department's high
speed camera to capture the transformation.
Ranma shook his head and settled back onto the futon. "Nah. I
was worried the managers would think I was being too rough on the
martial arts equipment, but nobody's complained. I think I'm startin'
to get some of the other tennants interested in martial arts."
Megumi did her best to sifle a giggle. The other tennants were
'interested', all right. Ranma didn't really understand, but the
audience to his morning workout was composed mostly of girls who got
an illicit thrill out of watching the well-built martial artist
excercise. She had even been invited once to the early morning
'Beefcake Revue' by one of her friends in the building. If only they
knew!
"You know your father complains every morning that you're not
getting a proper workout becuase you're not there to spar with him,"
Akane said.
*splash* Yes! Megumi would classify the transformation. She
would work the equations and clarify the situation until the 'curse'
was no longer a work of magic, but a scientific phenomenon.
Ranma nodded, "Thought so. Old man's just lonely for a fight.
That's all."
"What about you, Ranma? Don't you miss it, too?"
Ranma grimaced. "Not for a second."
Akane knew better. Ranma jumped if someone in the next room
said 'fight'. He was bored and lonely and she knew it.
"Come on, Ranma. Who have you been sparring with every morning,
if not your father? When was the last time you practiced the 'Moukou
Takabisha'?"
Ranma's scowl intensified. "Can we talk about something else?"
Akane quickly tried to find something else to talk about. This
kind of conversation quickly led to an insult or a malleting. She
nodded in agreement. This was another one of their unspoken rules. An
uncomfortable silence fell across the room.
"Umm," Megumi interupted. "What's that?"
"What?" Ranma and Akane answered simulataneously.
"The... Moukyo Taka-thingy."
"Oh," Ranma grinned evilly at Akane. "That. It's a ki attack. I
focus my strength and confidence--"
"You mean 'ego'," Akane corrected. Ranma scowled, but held his
hands together in demonstration. He concentrated for a second and a
small, reddish-gold ball of fire sprang to life between his palms.
More magic. Megumi 'eeped' and did her best to keep the room
from spinning around her.
"So, how's waitressing?" Akane asked.
* * *
It was rapidly approaching nine when Tofuu summoned up the
courage to walk up to the door. Confidently, he thought, he danced up
the doorway. These things were always so much easier when Betty was
there to help him along, but unfortunately, she was back at the
clinic on her hook.
Tofuu threw his head back, and pulled out the small black ring
box in preparation. He raised his hand to knock...
A sparrow darted across the walk to the house. Tofuu bolted in
terror.
* * *
With her knees pulled up to her chest on the seat, Akane
thought wistfully back to Ranma's room. After several minutes of
playing with Ranma's curse and muttering to herself about 'scientific
explanations', Megumi stumbled back into her own room as if she were
in a drug induced trance. Akane felt rather sorry for the girl to
have her sensible foundations so horribly rocked. All they could
really do was try to lessen the shock for her.
Ranma went into the girl's room and asked her if she would like
to call him 'Ranko' when he was in his cursed form. Megumi accepted
almost a little too quickly.
Akane had to admit that she was still a little jealous of
Megumi being so close to Ranma all the time. Still, Akane worried
about the girl.
Once Megumi left, however, she and Ranma...
It was their third serious kiss. Like the two previous
encounters, it was a good night kiss.
The first had been quick and nervous, at the train station on
her way home. The second was a little more lingering, but still
fairly shy on all accounts. The third...
The lights were low in the apartment. Ranma only ever had a few
lamps on at night to save on electricity. They sat together and
watched television for several minutes. After a while, Akane stood up
and began to gather her books. Ranma watched her from his postition
on the floor. Selfconciously, Akane turned so that she presented her
profile to him. Torn between feelings of embarassment and excitement,
Akane arched her back slightly.
She heard a sharp intake of breath as she stretched out. Out of
the corner of her eye, she could see Ranma's eyes following the curve
of her leg and buttocks. They rested for an interminable time on her
breasts, which were small in her opinion, but barely concealed
beneath the trim leotard. Finally, Ranma stared at her face. Akane
turned her neck slightly, trying to present a longer, more attractive
figure.
Only a few months ago, she would have pounded him for such a
perverted act, but now it was... important to her that he want look
at her body.
"I really like your hair, Akane." He stood, his torso turned so
that he could open the door for her.
Akane smiled, faintly, but warmly, and leaned in close to the
martial artist. "Thanks, Ranma. I'm glad you like it. I was so afraid
that it would turn out badly."
Ranma shook his head forcefully.
They stepped over to the door. Ranma looked expectantly into
her eyes as his trembling hand went for the knob.
Akane's hand covered his, almost of its own volition. She
leaned in even closer. Ranma's other hand went to her shoulder.
Akane almost moaned in expectation.
Ranma wrapped his impossibly strong arms around her, a little
more confidently this time, and their lips met. Akane pulled her
hands up to rest against his broad, muscular chest and returned the
slight pressure she felt. She could feel him pulling her ever tighter
to his chest, feeling the countours of her body embedded in his own.
His hands began to roam down her back, darting as low as, but never
quite touching her firm derrier.
They were both so terrified of the new, urgent sensations, but
both needed them so badly. It was so hard to tell when to stop, or
how far to let it go.
Akane sighed and melted inside all over again as she thought
back on the brief interlude.
Not wanting to miss her stop for her reverie, Akane pulled out
a textbook, and tried to study. After several minutes, she gave up
and began to secretly study the other passengers on the train.
Several of them were 'regulars'. She always seemed to get on at
the same time with them. There was the red haired cocktail waitress
who was always just a bit tipsy coming home from work, and the single
mother who always did her shopping late. Two business men were always
disscussing the evening paper together, and there was the tired old
man, who always spent every day at the park.
Oddly, there was a man in a trenchcoat who always sat at the
back of the train. He never exchanged the cursory greetings the other
passengers did. At first, she suspected one of Ranma's suitors. He
never moved very much, so Akane had a difficult time reading him, but
after careful observation, Akane suspected that he lived with the
cocktail waitress, or was infatuated with her, because he always sat
directly behind her if he could.
Besides, if one of *those* people actually managed to track her
as far as the train, she'd pick a stop at random and just start
walking.
Her real stop came around. Sighing her longing, she gathered
her books and made her way for the door.
* * *
Nine-thirty. Tofuu skulked around the bushes in front of the
Tendou house.
*Maybe it would just be better if I waited until she came to
the office,* he thought. Resolutely, he shook his head. It had to
happen to night, or he feared that it never would.
* * *
She was about halfway home from the train station when Akane
realized that she was being followed. It didn't take much since she
suspected her pursuers were quite intoxicated. They were making too
much noise and were bouncing off each other quite rowdily. She turned
several corners, but they kept trailing after her.
She walked on for about a block, hoping that she could get
close enough to home that a good sprint would carry her to safety.
Her pursuers, six of them, started walking double time, doing
their drunken best to act inconspicuous.
Running was not going to be an option, she thought. Akane
turned and stood her ground. The six men strode up to her and stared
at her with evil leers.
"Can I help you gentlemen?" She asked indignantly.
The leader, a tall young man with a tatoo on his neck and a lit
cigarette in his hand, flicked ash on the ground and took a long
drag. As he exhaled, Akane could smell the sharp reek of alchohol
combined with tobacco.
"Yeah, you can help us, sweetie. Right guys?"
The assembled ruffians nodded and made low, guttaral
affirmative noises.
"What do you want?" Akane assessed the men for weapons. The
leader appeared to be unarmed, but the guy next to him was toying
with a switchblade knife hanging halfway out of his hip pocket. Aside
from one other, who was hiding a butterfly knife behind his leg, they
appeared to be unarmed.
The leader sneered at her. "Why don't we go over in that alley
and I'll show ya!"
Akane raised her eyebrows. "You've got to be kidding."
The man with the butterfly knife flipped it open and pointed it
at her stomach. "Just shut up and go in the alley and we won't hurt
you."
*I'll take that one down first,* she thought, *and then use the
man in charge as a human sheild. Shouldn't take more than a minute.*
Akane smiled evilly. "Why don't you make me?"
The man rushed her. Akane tossed her bookbag aside and prepared
to disarm the attacker.
There was a flash from above, and the six men fell in half as
many seconds. The man in the trenchcoat stood behind them in a
fighting stance.
Akane's eyebrows slanted even further. She suddenly knew
*exactly* who the man was.
"What's the big deal, Ranma? I could have taken them easily.
Why did you have to stick your nose in my fight?"
"Hey! They had knives! And I'm not Ranma."
Akane pulled the trencoat away from the martial artist. "So
you've been following me home. Jeez, Ranma I can't beleive this!"
"Hey, I was only trying to look out for you!"
"I don't need any looking out for, Ranma. I've gotten home just
fine by myself every night for a solid month!"
One of the attackers groaned. Akane kicked his head. "Stay
down, moron. Just wait for the police and I won't hurt you."
Ranma 'hmphed' and scowled at the girl.
Glaring at him, Akane ran to a nearby pay phone and dialed the
emergency number. As they sat waiting for the police, no words passed
between them. Akane just sat and simmered. She had trusted him with
so much, and now this was the way he repayed her?
