Hi there! This is one of my 'Starter Kits'. [Actually, it HAD BEEN one of his 'Starter Kits'. I got it going so what should you call it now? A 'Running Kit'?] A fanfiction idea that seemed really good when I started, but ground to a halt when my creativity ran dry [You actually got some? Damn, I'm still looking for an affordable offer at E-Bay.], or as I became involved in other projects and completely forgot where I intended to go with this [Funny, I don't even need a diversion for something like that.]. So I'm posting these 'Starter Kits' up so that other authors can continue my ideas, flesh them out, or even take them in a wild new direction[Where the hell am I nowww..!!!]. All I ask is that you consult me before making changes to the part that I've put down here[Damn if I do.. err.. change anything is what I mean..]. Perhaps later I'll try to pick up from where you leave off, or we might just alternate writing chapters[Wouldn't that afford we actually had a plot?]. I'm intentionally leaving this open-ended [With me it's just a lack of ideas. Doesn't keep me from writing sequels though.].
So, show me what you got, tough guy! [Aaaah! Pervert!]
-Ron Hino
[You actually know what that name translates to in Kisuaheli?]
[Just kidding.., RM]
(Ron Hino 30/01/02): I don't even know what language that is. What does it mean? Anyway RM, sorry I took so long to post this up.
Hypothermia
By Ron Hino and Ralf Martin
Akane shivered in her sleeping bag. This trip was the worst idea their fathers had ever had. A training trip together in the coldest part of winter, all the way up in Hokkaido. There was no colder time or place in Japan than right here and now. The two idiots probably had images in their empty heads of two fiancés snuggling up together against the cold, or doing something a little more... carnal... to keep warm.
Like hell!
Shaking in the cold, Akane wished she could fall asleep. At least Daddy had had the decency to give her her own tent, for the sake of appearances, even if he didn't expect her to use it. The tent was a piece of crap, to be honest. It had to be 20 years old at least. The Tendos almost never went camping. There was even a small hole in the top, and a snowflake or two blew in every now and then.
Akane sighed (a shudder actually; she was too cold to sigh). Maybe if their wedding had actually gone through, she might have felt more comfortable sharing a tent with Ranma, but it hadn't, and everything their relationship had gained had eventually degenerated back to square one; insults, yelling and hammers.
God she was cold! But she'd rather die than crawl to Ranma, begging to snuggle up to him. She probably *would* die, of humiliation. No doubt Ranma would tease her about it, or make some sort of perverted assumption. No, she was better off here, bitterly cold or no.
The wind changed again and a small burst of frigid air entered the tent. She shuddered in misery and tugged the edge of sleeping bag tighter around her head, curling up into a ball.
She felt her mind start to get foggy. Good, she was falling asleep. Once asleep, she wouldn't have to suffer the cold. It would be so nice not to feel it anymore.
So...
...very...
...nice.
***
Ranma lay in his tent awake. It was really cold out tonight. He tugged the edge of his feather-down packed winter sleeping bag up to his chin. He'd spent a lot of winters in tents with his father, and knew quite a lot about it. He sighed, wishing his father was here now. A big furry panda would have plenty of body heat to warm the air in this small tent, but Genma wasn't here, only Akane. Sharing a tent with Akane was out of the question as far as she was concerned. He didn't even bother to ask.
At least he could be grateful for his equipment. The Saotomes' tent was of a modern, dome-shaped design that urged the cold wind to pass over it, rather than slam into the thin walls. That it was small in size also helped keep it a little warmer with only a single occupant. The material was better for keeping heat in too. Akane's was an older style, in the shape of a pyramid, that Mr. Tendo had pulled out of their attic. It was also quite a bit bigger, so they'd decided to put all the cooking gear and supplies in there with Akane's things.
The fact that Akane would be sleeping next to the stove and food had been too good an opportunity to pass up. Ranma had exited the Tendo gates with a fresh lump on his thick skull.
Ranma grinned as he considered that his sleeping bag was also newer, and better suited for winter. Akane's was designed for the spring/fall season, a rarely used piece of camping gear also pulled out of the attic, better suited for sleepovers at a friend's house.
Ranma took a sadistic joy in the thought that the ill-tempered girl (who'd hit him no less than seven times on the way up here alone) was likely even colder than him.
Ranma frowned as something occurred to him. He wasn't exactly roasting here. A week of nights like this and he'd probably develop a mild case of pneumonia. Akane was in a too-big tent in an inadequate sleeping bag, all alone. Not to mention she was a girl. Having a female body himself for more than two years, he'd discovered first hand that a girl's body couldn't hold in as much heat as a guy's. Thinking about it, Ranma began to get worried. On a night like this, the cold might be more than Akane might expect to survive!
Ranma sighed. He'd have to somehow convince the stubborn tomboy that they should sleep in the same tent. How, was the big question. He didn't relish being slapped at this hour of the night. Maybe if he just explained it logically (like that had ever worked with her), from a safety point of view, while out of immediate hammer-range. He might even have time to explain half of it before she knocked him through one of her tent's walls.
He sighed. Nothing to do but try. He reluctantly crawled out of his warm sleeping bag and pulled on his boots, coat and Stupid Hat.
The Stupid Hat was Ranma's winter hat, which his father had bought him. The old fart had one just like it, which should tell you something about how anyone with a fashion sense would view it. The hat was a fuzzy, leather cap with big dumb-looking flaps that came down over the ears, to be tied under the chin like a bonnet. Ranma would wear the thing when it was cold enough, but never in a populated area. He'd nearly frozen his ears off before he reluctantly donned the thing in front of Akane earlier today. At least she didn't laugh aloud.
Grabbing a flashlight, Ranma left his tent and zipped up the door flap as quickly as possible, to keep what little heat was inside, inside. He trudged through the blowing snow to Akane's tent, thankful she'd at least listened to him and turned her tent so the doorway faced downwind like his. The only thing worse than a blizzard outside the tent was when it blew inside.
"Akane?" He called. "I'm coming in." There was no response. She was probably asleep already. When he went in, it felt to him like it was as cold in here as out there. He frowned as he felt wind on his face, even though he'd closed the door flap. He shone the flashlight up, spotting the place where one of the tent's four sides didn't go all the way to the top. It also happened to be the side opposite the door, and thus was open to the main blow of the storm. No wonder it was so cold in here.
That was it then! No way Akane was sleeping in here!
He knelt and called softly to her. "Akane?"
She didn't stir. He raised his voice to a normal level. "Akane? Wake up."
She still didn't move. He frowned and shook her shoulder, calling her name again. Akane Tendo lay like the dead.
Now panicking, Ranma checked her pulse and breathing. Her pulse was slow, as was normal when a person was deeply asleep, but not very strong. Her breathing was shallow. People asleep took long, deep breaths.
Her skin where he touched her neck was as cold as ice. Terrified, he dared to put his hand under her pajamas, on her stomach. She felt cold there too.
