A Ranma ½ Fanfic by INABN

Original Ranma ½ Characters and Settings ©Rumiko Takahashi

Used without express permission.

Wasurenagusa Chapter One: Ignorance is Bliss?

            Another bright morning arrived for those residing in the Tendou dojo, home to the School of Indiscriminate Grappling, better known as Anything Goes Martial Arts.  The sun was shining brightly through soft clouds, and birds were singing pleasantly amidst the leaves of the trees.  Overall, the day showed the signs of a peaceful start.  Then as if on some perverse cue a loud yell split the air followed immediately by the splash of a fair amount of cold water.

            Sopping wet, a rather large panda pulled itself from the pond in the back yard.  The panda narrowed its eyes in the direction of the dojo.  From the porch, leading up into the dojo, a young dark haired man rolled his eyes at the plodding panda.  "Getting slow in your age pop?"  The query received no response other than a chuff from the throat of the panda.  "Well, c'mon Kasumi told me breakfast is ready old man."

            Seemingly from out of nowhere, a wooden sign appeared in the panda's hand.  Breakfast? Hurry up boy!   Then with that the huge form dashed into the house brushing past the startled youth.  In the rush, a broad paw thumped the boy in the back, launching him like a rocket toward the koi pond.  "Aiii, watch what yer doing old maa…" Following the outcry, those in the house heard another splash from the pond.

            Moments later the screen door leading out to the back slid open again.  In the doorway, a diminutive redheaded girl glowered at the pandas back.  "Why'd ya go an' do that pop?"  Glistening water pooled around her feet and she stomped in, plopping down on her knees beside the table.  Glaring daggers at the panda, she picked up her chopsticks and began eating.  "So, Ranma...you planning on going to school like that, again?"  One of the other three girls around the table asked in a snickered tone.

            "Very funny Nabiki, very funny…" the redhead trailed off sarcastically.  "You know that I'd not go like this with him waiting."  Ranma suppressed a shudder at the mere thought of the egotistical Kunou.  "The Blue Blunder will just have ta get his jollies from someone else today."  The redhead failed to notice a shadow looming just over her head.  "I mean that jerk needs to find a healthier obsession, one that doesn't involve lusting after my body.  Not that I blame him of course what with," Ranma never finished the sentence as her face was thrust into the table by the force of a heavy flowerpot striking from above.

            "Now Akane, that wasn't very nice."  The comment came from an older girl, one wearing an apron.  "I'm sure Ranma didn't mean anything by it."  The calm tone of her sister Kasumi succeeded in cooling down Akane's flaring temper.  With something of a cross between a huff and a sigh, Akane sat down again.  "Now, finish your breakfast, or you'll all be late for class, again."  Kasumi ceased speaking and began to start eating her own meal.

            "Uncute tomboy," was muttered, or something similar to that, since the groan from the redhead was muffled as she struggled to remove her face from the newly imprinted tabletop.  Another day started with a bang, Ranma thought as she peeled herself from the surprisingly undamaged table.  Shooting a glance at the time, the three younger girls gave a start, they were going to be late again if they didn't get going.  "Um, Kasumi…any hot," the redhead began to ask just as Kasumi pleasantly gestured toward the kitchen.

            Nabiki had left the dojo ahead of Ranma and Akane, as usual.  This left the two together, running toward Furinkan High and the awaiting self-important Kunou.  Having titled himself the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High was something of a running joke with a number of the student body.  Of which no one, save Ranma and few select others, would dare admit to the delusional kendoist for fear of a swift and assuredly terrible retribution.

            Surprisingly, the now male Ranma, thanks to a kettle of hot water Kasumi thoughtfully provided, made it to the front gate of the school without another gender-bending incident.  Not surprisingly, he was justifiably worried.  As a human water magnet, he had somehow miraculously managed to avoid the old crone's morning salutations.  He still had the notion that the little woman derived a perverse joy in soaking him nearly every morning on his way to class.  Akane reminded him without fail that the little woman never even paid attention when haphazardly tossing a pail full of water into the street.

            None of that mattered much anymore, for good or bad, the day was off at a reasonable start.  At least some things don't change, thought Ranma as Kunou had become one with the earth with the turbulent passing of Ranma and Akane through the gates of Furinkan.  One outstretched hand clutched his bokken, while the other remained imprinted in the ground at an awkward angle.  Kunou gasped through the pair of footprints marring what he considered his 'noble visage'.  Rolling to his side after a few moments of reflection the Blue Thunder watched as the fair Akane Tendou entered the main building alongside that treacherous fiend Ranma Saotome.  His fingers gripped the wooden practice sword as his thoughts flitted through the past few weeks.