When they arrived the police were very thankful to have the six
thugs so neatly delivered, if a little shamefaced that they had no
involvement in their capture. After answering a few questions, Akane
and Ranma were sent on their way. They walked together for quite some
time.
Unfortuneatly, 'together' had two different connotations for
Ranma and Akane.
"I can't beleive you, Ranma! Following me like some sort of
stalker. You're no better than those men back there."
"I *ain't* stalking you, Akane."
"Fine, then what were you doing? Hmmm?"
"Err..."
Akane wrung her hands behind her back. "Don't you think I can
take care of myself? Is that it?"
"Akane I..."
"You think I'm going to get hurt walking home."
Ranma shrugged. "So, what if I do?"
"Do you have any idea how INSULTING that is?!"
"Hell, Akane! Everyone knows what... No. I ain't gonna say it."
They walked on for a few minutes, turning a corner onto a
better lit street. There were more people here, going in and out of
shops and restaurants that were still open. Ranma looked around in a
kind of sad amusement. So many happy people completely unaware of
what had just happened.
Akane slowed and looked into a dress shop window. She glanced
at Ranma's reflection in the glass. "You might as well, if you still
think so. I'm a slow, weak girl, right?"
Ranma refused to answer. His surly expression betrayed his
feelings, however.
"You know, if we don't say anything," Akane suggested, "It's
not going to get any better. We haven't said *anything* for a solid
month."
"If I say anything, I'm gonna get malleted. Hell, I'll probably
gonna get malleted for *that*." He stared at her accusingly.
Akane turned away from the window and glared back, the rage
building behind her eyes. "I promised that I wouldn't hit you
anymore," she hissed. "Isn't that good enough?"
"Yeah... you promised." Ranma's eyes narrowed to slits. "Just
like you promised Kasumi that you wouldn't ever hit anybody in
anger."
The rage and anger left Akane's face, and was replaced by shock
and shame at the promise she had so casually broken so long ago. She
tried to tell her self it was meaningless, but a terrified doubt
began to gnaw at her.
"Didn't think I knew about that one, did ya?" Ranma pushed his
hands down in his pockets, and resumed walking along the sidewalk.
Akane strode next to him, her fists clenching in shock and a little
bit of anger. In truth, she didn't realized Ranma knew about the
promise she had broken so long ago.
The street was growing much more crowded as they approached a
large night club.
After a few seconds, Ranma turned back to her, guilt and self
loathing evident in his expression. "I shouldn't 'a said that,
Akane."
Akane answered quietly. "But you don't trust me?"
As Ranma shook his head, Akane's heart broke. She continued to
walk along behind him, but the world seemed to blur around her.
Ranma shrugged, but closed his steps so that he was a little
closer to her.
They passed the entrance to the club. It was approaching ten
and getting rather misty, but there was still a long line of
impatient people awaiting entrance to the club. They were all
anxious, guarding their places in line, but the majority of them were
speaking animatedly. The people were all dressed in an attractive
manner. Most were dressed in their finest party clothes. They seemed
to be having fun, even waiting in line.
As they passed the end of the line, Ranma glanced briefly at
the waiting length. He kept walking in disgust.
Akane began to feel a familiar fear rise in her heart. It was
familiar as the same sensation she felt whenever Ranma acted like he
was happy with one of the other girls, and when Ranma moved out of
the Tendou home a month earlier. She was going to lose him...
"Ranma!" She shouted. He was a little shocked to hear her speak
so passionately. "I've trusted *you* with so much. Why can't you do
the same? Please, tell me what I have to do to make you trust me!"
Ranma was shocked at the words, and Akane's expression. A
wealth of tears stood unshead in her eyes.
"You... trust *me*?!?!"
"How can I not, Ranma?" A tear rolled down her face, and her
tone became pleading, almost desperate. "You've saved my life dozens
of times. You always come when I'm in trouble. If anybody tries to
hurt me, you stand up for me. When you moved out, I had to trust you
to stay away from the other girls. I even had to learn to trust you
around Megumi! If you weren't there for me..." Her voice dropped to a
whisper. "I don't know how I could go on."
Ranma was stopped in his tracks. "Akane?" His expression had
changed to mirror Akane's earlier shock. "I..." He stood resolutely
and put his fist to his chest. "I barely trust *myself* to take care
of you, Akane? How can I trust anyone else, even you?"
Akane nodded sadly. She had done so little besides berate her
fiancee. But... he *wanted* to take care of her. Her heart began to
ache, and her throat tightened with the thought.
"Sides', I don't think 'trust' is just somethin' you can turn
on and off like a light. You gotta earn it."
Akane nodded anxiously. "How? Please, what do I have to do?"
Ranma's eyes widened. "Urr..."
"Please, Ranma. I..."
He held up his hand. "It's been a month since you hit me.
That's a good *start*. I'm still duckin' and coverin' everytime I
hear myself say somethin' stupid."
Akane's breath caught in her throat. "I... I'm sorry, Ranma."
"I'm sorry too, Akane. I ain't been the most sensitive guy,
ever, either. I usually call 'em like I see 'em, and sometimes that
isn't the right thing, or even the true thing to say. I've been
trying to stop, but sometimes..."
As long as she had known him, Ranma had rarely apologized to
her. Her eyes misted over, and tears began to run freely down her
face.
Her heart burst with the words. 'I'm sorry too, Akane.' She
burned up and froze at the same time. The warm flow of tears started
to run down into her leotard, as the world ground to a complete stop.
Ranma stepped in a little closer and tried to look into her
face. Cautiously, he put a hand to her cheek. "Akane? You okay?"
He was so close to her. It was all she needed to hear.
Regardless of anything else, Ranma still cared about her. The words
came to her mouth, unbidden.
"I love you, Ranma."
He froze as if she had just uttered some incredible attack
phrase.
Her arms reached out of their own volition and wrapped around
his shoulders and head. Feircley, as if she had to trap him to the
earth, Akane pressed her lips to his.
She covered his face in kisses and buried her wet face in his
shoulder. Muffled by the coarse fabric, she cried out loud.
"I love you, you mean, insensitive, sex-changing jerk, and I'll
never give you up. Not to Shampoo, not to Ukyou, not to Kodachi, or
anyone else!"
"Akane....." Hesitantly, Ranma's arms closed around her back.
"I... I... don't know.... I loo..."
She looked up into his face, which was twisted into at once an
expression of the purest excstasy, and the sheerest terror. It looked
as if he were fighting with himself on some existential plane.
"I... loooooo...."
With the tears still rolling freely down her face, Akane put a
finger to his lips. "You don't have to say it if you don't want to.
Don't say it if you don't feel it, either."
His expression was stricken, but resolute. "Of course I mean
it! I've meant it since... Hell, I don't know! It seems as long as
I've known you!"
"Ranma..." Akane rested her head on his shoulder. She could
hear his heart racing. She realized that at some point that they had
collapsed to their knees on the sidewalk.
"I *love* you, Akane! You're the only thing that's kept me
goin' for the last three years. With the curse, and the fiancees, and
the old ghoul, and all the challenges, and the letch..."
She silenced him with another kiss. A long, wet, pasionate kiss
that messed up his hair as much as his face.
"What're we gonna do, Akane?" he asked. "We still hurt each
other so much. When we talk we get angry and when we don't nothin'
happens."
She shook her head against his shoulder. "I don't know, Ranma.
Whatever... we have to learn to... trust, and we have to do it
together."
Weeping into each other's arms, neither Ranma nor Akane noticed
the crowd of party goers and club employees they had drawn applauding
all around them.
* * *
It was late, *too* late, Megumi thought. The world, which had
previously been defined in terms of formulae, equations, statistical
analisys, had just given way to fairy tale.
She lay in her bed, looking up at the flourescent fixture in
the middle of the ceiling. Her eyes absently traced the end of the
cord that hung from the light as it danced in the breeze from her
airconditioner. In the speckles she got from staring at the too-
bright bulb, Megumi could still see the ball of what could only be
described as Ranma's life force floating in front of her face.
*Ranma... Ranko... How can s-he live like that?*
She flipped over and buried her face in her pillow. She stayed
like that for some time, images of Ranma changing back and forth
assailing her inner vision.
There were so many things to think about. How much of what she
knew was void now? Curses implied a spellcaster of some sort... or
worse, a supernatural entity. Demons?
The existence of which would imply Gods and Goddesses. No, that
was impossible. Everyone knew goddesses didn't exist.
She really didn't realize when she started to shiver. Rain
began to tap against her window as a cold front blew through, and the
air conditioner was suddenly too cold..
Megumi sighed and grabbed a vinyl raincoat from her closet. It
would do her little good to sit in her room slowly going crazy. She
had to get out and think things through.
*Then* she could go crazy if she wanted.
She hurried out of the building and out into the night. She
really didn't mind the rain, but Megumi looked for a coffe shop to
get into anyway.
As she walked, she couldn't help but stare at the people around
her, wondering. Supposedly at least one of the fiancees and several
of Ranma's enemies were cursed as well. Megumi couldn't help but
wonder who else's life had been touched by magic.