Hypothermia. Akane was dying.
His heart in his throat, Ranma scooped her up in her sleeping bag with her blankets and bolted back to his tent! He didn't even bother to close Akane's tent after him.
As he lay her down, he was suddenly immensely grateful to his father (a rare thing indeed) that the old man had taught him how to treat hypothermia. Genma had had to do it to Ranma once, after the 8-year old had fallen through the ice over a river one winter. A slightly more accurate telling was that Genma had knocked him into it while sparing, the old man having forgotten the frozen river was there. Nonetheless, Genma had made sure to teach his son how it was done, after all, Ranma might need to save his 'dear' father's own ass one day.
Ranma unzipped his warm sleeping bag, and lay Akane down on it. He quickly and efficiently stripped her to the nude, then did the same to himself. He crawled in with her and zipped up the bag. Then he had the idea to unzip Akane's sleeping bag all the way and throw it over both of them as a blanket. He lay down again once that was done.
In his panic, he kept thinking of more and more things he could do to get Akane warmed up. He lit several emergency candles and put them at safe distances around the tent to add what heat they could to the air. As long as he didn't knock them over, they wouldn't burn the tent down. He didn't plan on moving about much anyway. Once (if?!) Akane woke up naked with him in the morning, that was another story, moving quickly would be a very good idea. Fortunately the candles should have long since burned down by then. It also occurred to him to snatch the Stupid Hat off his own head and put it on her. He tied the strings under her chin. It may have looked stupid, but it was marvelous at keeping one's head warm.
Finally, unable to think of anything else he could do, Ranma settled down in the sleeping bag. It was a tight fit, being made for only one person, but that was good. The more of his warm skin pressed against her cold skin, the faster she would warm up. With that thought in mind, Ranma shifted so that he was lying on top of her, wrapping up her legs in his own and keeping her arms close to her body. He lay his chin in the cusp of her neck and left shoulder, and wrapped his left arm around her exposed neck. His free arm he pressed along her side. He figured that was about as tightly as he could possibly wrap her up. God, but her skin was cold. If he couldn't feel the tiny rise and fall of her chest, he would have thought he was lying with a corpse. The thought chilled him more than her cold skin.
Now there was nothing more he could do for her but hold still and give her his warmth. As his panic receded, it finally registered that he was lying naked on top of a very cute (not that he'd admit it) girl who was also naked, her soft breasts (which were also bigger than he's admit) being pressed flat against his firm chest. Ranma flushed in embarrassment as a certain part of him began to swell and push itself between her thighs. Ranma reached down and adjusted himself so he wouldn't deflower her by accident. She was already going to kill him when she woke up, better to go for quick and painless rather than long and agonizing.
With nothing to do but wait, Ranma's terrifying panic gave way to miserable worry. It took him a long time to fall asleep.
***
*** End of Ron Hino's Starter. The following is the work of Ralf Martin***
But first some legal stuff.
(RH: Oh yeah! Completely forgot the disclaimer. Oops! ^_^)
Ranma Saotome and Akane Tendo are not the property of either Ron Hino or Ralf Martin for they belong to Rumiko Takahashi and whoever payed her those millions in licence-fees.
On the bright side, neither Ron Hino nor Ralf Martin are the property of either Rumiko Takahashi or her legal representatives. So if you write about us instead you save those stupid disclaimers. Not interested? Shame on you..
But now to something completely different... [John Cleese, almost every Episode of 'Monty Pythons Flying Circus']
***
Akane!
That voice. She knew that voice. It was him.
Can't you hear me?
Try as she might, she couldn't see him. It was so dark.
Please, Akane..
She tried to turn, to look around for him, but her body wouldn't move. Something was blocking her, pinning her arms to her side and weighting down on her legs.
I need you to hear me..!.
No, not something, she realized. Somebody was holding her close, wrapping himself around her like a living, breathing blanket. Protecting her, shielding her from harm.
I wanted to tell you..
Yes! It was him! And now he would finally tell her. She just knew it. If only she could give him a sign that she was listening.
Akaneee!
No! Don't cry! I'm fine Ranma.
Can't you hear me "Ran.." ..ma?
"Ran.. Ma.."
It had taken Ranma a while to fall asleep. Not because of the cold night lurking just outside the flaps of the tent. No, actually he had been feeling very warm, even almost uncomfortably so. This had been caused mainly by the fact that he was currently sharing his sleeping-bag with Akane and both he and she were, for solely practical reasons of cause, completely in the nude. A necessary measure to keep her warm after she almost froze to death in her inadequate tent and sleeping-gear, but as a matter of fact, it had started to play havoc with his hormones. Every time she shivered, every time she moved in her uneasy sleep, parts of her body that he didn't even dare to think about had rubbed against him. His instincts, those responsible for keeping him alive and in one piece, had told him to take a hike and gain a lot of distance before she had a chance to wake up and notice any of this. But he had ignored them, for he knew that it would take some time before her body-temperature would be back to an acceptable level, even with his added warmth. And even if it would cost him his life, not that unlikely given the circumstances and his fiancée's temper, he couldn't abandon her now. Then, there had been those other instincts. Those that didn't mind the aforementioned rubbing of body-parts and the resulting dispersion of endorphins all that much. Those that tried to convince him that it wouldn't be so bad to press a little closer to her, touch a little, stroke a little... He had tried to squash those thoughts, but the little buggers were tough and came back with every involuntary movement. So he had clenched his teeth and ignored his instincts, no matter what they said, and after what seemed like hours of almost endless torture, he had finally dozed off into a dreamless slumber.
It didn't last long. If he had to judge by the feel of it couldn't be more than a mere couple of minutes until his eyes snapped open again. But who could tell for sure? It took him a while to realize what had woken him. Akane, the girl he was currently covering to the best of his abilities, was struggling in his awkward embrace. Ranma felt his heart increase its pace. She was still with him. This was good, great even. But even through his rising euphoria he still remembered her sometimes volatile sleeping-habits. So he instinctively fastened his hold on her, fearing for the sleeping-bag's ongoing existence should she lash out like she sometimes did with her covers back home. But the moment his arms tightened around her the struggling stopped and Akane's seemed to relax. Ranma was just about to sigh in relief when the hairs on his neck suddenly stood on end.
"Ran..?"
Shit, had he woken her up?
"Ran.. Ma.."
Oh God, oh God.. She was going to kill him! She would notice their current state of dress and then she would come to the unavoidable conclusion and then she would scream and mallet him out into the night and then the tent would be ruined and the sleeping-bag would be destroyed and she would still freeze to death and so would he because given his usual luck he would hit a river or a lake and no matter how tough he was he wouldn't survive that on a cold night like this because even if he should make it back in time she would never let him get his clothes back and she would call him a pervert again and... His morbid train of thought got suddenly interrupted by a hand that snaked its way out of the confines of the sleeping-bag to softly touch his cheek.
"Ranma?" he heard her whisper in a sleepy voice, "Sorry I scared you.."