            Ranma had only been in Nerima scantly a month and a half, and in that time he had slighted Kunou at every turn.  At least, that is how Kunou saw it.  He vowed to liberate Akane from the nefarious influence Saotome exerted over her and the mysterious pig-tailed girl.  Ah, the pig-tailed goddess…His honorable romantic sense now dwelled on that lovely red-haired vision.  Admirable will, abounding strength, illustrious… A strident ring jolted Kunou out of his poetic reverie.  Ah, the tardy bell…what!

            Nabiki arched a brow in silent question as Kunou walked into class, late again.  While this wasn't unusual, the kendoist made every effort to drag his beaten carcass to homeroom on time.  Ranma couldn't have beaten him that badly or he would have been in the infirmary instead of trudging in late.  Perhaps there would be something profitable to extract from Kunou at lunch.  Nabiki averted her eyes, turning to focus on what the teacher was droning on about.

            Ranma breathed a sigh of relief, for once, he was not late to class for some reason or another.  Thanking his good fortune, he shot a glance over at Akane who favored him with a wry look.  So much for a good start, well things could always be worse, his thoughts turned back to that morning as he absently rubbing the lump acquired at breakfast.  Maybe he had been speaking just a tad bit too hastily.  Or, heaven forbid, speaking without thinking it over firstStill, that tomboy wasn't entitled to beat me senseless every time she felt slighted.

            "Ranma!  Are you paying attention, or do you want to spend the rest of class out in the hall?"  The teacher's voice startled Ranma who looked about sheepishly.  The reset of class had already started working on the problems written on the board.  Akane added insult to injury when she turned his way.  He watched as her mouth silently formed words that looked suspiciously like 'Ranma you idiot'.  This made him flush slightly for some reason.

            Determined to lessen the jab, Ranma blatantly avoided making eye contact with Akane for the remainder of the class.  This tactic worked perhaps all too well and succeeded in flustering her.  She was used to her taunts met with rebukes, not silence, and this was certainly more than that. The macho jerk was pointedly ignoring her outright!  Part of her mind attempted to notify her that she was likely to end up holding buckets out in the hall again if she carried out what she was planning to do to Ranma.  That trivial voice failed where it had numerous times before.

            Suddenly the light from the window was eclipsed, a menacing shadow reached across Ranma's desk.  Turning halfway, he belatedly noted the menacing figure staring down as it towered over him.  The form looked hauntingly familiar, except for the large square shaped head.  Oh no, she's got a desk!  "Ranma…," Akane hissed between clenched teeth.  The sharp crack of wood splintering across a reasonably hard skull resounded against the walls of the small classroom.  She stood there for a moment glaring down at the body writhing amid the debris of the wrecked desk.  Her face flushed and she was breathing heavily, as if she had run several miles at top speed.

            Some time later when Ranma regained a semblance of consciousness, he found himself laid out on a cot in the school infirmary.  "What happened? Oh, Hurricane Akane.  What'd I do this time?" He shook his head both to clear it and in exasperation.  No matter what he did, that tomboy found something about it that aggravated her.  "Speaking of Akane, where is she?"  He looked around but the place was empty. "She could've stuck around 'til I woke up…Sheesh.  This is gettin' weird.  Gotta be a nurse around here somewhere," he muttered as he sat up rather painfully.

            Peeking his head out the door, he didn't see anyone around.  "Where'd everyone go?"  He couldn't hear any voices float out into the hall from the classrooms as usual.  Craning his neck to look at the clock in the infirmary he shrugged.  "Lunch time already?  I was out longer than usual.  She must've really laid it to me.  I'd be impressed if she weren't so freakin' angry at me all the time."  He mentally stressed that last part as a reminder to himself that he would never understand women.

            Checking around one last time for a nurse, he walked out into the hall to retrieve his books from homeroom since Akane had probably been too mad to consider getting them.  A glance into the room told him that his books weren't there.  "Maybe…naw, she wouldn't."  His stomach protested and derailed his train of thought sending it on a new course.  Food sounded good right about now.  With that in mind, he moved off toward the cafeteria, not as good as Kasumi's cooking, but he was in a rush this morning and hadn't been able to grab anything for lunch when he left the dojo.