After a few minutes, she located the 'Unforgettable Medlies'
cafe. She went in and took a seat at the bar, and ordered a coffee.
Megumi found that it was all she could do to keep from
nervously fidgeting all over the counter.
Suddenly, a petite figure flopped down next to her. She jumped
as she realized who it was.
"Ya learn to hate the rain. Of course, I have it better than
some of the others."
"T-t-the girl who turns into a cat..." Megumi suggested. She
couldn't beleive the words coming out of her own mouth.
The redhead plopped her head down on her hands. "Yeah, and then
there's my *other* problem with... c-cats." She shook nervously a
bit, and then stretched to try and warm her cold muscles.
"You went home with Akane, ...Ranko?" Megumi asked. She still
felt fairly nervous speaking to the girl as if she really was her
suitemate. It rankled a little inside her somewhere though. She tried
to decide if she wanted to discard 'Ranko' and just stick to 'Ranma'.
"Did she get home okay?"
Ranma smiled meanly and motioned to the waiter. "We had a
fight."
Of course Megumi had never seen the pair fight, but both had
spoken to her privately about their differences. The look of shock on
her face must have been amusing, she thought.
"Actually, I think I kinda missed it," Ranma continued,
wistfully. "I don't miss the mallet though. I can't beleive we
actually had a fight that *went* somewhere."
Suddenly, Megumi felt her curiosity for gossip beat down her
nervousness, and she leaned in close to the redhead. "Ooh! What
happened?"
Ranma told her the details of the fight. Megumi seemed a little
shocked about Akane being attacked, but Ranma waved her off.
"It happens all the time anyway. I just can't let her risk
herself on somthing like that. I... I care too much about her."
Megumi nodded, "Go on..."
"Well anyway, after we made up, we tried to think of things to
do that would make us trust eachother more. Akane agreed to let me
defend her when I wanted, and I agreed not to try and act like I
wasn't doing it. Then came the good part!"
"Before or after it started raining?"
"After."
Megumi had to stifle a giggle. Kisses in the rain were so
romant... Uh-oh. *She* didn't! She couldn't have! As a girl? With
horror, Megumi watched Ranma's face crack into a gleeful grin that
could only be the result of something so private being shared.
"You didn't!" She hissed.
Ranma nodded gleefully. "Yeah, I did. And were going to start
tomorrow!"
Megumi gasped in shock. "You're can't be serious!"
"Yeah! We start sparring tomorrow morning when I usually work
out."
Megumi blushed. Of course, fighting would be just as important
and personal to a life long martial artist as any kind of romance.
"It makes sense, doesn't it?" Ranma continued. "I mean, here I
am with nobody to fight with, constantly having to watch out for
Akane. If I can train her up to my level, I'll be able to trust her
that much more to take care of herself. She'll be more ready to take
on one of the other girls too, if they find out where she's going
every day."
Megumi could only nod, not trusting her self to speak. It was
Ranma, alright. Girl or boy, no one else could be so focused. As she
and Ranma sat and talked away the night, Megumi found herself
wondering how much to embrace the magic that suddenly surrounded her.
For the first time since she was a very young girl, the evening
seemed somehow... *magical*.
* * *
Akane strode up to the house. While she was grinning madly,
almost skipping down the walk, she could still feel the redness in
her eyes from the crying earlier. She hoped that the rain would hide
it.
As she came up to the door, she noticed a dark figure in the
bushes. She jumped back and crouched in a defensive stance.
"All right, come out of there before I call the police."
"A-Akane-chan! How surprising to see you here of... all..
places..."
"Tofuu-sensei? What are you doing back there?"
Nervously, the doctor stepped out onto the walk. In the dim
light cast by the door lamp, Akane could see that the doctor was
soaked to the bone and had twigs and worse all through his hair. His
glasses were horribly fogged, even as wet as it was. "Ummmmm....
Well, I was coming to see your sister of course, Akane. Isn't it a
wonderful night for a visit?"
Akane knew it was useless to disagree with him when he was like
this, and besides, she had had a fairly spectacular visit of her own.
Subconciously, her hand went to her lips.
"Of course, Betty-chan isn't here, and what's an evening
without Betty. She said it was the rain. You know how old bones ache
in wet weather." The doctor began nervously scraping his fist against
the wall, chipping off a little paint in the process.
"Why don't you come in before you freeze, Doctor?"
Tofuu gulped as Akane opened the door. It was still too early
for him! He wasn't ready! This was all happening too soon, but Akane
took his hand and led him in the door."
"Tadaima!" She called out as she closed the door behind them.
Tofuu began to shake in apprehension.
"Poor thing, you must be frozen solid!" Akane led him into the
main room, where her father and Genma were watching an old samurai
movie. "We'll just have Kasumi make you up some warm tea. Won't that
be good?"
Nabiki looked up at her sister with a little bit of
exaspersation. Trust Akane to pick a night like this to go out on.
"K-k-k-k-kasumi?!" Tofu chattered. He held up his fist,
clenching the small black box and crumpled note.
"Yes, is somebody here?" The older girl called out from up the
stairs. I'll be down in just a minute!"
Akane turned to the doctor, and noticed the box. "Tofuu-sensei!
You brought a present for Kasumi. How nice!"
*Present... yes...* thought Tofuu. The world seemed to be
slowing down around him.
"Who's here, Akane?" Kasumi turned the corner from the
stairwell and stepped into the main room.
Time stopped for Tofuu.
Never before had he seen such a sight. Kasumi... in a bikini.
The world went dark. Tofuu could die happy, now.
"What a lovely swimsuit, Oneechan!" Akane commented. "Is that
the one-- Doctor Tofuu?"
The doctor fell to the ground without bending his knees. Only
his fist betrayed any life, still clutching at the velvet box and
note.
"Oh, Tofuu, you silly dear," Kasumi pried the note and started
to read.
"To my dearest Kasumi, I..." Her eyes went wide and a tear
rolled down her cheek. "L-love you..." She whispered.
Akane suddenly realized what the little black box was. In
shock, she took it from the doctor's rigid fingers and handed it to
her sister.
Trembling, Kasumi continued to read the note. Nabiki ran over
and looked over her shoulder.
Soun walked over to the young doctor. "Tofuu, what brings you
over at this time of night?"
"Shh, Daddy!" Nabiki cautioned. "Tofuu just proposed to
Kasumi!!!"
"Growf???" The giant panda shuffled over to the small,
incredulous group and snuffled at the unconcious doctor.
"Well, I'll be..." Soun knelt and patted Tofuu on his limp
shoulder. "That's the way to go, Son. Show some initiative. If
only... Ah, well. The past is the past. Your mother would be proud,
Kasumi."
The girl didn't answer as she started to cry. She clutched the
note to her breast and buried her face in Tofuu's soaked gi.
Trembling, she turned her face slightly and pulled the box open.
Nabiki was the first to gasp. In her case it was the opulence
of the ring. Such a treasure should be on *her* finger! Akane, primed
from her fight and reconciliation with Ranma, knelt and cried along
with her sister. Heartened as Kasumi shakily slid the ring over the
tip of her finger, Soun patted his furry friend on the back.
"Growf!"
"You said it, Saotome-kun." He patted the unconcious doctor
again. "Good job, Son. Welcome to the family."
* * *
After she managed to cry herself out and Tofuu regained a
jittering conciousness, Akane ran for her room. She simply *had* to
phone Ranma and tell him what happened. Even when she received no
answer at his phone number, she didn't become upset.
She *trusted* him. It felt good to say. He was probably with
Megumi, trying to help her with her upset. More importantly, she
knew, She and Ranma had taken a big step towards building something
*more* than trust.
She thought about her sister and Tofuu, and how much the two of
them would have to learn to live together.
Right then, she vowed, *If Kasumi can do it, then so can I.
I'll make Ranma mine!*
----------------------------------------
Author's Notes: 10-09-2000
Carrot Ironfoundersson in Pratchet's 'Discworld' books abuses
the common colon in a totally unforgivable manner. Apparently, so do
I. The most major revisions that I made to this chapter were mostly
in the way of cleaning up punctuation and grammar.
* * *
C. Jones
http://www.furinkan.net
Watashi ha ultra-relakusu!
--
.---Anime/Manga Fanfiction Mailing List---.
| Administrators - ffml-admins@fanfic.com |
| Unsubscribing - ffml-request@fanfic.com |
| Put 'unsubscribe' in the subject |
`---http://www.fanfic.com/FFML-FAQ.txt ---'
http://www.furinkan.net
From ffml-bounce@fanfic.com Mon Oct 9 12:43:14 2000
Ohayo, minna!
Here's the second part of 'Ranma's Apartment'. It looks like
everything's on track for a Friday release of RA4. (Thanks for all
the corrections, Vincent!) Along with Vincent, I'd like to thank
everyone else who wrote about Ranma's Apartment, too.
Now for the good part:
----------------------------------------
Ranma's Apartment: 2 - Curses
a Ranma 1/2 - Aa! Megami-sama Fanstory
by Chris Jones
revised 10-09-2000
----------------------------------------
Genma Saotome woke with the sun as he always had for as long as
he could remember. He stood, letting the blankets slide off of his
immense furred belly and stretched several times to work the kinks
out of his muscles.