That she had, indeed. Though he still waited for the hammer to fall.
"Could hear you, .. couldn't respond.. Don't worry, I'm fine.."
Slowly it dawned on him that the only reason that he was still among the living was courtesy of the fact that Akane still mostly out of it. Or maybe even better, she was just talking in her sleep. Maybe acting out some dream she had, though he couldn't for the life of him figure out what it should be to make her sound so,.. so.. affectionate. Well, only one way to find out for sure.
"Akane?" he asked cautiously. "You're alive in there?"
"M-hmm..." came the positive reply. "Just tired.."
So much for the 'talking in her sleep'-theory. But all was not lost. If he could just think of a way to break the news to her gently before she found out for herself...
Ranma almost jumped as Akane began to cuddle even closer, if that was possible, a content sigh escaping her lips.
"Just great.." he murmured, trying frantically to ignore an overload of sensory input in his chest and groin. "Hey, Akane..?"
"Hmmm.."
He took a deep breath, trying to put off the inevitable for a couple of more seconds.
"I don't really know how to say this.. but.. there's something I should tell you."
Sometimes, in your sleep, you are so deeply immersed that you will never notice that you are dreaming, no matter how impossible the scenario. You can fly, walk through magical forests or talk to whales. It doesn't matter how impossible your surroundings, you just take them at face-value. And sometimes, you dream of something mundane, and everything is just like it is in real-life. Your house, your family, your job, everything is just like it is supposed to be. But there is this feeling, this little voice in the back of your head, that informs you in no uncertain way that you are just in the middle of another REM-phase. And then there are those times when you just can't decide. Is it real? Is it not? Because the scenario ain't exactly impossible. It might be something that could happen for real though you never actually thought it would. Like riding a jet-bike through the Caribbean surf though you usually spend your holidays at home. You feel the sun on your back and the wind whipping through your hair, the waves crashing against your ride as your adrenaline-rush urges you to go faster and faster. It feels so real, but still, it is too good to be true. So how do you tell ? More important, do you care to find out at all? Or do you just enjoy the experience?
At the moment, Akane was happy to ignore all her higher cerebral functions to simply bask in the sensation of two strong arms around her, one a comfortable pillow, the other holding her tight to a warm, muscular chest. She knew exactly who they belonged to, and it didn't irk her one bit. On the contrary, it was part of the reason why it felt so good. Too few were the times when Ranma held her like this, only after the greatest of struggles or the longest of separations, that she couldn't afford to waste just one second on anything else but pure enjoyment. Even if she was partially aware that this had to be a dream. But then again, she was no stranger to those. What was it this time? Jusenkyo again? She remembered his voice calling for her to come back just like it had that fateful day. Waking up in his arms to see him scared, unbelieving, ecstatic. All those emotions washing over his face and more. It had been so easy to believe that he loved her back then, she even thought she heard him say so. As easy as it was now, lying secure in his embrace, their naked bodies wrapped around one another... Wait a minute.. Naked..? Oh, so it was one of those dreams. Akane smiled to herself. No way she would ever admit to it in real life, but she really liked those.
".. so I went over to your tent to see if you're all-right and it was freezing in there. And when I called you didn't answer so I checked you and you were already half-dead from the cold and I didn't know what else to do so I brought you over here and made sure that you're kept warm and you probably gonna hate me for this but that's how pop told me it's done, not that I usually listen to him, but I didn't know what else to do and I.. I'm sorry.. You're probably gonna call me a pervert again but I didn't do anything, I swear..!" Ranma's hasty explanation trailed off to cower fearfully in a corner of the tent while he waited for a response on the part of his fiancée. Akane's first reaction was a strange sound from deep in her throat. Ranma guessed it had to be a growl, though if it was, it was the strangest one he'd ever heard. It made his hair stand on end though. Then she used her hand, the one still resting by his cheek that he had all but forgotten about in his haste to explain the situation, to get a hold of his neck. With the leverage thus gained and a little push from her legs, she slid up along his body until her head could move freely in the crook of his neck. Ranma almost cried out as the friction her body produced shot waves of fire through him.
"A.. Akane..?" he stammered helplessly in face of the fact that, if she continued to do stuff like this, his resolve to not do anything perverted might go down faster than the 'Titanic'. And just like Captain Smith he too saw his doom coming, only that it was no iceberg that ripped a line through his protective shielding. He felt little kisses and little bites being placed just beneath his ear and working their way down to his shoulders.
"What the.. what are you..?" Again he got distracted as her other hand began to crawl down his lower back, suddenly grabbing his butt to pull their bodies closer together. The increased pressure on his nether-regions put a very interesting strain on a very sensitive body-part. Ranma couldn't take it anymore. He yelped, and with a shudder rattling his body, he buried his face in her shoulder, his free arm crushing her torso to his in an almost spasmodic embrace. Naturally, this didn't make things any easier for him, because now his ear was close to her throat and he couldn't help but notice all the guttural, little noises she kept making. Those really got to him in a way his already failing restraint couldn't manage anymore. In a last-ditch effort he tried to shut out all those impressions threatening to cut loose his usually oh-so well-guarded libido.
This was what Akane wanted. More than that, this was what Akane needed. Nobody and nothing standing between them. No foes, no family, no stupid fiancées. Not even their own misdirected perceptions about what was the right or wrong thing to do or say. Just her and Ranma. Her Ranma. No matter if there had been a wedding or not, deep down he had been always hers. Maybe as an unwanted gift at first, but almost inperceptively he had turned into something so elementary to her very being that she couldn't truly imagine living without him. So what if she never told him? He was here in her arms, his body responding to her slightest touch, the tiniest brush of her lips, ridiculing any remarks about unsexy tomboys he had ever made and giving her a feeling of control she never experienced anywhere else in her life. It was simply overwhelming to know that she could affect him this way. And therefore, as she noticed a throbbing appendage pressing into her thigh that wasn't previously accounted for consciously, she took it as a further indicator of just how much she was affecting him. Acting on a naughty impulse she reached down to check for herself the state of his passion. And why not? After all, this was her dream..
'Ice-storms, uncute, cold showers, mallets, Soul-of-Ice, pervert, ..'
Ranma desperately repeated those words like a mantra while he helplessly watched his defenses crumble under Akane's passionate ministrations.
Too bad that Ice-storms only reminded him of what had forced them into this situation.
Too bad that he already knew that 'uncute' was just a worn-out lie.
Too bad that cold-showers and a girl's body were one and the same, well at least in his case.
And he even suspected that mallets were somehow a weird sign of passion.
He felt like crying as the carnal beast that lurked deep inside even the most celibate of saints threatened to break its shackles. The helpless feeling of being unable to do anything to make it stop, of maybe even wanting Akane to make him loose control, to give him an excuse for something he simply knew she would hate him for afterwards, made him want to roar in frustration. The scream got stuck in his throat though as another unexpected experience threatened to shut his brain down. A hand that most definitely wasn't his own had taken his most sensitive body-part in a firm but gentle grip, all fingers curled around the shaft except one that stroked the area along the base.