            Navigating the line, Ranma made it to the front after a few moments.  Lunch had started just before he woke up, so he hadn't missed much time.  Jostling a few people aside, not actually noticing them, he got his food and turned to find a place to sit.  He noticed Nabiki approaching Kunou apart from the crowd.  Wonder what scheme she is cooking up this time.  His thoughts shifted again, when he saw Akane sitting at her usual table.  He couldn't see her face from this angle, so couldn't venture to guess what she was thinking.

            Nabiki had finally managed to corner Kunou, his ministrations had not helped much, but she had contingencies for such minor setbacks.  A hand deftly pulled a small folder from within her inner coat pocket.  "Here Kunou baby, you might be interested in these."  As she spoke, one hand slid the folder open and revealed the dozen or so glossy photographs.  "Six of your pig-tailed goddess," mentally she shuddered at the image those words brought to mind.  "And six pictures of Akane."

            Kunou's eyes nearly teared up at the sight of his two loves.  Emphasis on the word his, since neither of the two depicted in the photos wanted anything to do with Kunou other than beat him into a quivering pile of mewling flesh.  For a moment, Nabiki feared he would launch into a tirade of poetry and go on again about the dilemma that he faced.  She avoided the irritable experience as Kunou gathered himself, somewhat; to demand what price she wanted this time.  "Nabiki Tendou, what would you have me pay for such virtuous examples as these?"

            Again, she nearly scoffed outright; virtuous indeed, she had painstakingly taken the time to make those pictures as scandalous as possible.  This was just further proof as to exactly how delusional Kunou really was.  "7,000 yen, for the two sets."  Her business sense urged her to charge a higher price, but eliciting information from Kunou would be far easier if she didn't hit his pocketbook outright.  Besides, he was a regular customer of these particular wares, and she could always up the price next time.  Kunou of course fervently agreed to himself that the price was fair, coming from Nabiki.

            "Nabiki Tendou, we seem to have a deal," with that, Kunou pulled forth the agreed amount of bills, not without a little hesitancy.

            Pocketing the money that Kunou handed over with his usual bitter reluctance she set out to unearth the desired information on Kunou's early morning escapade.  While he wasn't the brightest of students, the Kendo team captain's flagrant code of ethics was tiresome to navigate.  As he tended to doggedly pursue matters that piqued his interest Nabiki did not want to absently strike a chord with her evasive questioning.  Attempting to appear as offhand as she could, Nabiki fronted a smile, one of her nicer ones, "So, Kunou baby…"

            Akane glanced dejectedly at the stack of books piled atop the table next to her own book bag.  Ranma didn't usually take this long to come out to lunch, aside from the fact that he might still be in the infirmary.  But, this was Ranma after all.  Since when did a little bump to the head keep him away from food? Unless, she thought, No I didn't hit him that hard even if it 'was' with a desk.  Maybe he was just waking up, or maybe he was mad at you and found somewhere else to sit today, that little nagging voice chose that moment to speak up.  Akane clenched her fist adamant that he was the one who had been…doing nothing wrong, her conscience finished for her.

            Being a little self-absorbed at the moment, Akane failed to notice as Ranma made his way over to sit down by her intending to apologize, though for what he wasn't sure.  So when she told her conscience to "shut up and go away," it was quite understandable on Ranma's part to think that she was talking to him.  In fact, she never realized that she had been speaking aloud, and would've been flushed with embarrassment if she'd only known.  Taking this in stride, since this same person had hit him with a desk earlier, he turned around to find another place to eat.

            "She's still mad at me?" Ranma wondered to himself as he propped up against a tree.  "Well, fine…that tomboy can sit by herself for all I care!"  He dug into his food with a furrowed brow.  "'You want to be friends', she asks.  Yea, right," he grumbled through his food.  He sighed, "When can I get a break for once?  Where's Ryouga when I need to pound something…pig boy always getting himself lost at the worst time."  As he finished eating, his eye caught Nabiki and Kunou again.  "What are those two doing?  Ain't nothing good that's for sure."  Ranma walked off to throw away the bit of trash left from his food.