He pulled his gi out, and laid it on the dresser beaureu along
with a light colored bandanna. Gathering those, and his bath things
together, he made his way through the narrow hall and down the
stairway to the bathroom. Several minutes later, he emerged clean and
human, and ready for his morning sparring session for his son, just
like he always had for as long as he had had Ranma.
But Ranma wasn't in the guest room, and hadn't been for over a
month.
It just wasn't the same. Genma sighed and went down to
breakfast.
Kasumi had made a lovely combination of rice, misu, and baked
fish. He ate with relish, but wasn't able to finish what was on his
plate. He hadn't for several days now. It just wasn't the same
without Ranma. He breifly considered snagging a slice of pickled
daikon from Tendou-kun's plate, just for fun. The fatherly martial
artist was buried deep in his paper, however, and wouldn't even
notice the theft.
Genma sighed and ate one last slice of his own pickle. "Say,
Tendou-kun, how do you feel about going to the park to play shogi
today?"
"Mmm..." Soun nodded and turned a page in the paper. "Rice is
up again. Amazing how well the economy is doing after such
depression."
"Father, Uncle Saotome, are you done?"
Genma sighed and nodded as Kasumi took his plate.
"Hey, everybody, how do I look?"
It was Akane. Genma sighed as he took in her outfit. As she had
most days since Ranma left, she wore black. Today it was a black
leotard and tights with a short black skirt. She said she was
'mourning her engagement'. It was obvious however, that she had
already given up on his son and moved on to greener pastures. She was
gone until nine or later every night, "Studying," she always said.
He had also accidentally overheard once how her new boyfriend
liked her in black.
"Akane!" Kasumi exclaimed, "Your hair!" Apparently, the young
man also liked very short hair, because now, Akane's hair was only
about five or six inches long, carefully arranged in a very
fashionable page boy style. What kind of boy liked short hair on a
girl?
"I got up early and went to the stylist. How does it look?"
Nabiki sleepily gave her sister a 'thumbs up' and went back to
her homework. Kasumi set Genma's dirty plate back down and fussed
over Akane's hair for several minutes. It was a very attractive
style, but far too daring for the eldest girl's taste.
Within an hour, all three girls had left. Kasumi went to the
market and both her sisters boarded a train for their school.
Soun continued to read the paper. Genma walked into the kitchen
and poured a cup of cold water over his head.
Shambling out into the living room, he turned on the small
television and stared at a gameshow.
*There's no dwelling on the past,* he told himself. You went on
from day to day, and fought for what you know is right. Right?
No, things just weren't the same.
* * *
Tofuu Ono stood in front of the jewelry store window gazing at
the myriad of junk jewelry, and the few precious items locked into a
plexiglass box. When he dared to go so far as the entrance of the
store, he could see several more of the long, gilded display
cabinets.
He kept telling himself that his future lay in one of those
cabinets, but he just couldn't bring himself to open the door and
walk inside.
*I must look like a criminal,* he thought, *casing out the
target for a robbery.* He paced back and forth in front of the store,
avoiding making eye contact with its patrons and employees. Once, he
even went so far as to walk around the block. Telling himself that he
should just give up only made him frustrated. Within minutes, he was
back in front of the doorway. Cautiously, as if he were to be shot
for a wrong step, he opened the glass door and stepped inside.
* * *
Ranma was having a difficult time concentrating on his
psychology class. It wasn't that he had an easy time in *any* of his
classes, but he was having an exceptionally difficult time today.
It started with a bit of homesickness earlier that morning.
Ranma had never really had any home other than the Tendou house. He
could barely remember the place he lived in with his parents before
the training trip, and any place he stayed with his father since was
only temporary.
Ranma found that he missed the early morning bustle of the
Tendou home. Sparring with his father every morning, the loud,
sometimes violent conversation over breakfast, and running to school
or the train station with Akane every morning.
Since he had moved out a month ago, all that was a thing of the
past. True, he saw Akane every day, but he had actually managed to
avoid all his enemies for the entire month. Life was becoming...
peaceful.
Peace was nice but it was hell if you were trying to stay in
shape. Ranma felt like he was losing his tone. He still made every
step a balance excercise, just the way Oyaji had taught him when he
was six, he still did more calesthenics every morning than the most
rabid soldier, and he still participated in every contest he could
find. He rapidly found that without constant challenge from martial
artists of his own level or above, like Ryouga or Happosai, he was
losing his razor edge.
*Maybe I should hunt down Pig-boy and pick a fight,* He thought
as the professor drew a diagram on the blackboard. *Maybe make a
delivery order from the Nekohanten, and see what happens?* Ranma
smiled as he considered the chain reaction explosion of violence that
would happen if all his fiancees and enemies actually managed to
track him down.
He missed the end of class in his reverie. He noticed the other
students filing past him, and leapt up to join them.
Suddenly, he didn't have time to worry about his skill level
anymore. Today was the first day of his new job, and he had to be
there in an hour.
It wasn't martial arts, but it was something that he had
experience in, and considered himself skilled at.
* * *
Tofuu stared intensely at the selections of rings. He had to
select one, and he knew it. Every time he thought of the person he
wanted to give it to...
"Kasumi!"
The clerk looked at the odd man who was browsing her jewelry
display. He had been there for hours, ever since the beginning of her
shift. Every few minutes, his glasses would fog over and he would
shout that same name.
Finally, the man pointed at one, seemingly at random, and
gestured to the clerk. After taking it out of the case and handing to
him for closer inspection, she noticed that he held it like it was
about to explode. After a few seconds of careful examination, he
gingerly placed it backed on the counter in front of her.
"Is this the one you want?"
The man nodded maniacly. He looked like he was on drugs.
With some interest, she noted that it was one of the most
expensive rings in the display. The man had taste. He also was only
wearing a simple martial artist's gi. The kind of people who usually
bought that kind of ring came into her store wearing expensive suits,
and frequently had a limousine waiting just outside.
"With tax, this ring comes to 319,000 yen," she said, worrying
that the man might not be able to pay.
Still smiling that same insane grin, the man pulled several
items out of his pocket. His house keys, wallet, a plastic finger
bone, two buttons, a business card--
*Hmm... Tofuu Ono, Chiropractice and Shiatsu. Man's a doctor.
Looks like I make my commision today!*
-- a prescription tablet, a worn paperback novel, a
stethoscope, and thirty two 10,000 yen bills.
The clerk quickly rang up the sale in case the frazzled doctor
started wandering the shop again. "All set! Engraving is free with
purchase. Is there anything you want on the ring?"
The man's expression became terrified, but quickly manic again
as he pulled out a piece of paper.
The clerk read the paper, and almost started to cry. "To my
dearest Kasumi. I love you, and always have. Please be my wife."
"Ah, honey, this is just a little long to put inside one ring.
Can you shorten it?"
"Ah... Ah... I love you, Kasumi. Marry me?"
The girl smiled and went to work while the doctor sat down on
the floor and nervously began to pull up tile.
* * *
Megumi pondered her English homework over laundry. Laundry day
was the time she sat aside each week to do her non-engineering
homework, and she had plenty of it.
*ding*
The dryer politely informed her that her clothes were warm, and
hopefully dry. She piled the mass of clothes into a plastic basket,
and made for the elevator that would take her back to her floor.
*Another load, another lesson,* she thought sarcasticly.
When she reached the fifth floor, she spied a buxom redhead
coming in from the stairwell. The girl was wearing a waitress
uniform, a frilly white blouse, a short red skirt, and red pumps. She
seemed tired, as if she had just worked a full shift, which Megumi
reasoned was probably the case.
Megumi picked up a basket of laundry from just inside her door,
and started back for the laundry room. As Megumi turned to go back
down the elevator, the girl waved and smiled wanly at her and let
herself inside an apartment.
Megumi smiled back. It must have been a new tennant.
Then, as the door closed, Megumi realized what was wrong. That
was *Ranma's* room!
She scampered back for her own room and grabbed a new handlebar
she had bought for her brother's motorcycle.
Several possibilities ran through her mind. The way the girl
was dressed could mean any of a dozen things. The two that seemed the
most likely were that the woman was a thief masquerading as a
delivery girl or she was one of the *other* fiancees.
Her eyes narrowed at the thought of the martial aritist
cheating on Akane. More than likely, the girl had tracked Ranma down
and was laying in wait for him, but Megumi had become good friends
with the drama student, and would be most displeased with her suite-
mate if he were to toss her over.
She decided on a simple course of action. She would walk in
with the handlebar behind her back, kindly ask what the girl was
doing there, and chase her from the apartment with the steel bar.
Nervously, she made her move. She darted in through the shared
bathroom and stepped out into Ranma's room.
"Oh, hi, Megumi. 'Sup?" The girl was sprawled out on Ranma's
futon, reading a manga. She had kicked her shoes off, and was
absently rubbing her stocking feet together. "How'd you do on your
test today?"
"Huh?" How did the girl know that she had taken a test today?