"So I'm not sexy, hmm..?" he heard Akane purr into his ear. "Doesn't seem that way to me..."
The only response he was able to give at the moment was a very audible gulp as he was too busy with keeping his eyes inside his skull. He thought he heard her mumble something but he couldn't understand one word.
"W.. what..?" Ranma asked absentmindedly as most of his awareness was currently somewhere else.
"..all mine.." he heard her repeat contently, "..better remember that."
This statement managed to set off some alarms in the back of his head that, sadly, or luckily, depending on your preferences, got drowned out in the general tumble of his emotions as fast as they had appeared.
"Remember what..?" he managed to press through clenched teeth.
"This.." she explained to him in a way that made him see her grin even in the darkness, while giving his dick a light squeeze, ".. belongs to me. Got that?"
Again, all that Ranma could do was gulp, his brain still in a state of shock. After all, she couldn't really mean that, right? Meanwhile, Akane got impatient with her dream-lover. With another squeeze, maybe a little less gentle than the first one, she reminded him that he still owed her an answer.
"Who does it belong to..?" she requested in a low voice.
With still no answer coming from her stupefied mate, she squeezed even harder, reminding him of an all-important fact.
"Remember.. got you by the balls.. darling."
"Gnaagh.." Ranma replied, the pain in his groins overriding much of his earlier arousal and cutting through his petrifaction like a katana through an old cucumber. The problem was that, even though this resupplied him with part of his wit, he suddenly found himself in a no-win situation. Because just like any other man faced with the choice between castration and, let's say, eternal, humiliating damnation in agonizing slavery, he already knew the outcome.
"To.. to you..?" he asked cautiously.
There was an ominous pause as Ranma waited for a reaction to those words. He got it in form of a lessening pressure on his partially deflated member and a purring fiancée gently resuming her prior ministrations.
"Yep, ..to me.." she agreed in a dreamy voice "..and you know what?"
"Yeah..?"
"..I'll never let go again.."
In a way the passion was gone. Or rather, it had lost it's urgency. She didn't need to go all the way today. For some reason she didn't feel up to the task anyway. As soon as Ranma had acknowledged her claim, it was suddenly enough to simply keep touching him. The unbiased affection of those tender caresses, the innocence behind that need for intimate contact, gave her a greater feeling of fulfillment than even the most arousing of her prior dreams ever had. The funny part was, that in those dreams Ranma usually made far greater commitments, telling her of her beauty, of how much he loved her and that he could never live without her. The usual mushy stuff. But on those occasions he had always sounded more like something out of a movie, not so reluctant, so scared, so..well.. Ranma. It was hard to explain, but it made all the difference. So Akane relaxed in the security of her lover's embrace and allowed herself to be carried into other dreams.
He could feel her relax in his arms, her head sinking back and her ministrations slowly subsiding. In a way he was relieved that she hadn't gone further, in another way he was disappointed. Ranma didn't complain though. For now, he was content that she seemed to recover quite nicely from her case of hypothermia. Briefly he wondered if he had simply dreamed the whole episode, but he quickly discarded the thought because honestly, his dreams usually made more sense than this. But he couldn't help to wonder what had made her act like that. Ranma had to admit that he kind of liked this unexpected side of her. A smile was plastered all over his face as he cautiously arranged their bodies in a more comfortable position. For a while he was content to gently stroke her hair, listening to the soft snores she emitted near his ear.
"Good night, tomboy.." he finally whispered before placing a tender kiss on her cheek without a second thought. Closing his eyes he noticed, just before drifting off to sleep, that, true to her word, she never let go of him.
Waking up is always a strenuous task. And if you are subconsciously aware that there is a freezing world waiting for you outside of your warm and cozy bedstead, that knowledge doesn't help at all. All you want to do in a situation like that is turn around and doze for an additional couple of hours. Especially if you've got nothing else planned for the day anyway. But there's one thing that will scrap those wonderful plans in the most obnoxious way possible. It's called a bladder. And at the moment it was forcing a bleary-eyed Akane to struggle out of this comfy sleeping-bag and embark on a frantic hunt for some clothes. Her pajamas she found immediately but none of her other clothes. So she donned Ranma's coat instead as well as his boots. She didn't care as long as it kept her warm. Stepping out of the tent she hurried over to a couple of bushes she had used for the same purpose the day before. There, Akane relieved herself of her most pressing need. But now that her mind was finally off that urgent business and with the cold air of this chilly winter-morning dispersing the last of the sleep induced fog clouding her perception, she started to notice one or two peculiar details. Like, how did Ranma's clothes end up in her tent? The answer to this became pretty obvious as she walked back to the camp. There was some fresh snow lying undisturbed in front of her own tent while the traces she had made on her way to the lavatory led to the smaller, dome-shaped one. Ranma's tent. She had obviously spent the night in Ranma's tent! But how? She didn't remember coming over last night even though, deep down, she knew that this would have been the smarter choice. Especially considering what little protection her tent had offered in terms of warmth. So what had happened? Had Ranma simply dragged her over during the night? She wouldn't put it beyond him. As far as she could tell, he might prefer that to simply ask her over. An idiot, maybe, but a caring one. That wouldn't save him from getting bonk'ed of cause, after all there were standards to uphold. But she would possibly go easy on him this time. Still something nagged at her and she couldn't put her finger down on it. Maybe if she talked with Ranma about last night she might figure out what bugged her. With that thought in mind she headed for his tent, and just as she stuck her head through the flaps it hit her like a ton of bricks. Only one sleeping-bag. Une. Uno. Eins. And she had been naked when she woke up. Did this mean...
"Oh my god.."
No bucket of water emptied over his head, no nagging father going on and on about martial-arts training, no fiancée screaming his name, plus perfect bladder-control. So why on earth should Ranma bother to wake up? A valid question, but he opened his bleary eyes anyway. Rolling on his back, he stared at the ceiling of his tent. Man, what a night. Had she really grabbed him THERE? Yupp, she had. No way he would imagine something like that. A smile played across his lips. That girl, always getting him into situations like this. And when something went wrong it was of course always his fault. That reminded him of something. Akane was obviously already up but he didn't feel like she had bashed him yet. Well, that was probably only a matter of time. After all, what could he probably tell her that wouldn't result in a beating? 'Hey Akane, sorry I had to strip you last night, but it was only in your own best interest. You don't mind, do you?' Like hell she wouldn't. Though, if last night was any indication, it might be worth it, weathering this storm. After all, one malleting more or less wouldn't make much difference to him and after that she might be more inclined to hear him out. A short vision of the both of them lying cuddled in a tight knot and chatting idly about this and that filled his mind for some glorious moments. Until the real world called him back in form of an opening flap. Turning his head he saw Akane stare at him. Any other time he would have laughed at her sight, with her hair sticking out wildly from under his funny hat she was still wearing and her nose red from the coldness outside. But that look of absolute terror on her face drenched any mirth he might have experienced otherwise.