            Ranma left school as the bell rang signaling the end of classes for the day not really much in the mood to wait for Akane, or anyone else.  He debated whether to head back to the dojo just yet.  He decided to take a walk instead to clear his head.  He wasn't up for any deep thinking, just some aimless wandering.  Walking past the corner of Dr. Toufuu's clinic Ranma turned to head toward the city park for a change of pace.

            Akane paused at the front gate as her gaze swept the horde of students leaving Furinkan.  Ranma, where are you?  She had stopped by the infirmary before returning to class after lunch, but Ranma hadn't been there.  Since she only had the one class in the morning with him, she seldom saw him after lunch.  Still, they usually met up at the stairs when classes let out to walk home together.  She wondered for a moment if he were mad enough to just leave without her.  He's been angry before, but he'd only resorted to taunting me all the way back to the house.

            She tried not to think much about that morning as she continued on her way home.  Even harder, was trying to deny the fact that she was worried and more than a little embarrassed at the way she had been acting around Ranma lately.  Admittedly, she felt something for the boy, usually categorized as anger towards him.  Then, when he acted the way he did sometimes, it drove her crazy.  She just wanted him to be a little more expressive, even if it meant beating that sentiment into him, which seemed to happen quite often.

            Up ahead, Akane could make out her home, not for the second time she thought that perhaps Ranma had arrived there before her.  Which, given his speed, was more than highly likely.  She felt oddly perturbed at the thought, which Akane attributed to the fact that he had left her to walk home by herself.  That gave her pause, I'm that accustomed to Ranma's presence that it aggravates me when he is not there?  Her own train of thought worried her so she derailed it.  A mental shift helped to derail it; maybe I'll go into the backyard and practice a little.

            Which is what Akane was doing twenty minutes later, clad in her white gi.  She found one advantage to her shorter hairstyle when she practiced.  Before the fight between Ryouga and Ranma, Akane had always had to tie her hair back to keep it from getting in her way when she trained or fought.  Even still, sweaty locks would eventually work their way into her eyes at inopportune times.  Now, though, she moved from form to form with practiced ease, if not as gracefully as some of the other martial artists in Nerima.

            Over at the park Ranma headed for an empty copse of trees to sit in the comfortable shade.  He still hadn't gotten any of his books back, though he now knew that Akane had them.  There was some small comfort in that fact, better than having them stolen.  Vaguely, Ranma could remember just what had provoked Akane once again.  Yes, sometimes he was out of line, but he had never had much of a way with words.  Not to mention his inability to verbally express his feelings heaped onto it all.  He rolled his eyes, spoiling more than ever for an excuse to fight.

            Resting back against the tree, he slid down against the base to sit on the grass.  Looking up through the boughs overhead at the patches of blue sky he realized that he wasn't mad at Akane anymore, even if he was still just a little upset at himself.  He had failed to do something, and it infuriated him when he couldn't pinpoint what it was.  One hand clutched at a few thin blades of grass as he craned his head upward with a sigh.  Ranma closed his eyes for a moment of silence as warm shafts of light cascaded down across his face through the leaves up above.

            The reverie lasted perhaps ten minutes at most when a bellow split the air.  "RANMA, PREPARE TO DIEEE!"  Ranma really wasn't preparing to die, but a good workout was in order, especially if it was with Ryouga.  A second later Ranma was rolling forward away from the tree where three bandanas struck into the bark.  Springing to his feet from the crouching position he held, Ranma turned to face his opponent.  Ryouga was still a good twenty feet away, the usual enraged snarl pulling at the corners of his mouth.

            "I've seen untold horrors because of you Ranma.  I'll never forgive you for this torment I've endured!"  As he spoke, Ryouga continued to advance while unhooking a large umbrella from across the heavy pack that he wore.  "You die now!" Ryouga intoned with a swift dash forward across the intervening space.  Clods of grass and dirt exploded skyward when the tip of the umbrella speared into the earth in the space where Ranma had been waiting.  Snarling, Ryouga whipped the blunt weapon upward in an arc, trying to bludgeon Ranma's airborne form.

            "What're you whining about this time, P-chan?  I just saw you two days ago…man."  Ranma punctuated his remark as he rebounded from an overhead branch only to land nimbly onto Ryouga's outstretched umbrella.  A calculated flip from that precarious perch landed him just behind his opponent where he crouched. A foot lashed out to trip Ryouga, who anticipated the move by a fraction carting to the side and lancing his weapon out at Ranma's leg.  Neither adversary had much luck as of yet, and both jumped back, Ranma striking up a defensive posture and Ryouga reassessing a more promising venue of attack.