For that matter, how did the girl know her name? "Who are you and
what are you doing in here?" Megumi considered bringing the handlebar
to bear, but decided to hold back in case the hussy was armed.
"I live h... Oh. Hell, this looks awful, don't it?" The girl
smiled up at Megumi in what she assumed was meant to be a reassuring
fashion. "I can explain, really!"
"You better explain, or I'm going to make you wish you had!"
"Megumi, now..."
"Don't you 'now' me, Miss. Start talking!
"Okay. First, bring me a glass of hot water. Then I'll explain
everything." The girl cautiously stood to her full height. Megumi got
her first real look at her. She was about a hundred and sixty
centimeters tall, with flaming red hair and a slightly pouty
expression. She stood casually, with her hands on her hips like a
boy. While the girl appeared to be rather soft skinned, Megumi noted
a certain tenseness at her joints. With a sinking feeling she
remembered that all of Ranma's fiancees were skilled martial artists.
Megumi began to feel her grip on the handlebar loosen.
"Hot water?" She asked nervously.
The red head nodded.
Carefully keeping the girl in front of her, Megumi filled a cup
with warm water from the sink. She looked away for a second to turn
the faucet off, and when she looked back the girl had stripped off
her blouse, and was preparing to drop her skirt as well.
"Pervert! What do you think you're doing?" Without thinking,
Megumi brought the handlebar to bear against the girl.
Without so much as a breath, the girl's hand whipped out and
snatched handlebar away from her. "C'mon, Megumi. I ain't gonna hurt
you or nuthin'. Okay?"
Megumi started to tremble as the girl pulled her skirt down.
Oddly enough, the girl was wearing boxer shorts and a man's
undershirt under her uniform.
"Here, lemme have that and..." The girl took the full cup from
her and upended it over her head.
"Viola!" said Ranma as he rose to his full height.
Megumi fainted.
* * *
Genma watched the Tendous prepare for an outing the next day.
The weather was starting to turn colder, so this would be the last
chance they would get to go to the beach this year.
They had asked him to come, but he really didn't feel much like
it. It was too hot, wet fur wasn't all that comfortable, and
sunscreen always turned his white fur to an odd shade of green.
Besides, Ranma wouldn't be there so there would be little opportunity
to train.
He sighed and went back to his gameshow.
Kasumi smiled as she polished the table and looked out the back
at the sky above. The moon and stars were just starting to come out.
They were so beautiful, just like glittering diamonds.
Nabiki and Akane both came down the stairs in bikinis. Nabiki's
was a bright red color, with lace trim. It looked a little much like
lingerie for Kasumi's taste, but she smiled her approval. Akane's was
of course, black. Kasumi worried a bit about her sister's sudden
change of wardrobe, but apparently Ranma, and more importantly Akane,
were happy with it. They were trying so hard to be nice to each
other. The dark swimsuit really did go well with her new hairstyle as
well. She wondered in the back of her mind if her sister had invited
Ranma. Dismissing the thought, she saw Akane glance at the clock
hanging behind her.
Akane's expression became a bit worried, and a little expectant
as she noted the time. Kasumi watched her little sister run up the
stairs. A few minutes later, she came down dressed in the leotard and
skirt she wore to school. Picking up her bookbag, she ran out the
door.
"Where is she going?" Nabiki wondered aloud.
"To study, of course," Kasumi answered cheerily. She grinned at
the petulant expresion on Nabiki's face.
"Please!"
Ranma's departure had deprived her sister of her favorite
source of spending money. On top of that insult, She hadn't been able
to locate the martial artist when he wasn't at school, and couldn't
find out who Akane's 'new boyfriend' was either. Nabiki had been left
out of the loop, and was not happy about the situation. Someone would
have to pay. If nothing else, her ongoing investigation was getting
expenseive.
"What Akane does is her own business, Nabiki. She's an adult
now, you know."
"I don't buy it, Sis. She's up to something and you know it!"
"Akane's just maturing. You should respect that, Nabiki."
In their discussion, neither girl heard the nervous doctor
pacing back and forth in front of the dojo walls.
* * *
"It has to be a trick! You're an escape artist, or you have a
sister who knows..."
Ranma dumped the cup of cool water over his head. Almost
instantaneously, his tall, masculine form was replaced by that of the
young, redheaded beauty. She was had on the same wet undershirt and
boxers Ranma was just wearing, and was adjusting the drawstring.
Megumi heard a low moan come out of her throat. "This is
impossible!"
"If only it were," the redhead answered sadly.
"What...?"
"I been stuck like this for almost four years. I've kinda had
to accept it."
"Who... are you?"
"Ranma. Who else. This is just my cursed form... you see--"
"CURSED FORM?!?!" Megumi shouted. "MAGIC?!?! IMPOSSIBLE!!!!"
"You all ready said that.
"THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING!!!"
Ranma shrugged in response. "Megumi--"
"I mean, it violates every physical law there is! You can't
just make thirty or forty kilograms dissapear that way!! What about
Conservation of Mass?! What about the first law of Thermodynamics?!"
"Megumi--"
"You can't expect me to just believe in 'magic' like some fairy
tale! It's insane!"
"Tell me about it. I don't know about all the physics or
chemistry or biology. I just know it happens. The only way I have to
explain it is 'magic'." She poured another cup of warm water over to
punctuate her statement.
Megumi was about to protest further, but the sad look on his
face halted her speech. "This is somehow your father's fault, isn't
it?"
Ranma smiled sardonically and nodded. "Bingo. It was about
three and a half years ago, at the tail end of my trainin' trip. Old
man had been looking for this mystic trainin' ground most of his
life, so when we found it, he didn't bother to read the signs, or
even listen to the guide. Just started fightin' over those damned
pools. He got Chaunmauniichaun, Spring of drowned panda. He gets
wet..."
"He turns into a panda bear. And you have...?"
"Nyaniichaun."
"Spring of drowned girl."
Ranma nodded. "Yup, so anytime I get wet, I change."
To demonstrate, Ranma poured a cup cold water over himself.
*Herself,* Megumi corrected. "I... don't--"
As if to cooberate his story, Akane let herself in and sat down
next to the red head as if nothing were out of the normal. She looked
as if she had been running.
"Hi, Ranma!"
"Yo, Akane. WOW! You get a haircut?!"
Akane's slim hand went to the short, delicate, sweeping lengths
of hair that now framed her face. "Do you like it? It's like that
hairstyle I showed you in the magazine last week."
Ranma nodded. "It looks great. What'd Kasumi say?"
"She was a little shocked but I think she likes it."
Ranma nodded. "Sounds about right. How was the train ride?"
Almost experimentally, Megumi poured some warm water over Ranma
to gauge Akane's reaction.
Akane puffed a little. "I ran into Mousse on the train. I led
him back over to the high school. So far as I can tell, none of them
have even looked at this place yet."
Akane didn't so much as blink as Ranma shifted size and shape.
"How was rehersal?" Ranma asked.
Feeling a little more relaxed, Akane ran her fingers through
her short hair, and stretched. "Same-old same-old. I think I'm going
to pound that sexist old creep, Miramora, if he doesn't quit treating
me like a moron. He directs like he's doing a first grade play."
Megumi's jaw dropped open in shock. "This is absolutely normal
for you people, isn't it?"
"What?" Akane looked at her in baffelment.
Megumi poured another cup of cool water over the martial
artist. Akane shook her head but finally she got it. "Oh. She just
found out about the curse, didn't she?"
Ranma nodded, and returned to her manga.
In bemusement, Megumi entertained herself with a bucket of cold
water and a warm kettle. Ranma was obviously a little irratated, but
he bore the brunt of her bemused inspection with grace.
What really fascinated her was Akane's reaction to her
suitemate. She was able to treat the male Ranma completely the same
as the female. In fact, when she doused Ranma in the middle of a
sentance, Akane didn't bat so much as an eyelash as Ranma's voice
shifted octaves.
*What could be weirder?* she thought.
Ranma and Akane spent about an hour discussing what had
happened during the day at school. It was somthing that they did by
unspoken agreement to try and relieve their respective short tempers.
By venting about classmates and teachers, they managed to avoid
venting on each other.
Another facet of their conversation was that they did not
mention any of their rivals. Ranma's fiancees and Akane's suitors
were not discussed. Akane found that it was much easier to keep her
temper this way, and Ranma found that he had time to think about what
he wanted to say because he was much less defensive.
"So why's Yuki got the role if she can't do it right?" Ranma
asked.
*splash* Megumi poured cold water over her suitemate, trying to
examine exactly what was happening in a sickened manner. Ranma's body
merely flinched away from her. During the 'flinch' Ranma's skin grew
slightly paler, and the golden-copper highlights in his black hair
spread and shifted so that the entire mop was a bright scarlet.
"The director has the hots for her, that's why!" Akane drew a
doodle of a man being impaled with a megaphone in her notebook.
"Seriously, Ranma. If you heard *half* the rumours about this guy..."
"Hmmm... I have a pretty bad time with rumours myself, Akane.
You never know, the guy might just have a bad rep."
"I would be willing to beleive that if he wasn't such an ass. I
swear, he's even made a pass at me a few times!"