"Oh my god.." was all he heard her whisper before she bolted away.
No!
No way!
Impossible!
He couldn't have..!
She would remember if he..
I they..
But how..
The pervert..!
Just the two of them..
Alone..
Helpless..
Helpless..?
Had he..?
No!
He would never..!
But why..?
How..?
Naked..
Warm..
Warm..?
She should have known..
Known what..
Something would happen..
Had to..
How..?
When..?
Why..?
Why no memories..?
Only fragments..
Images..
Dreams..
Dreams..?
Ranma cursed under his breath as he rushed after his wayward fiancée.
"Damn, when did she learn to run that fast! I'm gonna turn into an icicle 'til I catch up with her.."
A plausible estimation considering that he only wore a hastily donned sweater and some pants at the moment. Not the most protective of garments against this icy weather, but then again, his boots and his coat were still running ahead of him. His numbing feet skidded across the fresh snow as he rushed down a hill, more gliding than running as he tried to keep up with Akane.
"Stupid tomboy, now that what I get for saving her butt..."
Just then he noticed that her mad dash had stopped, her suddenly motionless figure a silhouette against the rising sun. He cancelled his own tempo and approached her in a more cautious pace.
"Akane?" he called out.
No answer came forth, but as he came closer he noticed why. She seemed completely focused on her right hand that she held up against the light, examining it like some strange find.
"Akane?" he tried again, getting her attention this time.
"Yeah..?" she replied, sounding completely out of it.
"Listen, because of last night.." he started out hastily, "..I can explain that. You see.."
"Ranma." This cut his explanation short. Not because she shouted or cried at him. Simply because she delivered his name in a quiet, shaking voice. A horrified voice.
"I.. I can't remember.." she continued, almost choking on the words. "Did we.. did we.."
She didn't really have to spell it out for him. Her posture, looking like she was contemplating to hack off her arm, the terror sounding through every word she spoke, already did that for him. Ranma couldn't exactly see the disgusted expression on her face, thanks to the sun in her back, but then again, he didn't need to. You don't call a guy names like 'pervert' for a prolonged period of time without giving him an idea or two about what exactly you think of the concept of getting intimate with him.
"No," he answered in a suddenly much calmer, almost reserved voice, "we didn't do nothing. So don't worry."
He watched as her posture relaxed with his words, her shoulders slumping and a sigh of relief escaping her lips. She didn't say anything else though, no 'whoop' of joy, no lecture about him scaring her. Akane simply stood there, lost in contemplation. A light wind came up, cutting through Ranma's sparse cloth, and though his mind didn't register that much, his body did, resulting in a shiver. Rubbing his arms to produce some warmth, he realized that he was way past time for returning to camp. Figuring that Akane was unlikely to do anything rash just now and that he wasn't her favorite company anyway, he decided to leave. Turning around, he cast one last look over his shoulder. She hadn't moved yet and he wondered if she would even notice if he was gone.
'Probably not,' he thought sadly, 'probably not at all..'
We didn't do nothing..
Yes, those words relieved her. Though she didn't take them at face-value. Waking up butt-naked next to someone you had a longstanding history of warring emotions with could hardly be labeled 'nothing'. But they hadn't gone all the way.. they hadn't done the deed,.. they hadn't..
'Damn,' Akane chided herself, 'I can't even think it. What a joke. We didn't have sex, that's what we didn't. Sex. Sex! Sex, sex, SEX BLOODY SEX..!!'
Standing with her head bowed, almost panting from the mental exertion, she allowed herself a wry smile.
'There, it wasn't that hard, was it?'
And no, it really wasn't. It was funny in a way, how she was able to dream about things that she would simply die talking about out loud. And why was that? Because it could lead to those dreams becoming a reality? So what? Wasn't that something she wanted anyway? At least when she wasn't angry, or confused, or plain scared. She had to admit that those emotions took up a pretty big part of her days. And who's fault was that? Ranma's of course, well mostly anyway. But a little, a tiny, itsy-bitsy little bit, was hers. Hers alone.
She raised her head, looking back to where Ranma had vanished to. He hadn't looked too happy when he had left. Small wonder, he must have been freezing in his light clothes. Why did he go and run after her in such a getup anyway? Oh, right, she was wearing his stuff. He was such a moron sometimes. One of those times he was going to hurt himself, always running after her without thinking, like he usually did. As it was, he stood a pretty good chance of catching a cold already. It would be better if she returned and gave him back his clothes. And maybe change into something more appropriate than her pajamas. Yes, that's what she would do.
Ranma himself wasn't very concerned about his health. After he had returned to his tent, he simply sat down on his sleeping bag and rubbed his feet back to sensitivity. Sure, once he got them there, they developed into a real pain but he ignored it. If they hurt then they were still alive, so that was fine with him. Not that he had been too worried about developing frostbite. After all, if he had once survived giving his whole body a deep-freeze in his fight with Mr. Firebird of the Phoenix-people, what could a little snow possibly do to him? He did don two pairs of pretty thick socks though, just to stay on the safe side. Then he started to gather his equipment. He figured that he should be able to get most off his stuff packed before Akane returned. And when she would graciously come back then he would put down the tents while she could get her own things together and they might be on the road by noon. But as he sat there, folding his little stove and securing it in his pack, he couldn't help but let his mind drift back to last night. She had called his name, that was true. So what? That didn't really mean that she had been aware of his presence. Or that she had dreamed of him at that. After all, how many of his own dreams had started out with one of the other girls groping him or trying to kiss him and suddenly the scene had changed and suddenly he was holding… Anyway, dreams weren't exactly famous for their continuity, so maybe she had started out dreaming of him and then his dream-persona had changed into someone she, well, liked more. That would explain why she had sounded so contend, so.. passionate. Hah, she hadn't just sounded passionate, she had god-damn grabbed him by the balls! Well, not him as such. She wouldn't touch HIM there, that much had been made clear out there. But whoever she had been dreaming about, it had been his nuts that almost got cracked. Now, who did she try to blackmail into that stupid pledge anyway? And, hey, it was blackmail if he ever saw one. Living with someone like Nabiki gave him a lot of experience on that topic. It couldn't be Kuno. She wouldn't have to go to any lengths to get him in the sack. Man, what was he thinking, of course it couldn't be Kuno. Doc Tofu? Could be. Maybe she wasn't over her crush on him after all. But then again, the Doc had moved away a while ago, hadn't he? So her chances on living out her dream were rather slim. So should that make him feel good or bad now? The same was true in case it had been that Shinnosuke-guy. He was still back in his forest. That was a pretty far way from home. The only guy he knew actually managing to craw into her bed in real-life was Ryouga. Only she didn't know about that. Or did she? No, Akane wouldn't play games like that. If she would be fooling around with bacon-breath he would know. Hell, Ryouga would have told him, and in no uncertain terms. Wouldn't it be funny though if Akane dreamed about sleeping with umbrella-boy while she actually did a lot of the time? Ranma thought about it but somehow failed to see the humor of the situation. Might have been the lack of breakfast, but he didn't feel like laughing at the moment.