            "C'mon Ryouga, I ain't got all day now," Ranma tossed out another jibe hoping for a reaction.  Ryouga just smirked this time, his grin fading as he tossed aside the umbrella.  Ranma frowned wondering what was up, and as a thought clicked, he darted forward to close the distance.  Just then, a sickly green aura sprang up about Ryouga as his heavy ki formed into visibility.  "Oh no you don't…not here!"  Ranma launched a flurry of kicks aimed directly at Ryouga's chest.  The green field flared brightly when Ranma's sheer speed broke through Ryouga's defenses.

            "Argh, Ranma you'll regret this!  Shishi Hokodan!"  The ball generated by the powerful technique slammed forward into Ranma, who was able to weather most of the resulting blast.  Huffing, Ryouga charged the now dazed Ranma before he could react to adequately defend himself.  His body dashed into a tree by the force of Ryouga's raining blows and the breath left him.  Ranma dropped with a gasp to one knee to draw a breath and block the next set of attacks.  Wasting no time, Ryouga attacked within seconds and Ranma barely fended him off with a counter strike to his jaw.

            These battles never lasted long, especially as Ryouga was plainly intent on pushing the level up now.  Well, Ranma had wanted to go at it, and now he got his wish, with interest.  Gathering himself up, he launched another flurry of punches and kicks at speeds resulting from his Kachuu Tenshin Amaguriken training.  Ryouga was pushed back several feet by the assault, though most of the furious blows fell far short of causing any real injury to the resilient traveler.

            An inarticulate roar escaped the lost boys throat as his aura flared dangerously.  Depression was setting in with each successful hit that Ranma landed on him.  "Curse you Ranma!"  He needed to get just far enough back to charge another Shishi Hokodan, so in this case a diversion was called for.  One hit caught him sharply in the ribs even as he was arching down for a Bakusai Tenketsu that would crack the ground to fell a nearby tree.  Rolling backwards to absorb some of the impact, Ryouga struck the ground with an outstretched finger.  His voice resounded through the warm afternoon air, "Bakusai Tenketsu!"

            With an energetic yell Akane shattered yet another cinderblock with her hand.  She had been at this for the better part of the afternoon, alternating between the bricks and a few katas.  Sweat collected in the cloth band circling her brow, which she wiped at every so often with the back of her hand.  Bit by bit, Akane felt the tension of the day drifting away as she worked out her frustrations on the cinderblocks.  Soon she stopped, pulling the headband off with a sigh.  Ranma, why can't you ever just…

            "SHISHI HOKODAN!"  The resulting spherical blast tore a wide swath through the nearby trees downing several of them in the process.  Ranma's attention was on avoiding the fallen tree due to the Bakusai Tenketsu that had just split the earth in a jagged crest.  The green ball flared out in the split second that Ranma was distracted, catching him off guard.  His careening body succeeded in missing the broken trunks, but he did not get off quite so lucky in the end.  Instead, Ranma landed with a harsh thud against several jutting rocks unearthed by the earlier attack.

            Cracking under the strain of impact, the rocks beneath gave way and his body slumped to the ruined sod.  Grimacing, Ranma tried to push himself to his feet with a lurch.  "Ryouga, what the hell was that?"  With a worn out cough Ranma made it to a standing position.  "C'mon we're not done just yet."  Even with those words out of his mouth, the stilted way he was standing gave Ranma away.  Ryouga just stared menacingly, a dark light flickering behind his eyes.   

            Sensing his goal within reach, the end nearing for this battle, Ryouga launched himself at Ranma with a feral growl.  "Akane will be mine.  Now you die Ranma!"

            The outburst gave Ranma a bit of pause, but he forced his body into a defensive stance at the last second.  "What are you babbling about now P-chan?"  "What does this have to do with Akane?"  He batted aside one of Ryouga's devastating punches.  It was getting easier to deflect the hits as Ryouga continued to rant and rage.

            "Akane will not be swayed by an enemy of women such as you Ranma!"  Several razor-edged bandanas whipped through the air a moment later.  Avoiding the whistling cloth, Ranma taunted his rival to goad him on.