Megumi was fairly amused by the fact that Ranma, as a girl,
became quite defensive about Akane's statement. The redhead sat up
from her sprawl and loomed over Akane.
"Maybe I should go have a talk with this guy..."
Akane's eyes flashed, as did Ranma's. Something unsaid passed
between them, and Akane changed the subject. It was just too close to
their sore points.
"So, Ranma, are you having any trouble with the workout
facilites?"
*splash* The warm kettle did exactly the opposite of the
bucket. Ranma's body seemed to relax into its larger, more defined
state. His hair darkened as if the light were simply falling into it.
Megumi considered borrowing the kinetics department's high
speed camera to capture the transformation.
Ranma shook his head and settled back onto the futon. "Nah. I
was worried the managers would think I was being too rough on the
martial arts equipment, but nobody's complained. I think I'm startin'
to get some of the other tennants interested in martial arts."
Megumi did her best to sifle a giggle. The other tennants were
'interested', all right. Ranma didn't really understand, but the
audience to his morning workout was composed mostly of girls who got
an illicit thrill out of watching the well-built martial artist
excercise. She had even been invited once to the early morning
'Beefcake Revue' by one of her friends in the building. If only they
knew!
"You know your father complains every morning that you're not
getting a proper workout becuase you're not there to spar with him,"
Akane said.
*splash* Yes! Megumi would classify the transformation. She
would work the equations and clarify the situation until the 'curse'
was no longer a work of magic, but a scientific phenomenon.
Ranma nodded, "Thought so. Old man's just lonely for a fight.
That's all."
"What about you, Ranma? Don't you miss it, too?"
Ranma grimaced. "Not for a second."
Akane knew better. Ranma jumped if someone in the next room
said 'fight'. He was bored and lonely and she knew it.
"Come on, Ranma. Who have you been sparring with every morning,
if not your father? When was the last time you practiced the 'Moukou
Takabisha'?"
Ranma's scowl intensified. "Can we talk about something else?"
Akane quickly tried to find something else to talk about. This
kind of conversation quickly led to an insult or a malleting. She
nodded in agreement. This was another one of their unspoken rules. An
uncomfortable silence fell across the room.
"Umm," Megumi interupted. "What's that?"
"What?" Ranma and Akane answered simulataneously.
"The... Moukyo Taka-thingy."
"Oh," Ranma grinned evilly at Akane. "That. It's a ki attack. I
focus my strength and confidence--"
"You mean 'ego'," Akane corrected. Ranma scowled, but held his
hands together in demonstration. He concentrated for a second and a
small, reddish-gold ball of fire sprang to life between his palms.
More magic. Megumi 'eeped' and did her best to keep the room
from spinning around her.
"So, how's waitressing?" Akane asked.
* * *
It was rapidly approaching nine when Tofuu summoned up the
courage to walk up to the door. Confidently, he thought, he danced up
the doorway. These things were always so much easier when Betty was
there to help him along, but unfortunately, she was back at the
clinic on her hook.
Tofuu threw his head back, and pulled out the small black ring
box in preparation. He raised his hand to knock...
A sparrow darted across the walk to the house. Tofuu bolted in
terror.
* * *
With her knees pulled up to her chest on the seat, Akane
thought wistfully back to Ranma's room. After several minutes of
playing with Ranma's curse and muttering to herself about 'scientific
explanations', Megumi stumbled back into her own room as if she were
in a drug induced trance. Akane felt rather sorry for the girl to
have her sensible foundations so horribly rocked. All they could
really do was try to lessen the shock for her.
Ranma went into the girl's room and asked her if she would like
to call him 'Ranko' when he was in his cursed form. Megumi accepted
almost a little too quickly.
Akane had to admit that she was still a little jealous of
Megumi being so close to Ranma all the time. Still, Akane worried
about the girl.
Once Megumi left, however, she and Ranma...
It was their third serious kiss. Like the two previous
encounters, it was a good night kiss.
The first had been quick and nervous, at the train station on
her way home. The second was a little more lingering, but still
fairly shy on all accounts. The third...
The lights were low in the apartment. Ranma only ever had a few
lamps on at night to save on electricity. They sat together and
watched television for several minutes. After a while, Akane stood up
and began to gather her books. Ranma watched her from his postition
on the floor. Selfconciously, Akane turned so that she presented her
profile to him. Torn between feelings of embarassment and excitement,
Akane arched her back slightly.
She heard a sharp intake of breath as she stretched out. Out of
the corner of her eye, she could see Ranma's eyes following the curve
of her leg and buttocks. They rested for an interminable time on her
breasts, which were small in her opinion, but barely concealed
beneath the trim leotard. Finally, Ranma stared at her face. Akane
turned her neck slightly, trying to present a longer, more attractive
figure.
Only a few months ago, she would have pounded him for such a
perverted act, but now it was... important to her that he want look
at her body.
"I really like your hair, Akane." He stood, his torso turned so
that he could open the door for her.
Akane smiled, faintly, but warmly, and leaned in close to the
martial artist. "Thanks, Ranma. I'm glad you like it. I was so afraid
that it would turn out badly."
Ranma shook his head forcefully.
They stepped over to the door. Ranma looked expectantly into
her eyes as his trembling hand went for the knob.
Akane's hand covered his, almost of its own volition. She
leaned in even closer. Ranma's other hand went to her shoulder.
Akane almost moaned in expectation.
Ranma wrapped his impossibly strong arms around her, a little
more confidently this time, and their lips met. Akane pulled her
hands up to rest against his broad, muscular chest and returned the
slight pressure she felt. She could feel him pulling her ever tighter
to his chest, feeling the countours of her body embedded in his own.
His hands began to roam down her back, darting as low as, but never
quite touching her firm derrier.
They were both so terrified of the new, urgent sensations, but
both needed them so badly. It was so hard to tell when to stop, or
how far to let it go.
Akane sighed and melted inside all over again as she thought
back on the brief interlude.
Not wanting to miss her stop for her reverie, Akane pulled out
a textbook, and tried to study. After several minutes, she gave up
and began to secretly study the other passengers on the train.
Several of them were 'regulars'. She always seemed to get on at
the same time with them. There was the red haired cocktail waitress
who was always just a bit tipsy coming home from work, and the single
mother who always did her shopping late. Two business men were always
disscussing the evening paper together, and there was the tired old
man, who always spent every day at the park.
Oddly, there was a man in a trenchcoat who always sat at the
back of the train. He never exchanged the cursory greetings the other
passengers did. At first, she suspected one of Ranma's suitors. He
never moved very much, so Akane had a difficult time reading him, but
after careful observation, Akane suspected that he lived with the
cocktail waitress, or was infatuated with her, because he always sat
directly behind her if he could.
Besides, if one of *those* people actually managed to track her
as far as the train, she'd pick a stop at random and just start
walking.
Her real stop came around. Sighing her longing, she gathered
her books and made her way for the door.
* * *
Nine-thirty. Tofuu skulked around the bushes in front of the
Tendou house.
*Maybe it would just be better if I waited until she came to
the office,* he thought. Resolutely, he shook his head. It had to
happen to night, or he feared that it never would.
* * *
She was about halfway home from the train station when Akane
realized that she was being followed. It didn't take much since she
suspected her pursuers were quite intoxicated. They were making too
much noise and were bouncing off each other quite rowdily. She turned
several corners, but they kept trailing after her.
She walked on for about a block, hoping that she could get
close enough to home that a good sprint would carry her to safety.
Her pursuers, six of them, started walking double time, doing
their drunken best to act inconspicuous.
Running was not going to be an option, she thought. Akane
turned and stood her ground. The six men strode up to her and stared
at her with evil leers.
"Can I help you gentlemen?" She asked indignantly.
The leader, a tall young man with a tatoo on his neck and a lit
cigarette in his hand, flicked ash on the ground and took a long
drag. As he exhaled, Akane could smell the sharp reek of alchohol
combined with tobacco.
"Yeah, you can help us, sweetie. Right guys?"
The assembled ruffians nodded and made low, guttaral
affirmative noises.
"What do you want?" Akane assessed the men for weapons. The
leader appeared to be unarmed, but the guy next to him was toying
with a switchblade knife hanging halfway out of his hip pocket. Aside
from one other, who was hiding a butterfly knife behind his leg, they
appeared to be unarmed.
The leader sneered at her. "Why don't we go over in that alley
and I'll show ya!"
Akane raised her eyebrows. "You've got to be kidding."
The man with the butterfly knife flipped it open and pointed it
at her stomach. "Just shut up and go in the alley and we won't hurt
you."
*I'll take that one down first,* she thought, *and then use the
man in charge as a human sheild. Shouldn't take more than a minute.*
Akane smiled evilly. "Why don't you make me?"
The man rushed her. Akane tossed her bookbag aside and prepared
to disarm the attacker.
There was a flash from above, and the six men fell in half as
many seconds. The man in the trenchcoat stood behind them in a
fighting stance.
Akane's eyebrows slanted even further. She suddenly knew
*exactly* who the man was.
"What's the big deal, Ranma? I could have taken them easily.
Why did you have to stick your nose in my fight?"