Akane heard the clanging of pots from Ranma's tent as she finally found her way back, so she knew exactly where to find him. Ducking through the entrance, she saw Ranma stuff his remaining possessions into his pack and fasten the straps.
"Ranma?" she called out confused. "What are you doing?"
"Gee, what does it look like?" he replied without any outward sign of surprise by her appearance. "I'm packing, that's what."
"Hey, I can see that," Akane snapped indignantly. Then, in a less confident voice she continued. "But I thought we'd stay here for a while?"
"Huh, why would we do that?" He looked up from his pack, a light frown grazing his features. "Your tent ain't no good in this type of weather, so I figure it's better we head home. This trip has been a stupid idea anyway."
Akane wondered about this. Until now, he had seemed determined to pull this trip through, even if it was just to get away from their nagging fathers. And now he wanted to go home after just one day? Ranma just wasn't the type to give up at the first complication.
"If my tent's that bad, couldn't I just...you know, sleep in here?" she asked, gesturing at the empty ground in general.
The frown on Ranma's face didn't grow any less with her unexpected proposal.
"Your sleeping-bag ain't much better than your tent. You would still be too cold. Say, you're not in any hurry to freeze to your death, are you?"
Akane raised an eyebrow, one part of the puzzle finally falling into place.
"Is that why you brought me in here last night.?"
He didn't answer that question, at least not directly. He only shrugged and returned to the all-important task of tending to his pack.
Not that there was much left to do, but he didn't want her to notice the blush creeping up his cheeks.
Akane wouldn't let it rest though.
"And was stripping me naked actually necessary or couldn't you just resist the chance to get a cheap feel or two while you were at it?" she asked him provokingly.
"Hey, watch it!" he called out, his head snapping up though he never looked at her directly, his fists clenching into his pack.. "It didn't do that for fun! Just so you know, that's simply how you treat a freezing person, even if it's an uncute, unsexy.. , un.. " Ranma shook his head in defeat, suddenly at a loss for words as his short-lived rage made room for frustration. "Aah, you know what I mean.." he finished lamely.
"Actually, I do." Akane agreed, sounding strangely amused. And when Ranma looked up at her, confused by the lack of aggression in her response, she even sported a wry grin.
"For someone who's so damn good at staying cool in a fight," she told him in the same funny voice, "you're pretty easy to provoke any other time, ever noticed that?"
"Yeah, right, like you're the one to talk.." he mumbled, trying to glare at her but failing miserably.
"Probably not," Akane agreed with a shrug. Bridging the gap between them, she dropped on her haunches to come level with his face. "But I think I know a way to get better.." Her hand came up, close enough to his cheek that he could feel her warmth but not quite touching. They shared a frown that moment, his one of confusion and hers one of hesitation.
"I.. I believe we should stay," she continued, an urgent note entering her voice. "There's nobody here to disturb us or to tell us what to do, or not to. That's solely up to us. So maybe that's a chance for us to, you know, cool down a little. And maybe we could.."
Unable to come to terms with what she was proposing to him, Ranma reached up and grabbed the hand still hovering next to his cheek by the wrist. Somehow it reminded him more of a slap than anything else. Akane, feeling the power behind that grip, could only stare at his rapidly darkening expression.
"Sounds really cozy," he told her in a harsh voice that contradicted his words. "Just you 'n me and the sleeping-bag, huh? Now that sounds more like something our dads would come up with. Scrap that, it's exactly what they came up with it! Or why do you think they supplied you with that junk in the first place?" He pulled her closer by her arm, his voice dropping to a hiss as their noses almost touched. "Listen, I don't know why you're suddenly so eager to play along, but I ain't. So drop the act already." With those words he let go of her arm, pushing it away in fact. Reacting quickly despite her shock, Akane managed to remain upright by putting her arms behind her, her eyes never breaking contact with Ranma's.
"This is no act.." she insisted desperately.
Ranma didn't seem impressed, if anything his scowl getting worse. One of his arms shot up, gesturing towards the exit.
"Oh yeah? If that's so, then why did you look like you're going to puke out there? Why did you run like all hell was after you? Frankly, I'm almost surprised you still got that hand. You sure looked like you wanted to rip it off just then!"
Akane could only stare at him with wide eyes, her mouth working soundlessly as she digested his tirade. Finally she got some words out.
"You.. You.." Suddenly her body catapulted forward, tackling a surprised Ranma, the leading shoulder knocking the wind right out of him with brutal force. "You bonehead!"
The force of the attack carried them to the other side of the tent, no big distance, but not bad for a sitting start either.
They ended up in a heap and Akane used the advantage of a still winded Ranma to pin him down, sitting on his stomach and holding down his arms.
"You want to know why I panicked?" she screamed down at him. "You want to know why I was scared? I'm gonna tell you why, and I don't care if you gonna laugh about it or not. Do you remember China? Then you sure remember how I almost died over there, right? Well I don't! All I remember is waking up in your arms and hearing you say that you loved me. But that was all I needed to know. It didn't matter anymore that you were some stupid, insensitive, arrogant… brat most of the time. It didn't matter that you never paid me compliments or took me out or things like that. And when dad came up with another wedding I even said 'yes'. I don't know if you ever thought about it, but there's something that's supposed to happen between a bride and her groom on the wedding-night, and that's nothing I'd ever do with someone I despise!" Akane breathed heavily, the adrenaline coursing through her system making her heart run wild. And maybe a little from the way she was sitting on Ranma, holding him down. Though the fact that he had stopped squirming helped her concentrate on the important issues.