"Hey! They had knives! And I'm not Ranma."
Akane pulled the trencoat away from the martial artist. "So
you've been following me home. Jeez, Ranma I can't beleive this!"
"Hey, I was only trying to look out for you!"
"I don't need any looking out for, Ranma. I've gotten home just
fine by myself every night for a solid month!"
One of the attackers groaned. Akane kicked his head. "Stay
down, moron. Just wait for the police and I won't hurt you."
Ranma 'hmphed' and scowled at the girl.
Glaring at him, Akane ran to a nearby pay phone and dialed the
emergency number. As they sat waiting for the police, no words passed
between them. Akane just sat and simmered. She had trusted him with
so much, and now this was the way he repayed her?
When they arrived the police were very thankful to have the six
thugs so neatly delivered, if a little shamefaced that they had no
involvement in their capture. After answering a few questions, Akane
and Ranma were sent on their way. They walked together for quite some
time.
Unfortuneatly, 'together' had two different connotations for
Ranma and Akane.
"I can't beleive you, Ranma! Following me like some sort of
stalker. You're no better than those men back there."
"I *ain't* stalking you, Akane."
"Fine, then what were you doing? Hmmm?"
"Err..."
Akane wrung her hands behind her back. "Don't you think I can
take care of myself? Is that it?"
"Akane I..."
"You think I'm going to get hurt walking home."
Ranma shrugged. "So, what if I do?"
"Do you have any idea how INSULTING that is?!"
"Hell, Akane! Everyone knows what... No. I ain't gonna say it."
They walked on for a few minutes, turning a corner onto a
better lit street. There were more people here, going in and out of
shops and restaurants that were still open. Ranma looked around in a
kind of sad amusement. So many happy people completely unaware of
what had just happened.
Akane slowed and looked into a dress shop window. She glanced
at Ranma's reflection in the glass. "You might as well, if you still
think so. I'm a slow, weak girl, right?"
Ranma refused to answer. His surly expression betrayed his
feelings, however.
"You know, if we don't say anything," Akane suggested, "It's
not going to get any better. We haven't said *anything* for a solid
month."
"If I say anything, I'm gonna get malleted. Hell, I'll probably
gonna get malleted for *that*." He stared at her accusingly.
Akane turned away from the window and glared back, the rage
building behind her eyes. "I promised that I wouldn't hit you
anymore," she hissed. "Isn't that good enough?"
"Yeah... you promised." Ranma's eyes narrowed to slits. "Just
like you promised Kasumi that you wouldn't ever hit anybody in
anger."
The rage and anger left Akane's face, and was replaced by shock
and shame at the promise she had so casually broken so long ago. She
tried to tell her self it was meaningless, but a terrified doubt
began to gnaw at her.
"Didn't think I knew about that one, did ya?" Ranma pushed his
hands down in his pockets, and resumed walking along the sidewalk.
Akane strode next to him, her fists clenching in shock and a little
bit of anger. In truth, she didn't realized Ranma knew about the
promise she had broken so long ago.
The street was growing much more crowded as they approached a
large night club.
After a few seconds, Ranma turned back to her, guilt and self
loathing evident in his expression. "I shouldn't 'a said that,
Akane."
Akane answered quietly. "But you don't trust me?"
As Ranma shook his head, Akane's heart broke. She continued to
walk along behind him, but the world seemed to blur around her.
Ranma shrugged, but closed his steps so that he was a little
closer to her.
They passed the entrance to the club. It was approaching ten
and getting rather misty, but there was still a long line of
impatient people awaiting entrance to the club. They were all
anxious, guarding their places in line, but the majority of them were
speaking animatedly. The people were all dressed in an attractive
manner. Most were dressed in their finest party clothes. They seemed
to be having fun, even waiting in line.
As they passed the end of the line, Ranma glanced briefly at
the waiting length. He kept walking in disgust.
Akane began to feel a familiar fear rise in her heart. It was
familiar as the same sensation she felt whenever Ranma acted like he
was happy with one of the other girls, and when Ranma moved out of
the Tendou home a month earlier. She was going to lose him...
"Ranma!" She shouted. He was a little shocked to hear her speak
so passionately. "I've trusted *you* with so much. Why can't you do
the same? Please, tell me what I have to do to make you trust me!"
Ranma was shocked at the words, and Akane's expression. A
wealth of tears stood unshead in her eyes.
"You... trust *me*?!?!"
"How can I not, Ranma?" A tear rolled down her face, and her
tone became pleading, almost desperate. "You've saved my life dozens
of times. You always come when I'm in trouble. If anybody tries to
hurt me, you stand up for me. When you moved out, I had to trust you
to stay away from the other girls. I even had to learn to trust you
around Megumi! If you weren't there for me..." Her voice dropped to a
whisper. "I don't know how I could go on."
Ranma was stopped in his tracks. "Akane?" His expression had
changed to mirror Akane's earlier shock. "I..." He stood resolutely
and put his fist to his chest. "I barely trust *myself* to take care
of you, Akane? How can I trust anyone else, even you?"
Akane nodded sadly. She had done so little besides berate her
fiancee. But... he *wanted* to take care of her. Her heart began to
ache, and her throat tightened with the thought.
"Sides', I don't think 'trust' is just somethin' you can turn
on and off like a light. You gotta earn it."
Akane nodded anxiously. "How? Please, what do I have to do?"
Ranma's eyes widened. "Urr..."
"Please, Ranma. I..."
He held up his hand. "It's been a month since you hit me.
That's a good *start*. I'm still duckin' and coverin' everytime I
hear myself say somethin' stupid."
Akane's breath caught in her throat. "I... I'm sorry, Ranma."
"I'm sorry too, Akane. I ain't been the most sensitive guy,
ever, either. I usually call 'em like I see 'em, and sometimes that
isn't the right thing, or even the true thing to say. I've been
trying to stop, but sometimes..."
As long as she had known him, Ranma had rarely apologized to
her. Her eyes misted over, and tears began to run freely down her
face.
Her heart burst with the words. 'I'm sorry too, Akane.' She
burned up and froze at the same time. The warm flow of tears started
to run down into her leotard, as the world ground to a complete stop.
Ranma stepped in a little closer and tried to look into her
face. Cautiously, he put a hand to her cheek. "Akane? You okay?"
He was so close to her. It was all she needed to hear.
Regardless of anything else, Ranma still cared about her. The words
came to her mouth, unbidden.
"I love you, Ranma."
He froze as if she had just uttered some incredible attack
phrase.
Her arms reached out of their own volition and wrapped around
his shoulders and head. Feircley, as if she had to trap him to the
earth, Akane pressed her lips to his.
She covered his face in kisses and buried her wet face in his
shoulder. Muffled by the coarse fabric, she cried out loud.
"I love you, you mean, insensitive, sex-changing jerk, and I'll
never give you up. Not to Shampoo, not to Ukyou, not to Kodachi, or
anyone else!"
"Akane....." Hesitantly, Ranma's arms closed around her back.
"I... I... don't know.... I loo..."
She looked up into his face, which was twisted into at once an
expression of the purest excstasy, and the sheerest terror. It looked
as if he were fighting with himself on some existential plane.
"I... loooooo...."
With the tears still rolling freely down her face, Akane put a
finger to his lips. "You don't have to say it if you don't want to.
Don't say it if you don't feel it, either."
His expression was stricken, but resolute. "Of course I mean
it! I've meant it since... Hell, I don't know! It seems as long as
I've known you!"
"Ranma..." Akane rested her head on his shoulder. She could
hear his heart racing. She realized that at some point that they had
collapsed to their knees on the sidewalk.
"I *love* you, Akane! You're the only thing that's kept me
goin' for the last three years. With the curse, and the fiancees, and
the old ghoul, and all the challenges, and the letch..."
She silenced him with another kiss. A long, wet, pasionate kiss
that messed up his hair as much as his face.
"What're we gonna do, Akane?" he asked. "We still hurt each
other so much. When we talk we get angry and when we don't nothin'
happens."
She shook her head against his shoulder. "I don't know, Ranma.
Whatever... we have to learn to... trust, and we have to do it
together."
Weeping into each other's arms, neither Ranma nor Akane noticed
the crowd of party goers and club employees they had drawn applauding
all around them.
* * *
It was late, *too* late, Megumi thought. The world, which had
previously been defined in terms of formulae, equations, statistical
analisys, had just given way to fairy tale.
She lay in her bed, looking up at the flourescent fixture in
the middle of the ceiling. Her eyes absently traced the end of the
cord that hung from the light as it danced in the breeze from her
airconditioner. In the speckles she got from staring at the too-
bright bulb, Megumi could still see the ball of what could only be
described as Ranma's life force floating in front of her face.
*Ranma... Ranko... How can s-he live like that?*
She flipped over and buried her face in her pillow. She stayed
like that for some time, images of Ranma changing back and forth
assailing her inner vision.
There were so many things to think about. How much of what she
knew was void now? Curses implied a spellcaster of some sort... or
worse, a supernatural entity. Demons?
The existence of which would imply Gods and Goddesses. No, that
was impossible. Everyone knew goddesses didn't exist.