"But of course, things went wrong.." she told him, a little calmer maybe, but no less intense, "We just had to get in an argument again and you just had to deny everything and then the others just had to show up… You know the story, you've been there after all. Well, things got back to normal again soon after that, but for me, normal wasn't enough anymore. I had felt so sure about you, even if it was only for a short time and I couldn't stand that old guessing-game anymore. And to make things worse I started to dream about what should have been. I knew exactly how you were feeling about me in those dreams, because you told me, again and again. And I could reach out and touch you without you backing away or you would come over and just hold me. And sometimes,.. sometimes.,. well, like I said, you surely do know what couples do on their wedding-night? And the next morning I wake up and it was once again just a dream. It was so frustrating! To see you every morning and you're still that same big-mouthed jerk as always and to know that anything else is just my own stupid fantasy…" Shaking her head sadly, Akane looked down, pleading for understanding from her shell-shocked fiancé, her voice dropping to something barely above a whisper. "But this morning was different. Because I had one of those dreams again, but when I woke up, you were still there. And it felt so right, so natural, that I didn't stop to think about it until I had to get up. Sure, once I actually was up I started to wonder, but you know what? I didn't have the slightest of clues what had happened. This might have been the most important night of my life, something I'd want to remember to the end of time, and I simply missed it! Leaving me with nothing but some confusing impressions like out of one of those dreams. Dreams that had never been real before. I just couldn't take it. And that's why I panicked.. That's why I ran.. "
Ranma simply lay on his back, not by choice but too confused at the moment to do anything about it. He was stunned by the sheer force of emotions running through him, both his own and those of the girl pinning him to the ground. He didn't know whether to believe her or not. Whether he dared to or not. Akane dreaming of him? That kind of dream? It was such an alien concept, and yet such an alluring one. And she sounded so sincere, so desperate. It was almost impossible that this was just an act. But how could this be real? She had always been so distant, so rejecting, when it came to anything physical. Especially of late she had kept her distance pretty thoroughly. Well, except for the occasional punch in his face. Truth be told, he hadn't acted much different either. Yet, if Akane should chose to scuttle a little backwards right now, she would no doubt find out that he was attracted to her anyway, never mind his protests telling otherwise. So if she insisted on feeling the same way...
Akane continued to watch her fiancé, waiting for a response, a sign, anything to show that he understood. But he was simply staring back at her with a blank expression, eyes unfocused. Just as she considered slapping him, to snap him out it, whatever 'it' may be, the corners of his mouth came up in a soft grin.
"Man," he said dreamily, "I never thought anyone could look good wearing that stupid hat."
"What?!" she called out, confused by the unexpected remark.
"Remember my hat? The fluffy one with the flaps? You're still wearing it."
Without thought, Akane's hands shot up to the sides of her head and, true to his words, she wore that stupid thing, though she couldn't explain how it got there in the first place. Suddenly, there was a shout of 'An opening! and Ranma's did a sit-up, swiftly securing Akane's position on his lap by snaking his arms around her waist before she had a chance to slide off him.
"You know," he told her in a low voice before she could protest, his nose just inches from hers, "If you're just making this up I'm gonna take that real bad…"
Akane gulped, mesmerized by the intense look in his eyes.
"I'm not making this up.." she finally managed to croak.
Ranma seemed to consider her answer for a while before he simply nodded.
"Good," he said, the grin slowly returning to his features. That was all he did. He just sat there on the ground, grinning at Akane while simply holding her securely in place.
She got restless after a while, his continued silence making her nervous.
"Aren't you going to say anything?" she finally asked, unable to take it any longer.
"Sure," he agreed with a cocky grin, but nothing more coming forth.
"And..?" she querried, impatient for any kind of reaction to her confessions.
The look of Ranma's face changed slightly, getting a little more thoughtfull though he still kept that grin in place.
"You ever noticed that half of my troubles start with me shooting off my mouth without thinking?" he finally asked.
Akane let out a sigh, nodding her head in agreement.
"You could say that…"
"See," he told her wistfully, "that's why I'm taking my time to think first . And you've got to promise me something."
Akane frowned slightly, wondering about what he was building up to.
"And what's that?"
"Not much," he replied with a shrug, "just that you won't kill me 'till I'm through with explaining. Think you can do that?"
Akane simply stared at him, considering her options. Kill him? Why should she want to do that? But then, giving his skill with words, she might probably feel like it. And interrupt something she wanted quite badly that way, if he was really about to give it. An answer to the question of how he was feeling for her. Frankly, she couldn't afford to botch up a chance like this.
"Ok, I won't interrupt you," she agreed in a serious voice.
"Pinky promise?" he asked, holding up his right hand.
Akane couldn't help a giggle escaping her because of his innocent, wide-eyed expression, and his childish behaviour.
"Pinky promise!" she confirmed, encircling his little finger with her own.
"Back when you told me that you heard me saying that I love you," Ranma began after taking a deep breath, "you really got me there. Because you see, I don't really remember everything I said to you, I mean, you could have been dead! I wasn't really in a mood to take notes. But I tried to remember anyway and the more I thought about it.. I.. I'm still sure that I didn't say those words."
As soon as this was out, Ranma could feel Akane stiffen on his lap. One hand pushing away against his chest while the other tried to break free from his little finger. Her expression, shocked at first, transformed to a hurt glare as her mouth opened to suck in breath, for a angry reply no doubt. But for once, Ranma wouldn't have any of this.
"Stuff it Akane! You promised..!" he growled at her, forcing up their still linked hands for her to see and returning her glare with one of his own. There was a long moment of silence, interrupted only by their heavy breathing, like two prize-fighters panting in their corners and waiting for the next round. Finally Akane deflated a bit. She still sat stiff as a board and glared at him, but it was clear that she wouldn't do anything rash, yet. Ranma nodded in approval, his posture relaxing slightly.
"You know, that's one of the real big problems between us," he told her, sounding slightly pained, "you never let me get to the good part.."
This brought a crack into Akane's glare, as confusion became a part of her dominant emotions. Ranma noticed this, relieved that she obviously seemed to listen to him. So he continued, desperate to deliver his message as long as it lasted
"Like I said, I'm pretty sure I didn't say it because, at the point were I could have said anything like that, I was already too damn busy screaming your name at the top of my lungs. But the strange thing is, I'm not sure if that proves that you're wrong about it either. You said that you're sure that you heard me 'somehow'. And who knows? Between all that we've been through, you know, like monsters and ghosts and.. and curses.."
By now Akane had given in to confusion completely, looking at him with wide eyes while trying desperately to understand what he was getting at. Ranma, for his part, changed his grip, releasing one finger to take the whole hand in an almost painfull hold as he tried to gather his courage to continue.
"I guess the bottom-line is," he finally conluded in a nervous voice, "that if you're sure that you heard it, then maybe that's true too. It just wasn't coming from my mouth…"
Now it was Ranma's turn to wait for a reply and as he did so, he started to fidget. Akane, for her part, seemed frozen in place, her big-eye'ed expression one of disbelief, mixed with more than a little fear. For all she knew Ranma would never say something like that outside of a dream and yet, if she would wake up now and find this just another one of her fantasies, then she knew she would die on the spot. Well, maybe not exactly die, but at least she would be ready to show even Ryouga a thing or two about depressions. Akane wasn't even sure if that was the scary part. Because if this was all real, then Ranma had just admitted that they might already have crossed the line where a simple 'I love you' really mattered. If that was true it wasn't for them to chose whether they wanted to stay together or not. Once again. They simply had to, like they had to breathe and sleep and eat. All the independence she always longed for out of reach forever because of one stupid, insensitive, braggant boy. And somehow, it made her feel so.. so..
Ranma almost jerked as he saw the expression on Akane's face turn from a confused one to something deadly serious.
"Ranma," she said in a strangely neutral voice, "let go."
The she simply waited for him to heed her words. And he did so, reluctantly, even if it was simply out of shock. His mouth working wordlessly he let his hands drop to his sides. His face took on a defeated expression as he watched Akane gather her feet beneath her and hover over him in a crouch, looking around the tent while nodding to herself.