She really didn't realize when she started to shiver. Rain
began to tap against her window as a cold front blew through, and the
air conditioner was suddenly too cold..
Megumi sighed and grabbed a vinyl raincoat from her closet. It
would do her little good to sit in her room slowly going crazy. She
had to get out and think things through.
*Then* she could go crazy if she wanted.
She hurried out of the building and out into the night. She
really didn't mind the rain, but Megumi looked for a coffe shop to
get into anyway.
As she walked, she couldn't help but stare at the people around
her, wondering. Supposedly at least one of the fiancees and several
of Ranma's enemies were cursed as well. Megumi couldn't help but
wonder who else's life had been touched by magic.
After a few minutes, she located the 'Unforgettable Medlies'
cafe. She went in and took a seat at the bar, and ordered a coffee.
Megumi found that it was all she could do to keep from
nervously fidgeting all over the counter.
Suddenly, a petite figure flopped down next to her. She jumped
as she realized who it was.
"Ya learn to hate the rain. Of course, I have it better than
some of the others."
"T-t-the girl who turns into a cat..." Megumi suggested. She
couldn't beleive the words coming out of her own mouth.
The redhead plopped her head down on her hands. "Yeah, and then
there's my *other* problem with... c-cats." She shook nervously a
bit, and then stretched to try and warm her cold muscles.
"You went home with Akane, ...Ranko?" Megumi asked. She still
felt fairly nervous speaking to the girl as if she really was her
suitemate. It rankled a little inside her somewhere though. She tried
to decide if she wanted to discard 'Ranko' and just stick to 'Ranma'.
"Did she get home okay?"
Ranma smiled meanly and motioned to the waiter. "We had a
fight."
Of course Megumi had never seen the pair fight, but both had
spoken to her privately about their differences. The look of shock on
her face must have been amusing, she thought.
"Actually, I think I kinda missed it," Ranma continued,
wistfully. "I don't miss the mallet though. I can't beleive we
actually had a fight that *went* somewhere."
Suddenly, Megumi felt her curiosity for gossip beat down her
nervousness, and she leaned in close to the redhead. "Ooh! What
happened?"
Ranma told her the details of the fight. Megumi seemed a little
shocked about Akane being attacked, but Ranma waved her off.
"It happens all the time anyway. I just can't let her risk
herself on somthing like that. I... I care too much about her."
Megumi nodded, "Go on..."
"Well anyway, after we made up, we tried to think of things to
do that would make us trust eachother more. Akane agreed to let me
defend her when I wanted, and I agreed not to try and act like I
wasn't doing it. Then came the good part!"
"Before or after it started raining?"
"After."
Megumi had to stifle a giggle. Kisses in the rain were so
romant... Uh-oh. *She* didn't! She couldn't have! As a girl? With
horror, Megumi watched Ranma's face crack into a gleeful grin that
could only be the result of something so private being shared.
"You didn't!" She hissed.
Ranma nodded gleefully. "Yeah, I did. And were going to start
tomorrow!"
Megumi gasped in shock. "You're can't be serious!"
"Yeah! We start sparring tomorrow morning when I usually work
out."
Megumi blushed. Of course, fighting would be just as important
and personal to a life long martial artist as any kind of romance.
"It makes sense, doesn't it?" Ranma continued. "I mean, here I
am with nobody to fight with, constantly having to watch out for
Akane. If I can train her up to my level, I'll be able to trust her
that much more to take care of herself. She'll be more ready to take
on one of the other girls too, if they find out where she's going
every day."
Megumi could only nod, not trusting her self to speak. It was
Ranma, alright. Girl or boy, no one else could be so focused. As she
and Ranma sat and talked away the night, Megumi found herself
wondering how much to embrace the magic that suddenly surrounded her.
For the first time since she was a very young girl, the evening
seemed somehow... *magical*.
* * *
Akane strode up to the house. While she was grinning madly,
almost skipping down the walk, she could still feel the redness in
her eyes from the crying earlier. She hoped that the rain would hide
it.
As she came up to the door, she noticed a dark figure in the
bushes. She jumped back and crouched in a defensive stance.
"All right, come out of there before I call the police."
"A-Akane-chan! How surprising to see you here of... all..
places..."
"Tofuu-sensei? What are you doing back there?"
Nervously, the doctor stepped out onto the walk. In the dim
light cast by the door lamp, Akane could see that the doctor was
soaked to the bone and had twigs and worse all through his hair. His
glasses were horribly fogged, even as wet as it was. "Ummmmm....
Well, I was coming to see your sister of course, Akane. Isn't it a
wonderful night for a visit?"
Akane knew it was useless to disagree with him when he was like
this, and besides, she had had a fairly spectacular visit of her own.
Subconciously, her hand went to her lips.
"Of course, Betty-chan isn't here, and what's an evening
without Betty. She said it was the rain. You know how old bones ache
in wet weather." The doctor began nervously scraping his fist against
the wall, chipping off a little paint in the process.
"Why don't you come in before you freeze, Doctor?"
Tofuu gulped as Akane opened the door. It was still too early
for him! He wasn't ready! This was all happening too soon, but Akane
took his hand and led him in the door."
"Tadaima!" She called out as she closed the door behind them.
Tofuu began to shake in apprehension.
"Poor thing, you must be frozen solid!" Akane led him into the
main room, where her father and Genma were watching an old samurai
movie. "We'll just have Kasumi make you up some warm tea. Won't that
be good?"
Nabiki looked up at her sister with a little bit of
exaspersation. Trust Akane to pick a night like this to go out on.
"K-k-k-k-kasumi?!" Tofu chattered. He held up his fist,
clenching the small black box and crumpled note.
"Yes, is somebody here?" The older girl called out from up the
stairs. I'll be down in just a minute!"
Akane turned to the doctor, and noticed the box. "Tofuu-sensei!
You brought a present for Kasumi. How nice!"
*Present... yes...* thought Tofuu. The world seemed to be
slowing down around him.
"Who's here, Akane?" Kasumi turned the corner from the
stairwell and stepped into the main room.
Time stopped for Tofuu.
Never before had he seen such a sight. Kasumi... in a bikini.
The world went dark. Tofuu could die happy, now.
"What a lovely swimsuit, Oneechan!" Akane commented. "Is that
the one-- Doctor Tofuu?"
The doctor fell to the ground without bending his knees. Only
his fist betrayed any life, still clutching at the velvet box and
note.
"Oh, Tofuu, you silly dear," Kasumi pried the note and started
to read.
"To my dearest Kasumi, I..." Her eyes went wide and a tear
rolled down her cheek. "L-love you..." She whispered.
Akane suddenly realized what the little black box was. In
shock, she took it from the doctor's rigid fingers and handed it to
her sister.
Trembling, Kasumi continued to read the note. Nabiki ran over
and looked over her shoulder.
Soun walked over to the young doctor. "Tofuu, what brings you
over at this time of night?"
"Shh, Daddy!" Nabiki cautioned. "Tofuu just proposed to
Kasumi!!!"
"Growf???" The giant panda shuffled over to the small,
incredulous group and snuffled at the unconcious doctor.
"Well, I'll be..." Soun knelt and patted Tofuu on his limp
shoulder. "That's the way to go, Son. Show some initiative. If
only... Ah, well. The past is the past. Your mother would be proud,
Kasumi."
The girl didn't answer as she started to cry. She clutched the
note to her breast and buried her face in Tofuu's soaked gi.
Trembling, she turned her face slightly and pulled the box open.
Nabiki was the first to gasp. In her case it was the opulence
of the ring. Such a treasure should be on *her* finger! Akane, primed
from her fight and reconciliation with Ranma, knelt and cried along
with her sister. Heartened as Kasumi shakily slid the ring over the
tip of her finger, Soun patted his furry friend on the back.
"Growf!"
"You said it, Saotome-kun." He patted the unconcious doctor
again. "Good job, Son. Welcome to the family."
* * *
After she managed to cry herself out and Tofuu regained a
jittering conciousness, Akane ran for her room. She simply *had* to
phone Ranma and tell him what happened. Even when she received no
answer at his phone number, she didn't become upset.
She *trusted* him. It felt good to say. He was probably with
Megumi, trying to help her with her upset. More importantly, she
knew, She and Ranma had taken a big step towards building something
*more* than trust.
She thought about her sister and Tofuu, and how much the two of
them would have to learn to live together.
Right then, she vowed, *If Kasumi can do it, then so can I.
I'll make Ranma mine!*
----------------------------------------
Author's Notes: 10-09-2000
Carrot Ironfoundersson in Pratchet's 'Discworld' books abuses
the common colon in a totally unforgivable manner. Apparently, so do
I. The most major revisions that I made to this chapter were mostly
in the way of cleaning up punctuation and grammar.
* * *
C. Jones
http://www.furinkan.net
Watashi ha ultra-relakusu!
--
.---Anime/Manga Fanfiction Mailing List---.
| Administrators - ffml-admins@fanfic.com |
| Unsubscribing - ffml-request@fanfic.com |
| Put 'unsubscribe' in the subject |
`---http://www.fanfic.com/FFML-FAQ.txt ---'