"This will have to do.." he heard her say before she suddenly grabbed him by the front of his shirt and hoisted him up in a feat of strenghth, only to immediately throw him down again, right onto the sleeping-bag.
"Hey, why did you do that.." he shouted more out of reflex as he got up on his elbows..
"Stop whining, idiot," was all he got for a reply from the girl that was currently busy making sure that the flaps of the tent were shut tight. To Ranma's surprise she didn't sound angry or mad, if anything she sounded impatient. So he figured the best course of action to do exactly as she told him and shut up. He had the feeling that he would get his answer pretty soon anyway.
Turning around after sealing the entrance, Akane noticed with satisfaction that Ranma was still right in the spot where she had put him. She moved to the middle of the tent, the only place where she was able to stand upright, and looked down at him with a calculating grin.
"You know," she told the obviously still startled boy as she pushed the shoes from her feet, kicking them aside, "you can have your clothes back."
Then she put off the jacked, flinging it towards the backpack.
"I'm going to keep the hat though," she continued as she walked forward slowly, measuring every step for maximum effect. And as she reached her gasping fiancé, she stepped over him and unceremonically sat down on his lap, hands resting firmly upon his shoulders. "If that's ok with you?"
Ranma looked at his strangely acting fiancée in disbelief, absentmindedly nodding his approval while what passed for his conscient thinking was completely occupied with getting to grips with the situation. The girl currently kneeling over him, her posture, her expression, the way she acted, this wasn't the girl that used to bash him into the wall, screaming bloody murder. And it wasn't the girl that had smiled at him, asking to be friends or welcoming him home with a hug. No, this was a girl he only met once, last night, when she had no quirms with grabbing him by the balls to get what she wanted.
'Oh goody,' he thought as he noticed his body react the same way it had back then. Somehow he knew that this time she wouldn't simply fall asleep again before anything else could happen. Probably because of that hungry glint he saw in her eyes. As if she considered him her breakfast and lunch all in one. And honestly, if she'd asked him to pass the soy-sauce right now, he knew that he would, wishing 'Bon appetite' by the way.
..so powerful, that was what she was feeling like. And this feeling alone almost made her squirm with pleasure. Ranma was completely in her hands now. Quite literally so, if last night had really been more than just a dream. She knew that if she wanted to, she could probably make him say, do or promise about anything she desired. She saw it in the way he looked at her, intense longing mixed with fear that she might shy away if he startled her in any way. Little did he know that their combined families and suitors could have barged in that moment and she still wouldn't have let herself be distracted from him. Because he was hers now, and she would make sure that he knew that too. Only where to start? Decisions, decisions..
She finally opted for the classic, a passionate kiss square on his lips. It contained enough fire to burn down a small village and the spark caught instantly. Ranma tried to lean into her, to get up far enough so he could get his weight off his arms, but she wouldn't let him. Using brute strength, she wrestled him down onto his back, staying glued to his lips all the while. This was obviously fine with him because now his limbs were free too and he instantly snaked them around her, one hand digging into her hair, the other one roaming her back. Akane wasn't content with simply kissing him either. Left arm under his neck supporting most of her weight she pushed her right hand under his shirt to stroke his chest. And when they finally came up for air, panting with exhaustion from this uncustomary exercise, they shared a wide-eyed look as if they saw one another for the first time. They obviously liked what they saw, and what they did, and what it felt like, because manic grins broke out on both of their faces simultaneously. So without waisting their precious breath for useless acts like talking, they got right back to business.
It was around noon when they finally came to a rest, lying spent amidst the folds of both of their sleeping-bags. The tent around them was strewn with their hastily discarded clothes, not that they actually minded, and the only thing any of them still wore was the fur-laced cap crowning Akane's head. The same head that currently rested on Ranma's shoulder. And as far as he was concerned, he had never in his live seen a picture more perfect.
"Why did we wait so long?" he whispered as he stroked an unruly strand of hair out of her face.
"Idiot," she replied without any trace of malice, "you don't actually believe I would do this with a guy I just met, do you?"
To accentuate her point, she let her hand wander to a place clearly below his waistline. Her head rose up a little for a better look at his face.
"Anyway, I think it was worth the wait," she concluded with her brightest 'knock-the-baka-out-of-his-socks' smile. He had never been able to argue with her when she acted like that, but even if he could, he wouldn't have been interested right now.
"You're right," he said before stealing a quick kiss from her. "Even if a lot of people ain't gonna like this."
"That's next week's problem," she reminded him with a sly grin. "And right now, my imagination works only as far as this week."
This raised his eyebrow in suspicion.
"Oh, and what's that you're imagening?"
As if he didn't already have a very detailed idea.
"Well, our fathers called this a training-trip. So among other things, I figure that's what we're going to do. With a special focus on endurance training. " She placed a light kiss on his cheek, "Very hard," and on the edge of his jaw, "very strenuous," and on his chin, "endurance training…" before kissing him passionately on the lips.
Suspicion confirmed.
But what the heck, Ranma was used to work out beyond exhaustion.
And for once he knew that he would simply love every minute of it.
It turned out to be one of the harshest winters in Japanese history, with rocks bursting from the humidity turning to ice in their cracks while the snow piled up higher and higher, covering every hill, rock, tree or bush. The great structures build by man, the citys with their houses and fences and roads were likewise hidden beneath a thick layer of white. And even in those appartments sporting state-of-the-art isolation, with the central-heating running full-throttle, people still shivered and put on aditional clothing or blankets or whatever they could think of to keep them warm. But no matter how ghastly the outward conditions in the one region where this winter struck the hardest, in a little tent in an out-of-the-way valey in the middle of Hokkaido, one Akane Tendo, well, a Tendo for now though her name might change soon enough, never had to freeze in her sleep again. Those times she actually managed to get some sleep anyway.
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Author Nr.2's notes: (Please feel free to ignore.)
Oi, I know what you're going to say. I wrote some fanfic again so it just HAD to be some Ranma and Akane mush. So what? I love those two. And, hey, call it lack of imagination but throughout the series they're the one pairing that simply HAS to happen. Don't believe me? Read the manga and you will. If you only saw the TV-series though, I understand if you have some doubts. I mean, sometimes Akane really acts there like a bi.. (Ouch! Where'd that mallet come from..?) Actually, I've got a theory about that. I believe the whole TV-series is one big Alternate-Universe fanfic. And not exactly one of the Top 100. Anyway, except for the OAV's and maybe the movies, I can only recomend the books. They sure make a lot more sense too. In stark contrast to the stuff I'm writing here. Which is good in a way because I don't get paid for this and this would be a waste of talent if I actually had any. (And no, I'm not fishing for compliments.) Hmm.., this seems like a good time to go to bed. I think I start loosing coherence again.. And who knows, maybe I dream up a sequel..heh,heh..
R. Martin