            "What about when she finds out about 'P-chan'?  Think she'll want anythin' to do with you?"  Now the turnabout caught Ryouga for a second.  No part of that opening wasted as Ranma darted in close for a split second.  He landed a rapid succession of punches on the befuddled boy sending him reeling, a roundhouse kick catching Ryouga to the side of the head.  "Feh," Ranma took in a needed breath. "You haven't got a chance with Akane."  Despite that he thought that it was true; Ranma wondered why he even bothered stating it when Ryouga now out cold on the ground.

            "Just great, lousy timing as usual," Ranma complained to no one in particular as the sprinkler system in the park came on with a distinctive stutter.  "You'd think it'd have come on when Ryouga used that first Bakusai Tenketsu." He stood there as the heavy spray pelted him, and sighed deeply.  Moments later a tired, wet, and still irate redhead plopped down to sit on the ground near a little sleeping black pig amidst the ruined trees.  "This day started out good too.  It's all Akane's fault."

            "It's all Ranma's fault!"  That's what Akane had been about to say before she bit back her words.  Now was not the time to be bickering over something so petty as this.  Besides, amazingly Ranma actually had little or nothing to do with the current state of affairs at the Tendou household.  In fact, she had seen neither hide nor hair of him since before lunch.  Now that was something odd it was already near dinnertime and he was nowhere around.

            Nabiki was in a mood; well that's how it looked to Akane.  Being her sister and all made it possible to know when Nabiki bolstered the facade of nonchalance.  Some deal must've gone sour recently though the only one that might approach Nabiki about it would be Kasumi.  The few times Akane had tried, it didn't turn out so well.  Especially when she responded to her problems with anger and Nabiki just put up more walls.  Breaking those walls down was never a tactful solution in Akane's opinion.

            "Where has my disrespectful boy gone off to?  I swore that I'd make him a man, and look how he repays me."  Genma Saotome rubbed his glasses before putting them back on.  "Tomorrow we start training again, I'll beat some sense back into his head if need be!"  Somewhere in the middle of his little speech, Genma had risen from the table thrusting his fist in the air for emphasis.  He failed to notice the blank looks he was getting from the faces around the table.  A short cough from Souun brought Genma back into the present, where he lowered his arm sheepishly and sat down to eat.

            "Daddy, I think I'm going to my room for the night," Nabiki spoke quietly while massaging her temples, rising from the table without further ado.  Souun watched his daughter head up the stairs, and then  he leaned over toward Akane.

            "Is there something the matter with your sister Akane?  Doesn't have anything to do with a certain Ranma does it?"  Before Akane even could think of a reply Genma interrupted bluntly as usual.

            "Souun, what has that boy done now?  I tell you…tomorrow he and I go on a training trip.  He'll be made into a man's man yet!"  The Saotome patriarch bowed his head in solemn vow.  "Boy, why do you bring such shame to me?"  A lone tear coursed slowly down Genma's cheek.

            Akane looked from her father to Ranma's, then imploringly over at Kasumi who was just sitting calmly, eating her food.  Kasumi may have been listening to the whole thing but it was just as hard to tell with her, as it would have been with Nabiki.  Not for the first time, Akane thought she must be with the wrong family.  She loved them all dearly, but things could get really uncomfortable around the house when everyone was here.  Except for the little fact that Ranma still wasn't home yet and that bothered her.  What trouble was he getting into now?

            Ranma's eyes fluttered open and his first thought was that his bed was really hard and covered with grass.  With a start, he sat up looking around for Ryouga, or P-chan, as might be the case since Ranma himself was still in his cursed female form.  "How long have I been out?"  He slid to his feet trying to dust off his ill-fitting clothes a bit, doing nothing for the tears and burns on his red shirt.  Another glance around proved two things, the first was that Ryouga was nowhere nearby piggy or otherwise, and the second was the fact that it was nightfall.  His stomach protested a third point it was dinnertime too.

            "Oh man, by the time I get back to the dojo, all the dinner will be gone."  He wasn't about to take a chance going to the Nekohanten, but Ucchan's was a safe bet.  "At least I know Uc-chan won't try to slip something into my food, and Okonomiyaki does sound good right about now."  With that, Ranma gathered himself up and headed off to Ukyou's restaurant.  It wasn't far from the park; perhaps he could even snag some hot water on the way.  If not, well he was more than sure that Uc-chan would let him use her shower.

            One of very few plusses when it came to multiple fiancées when he absolutely had to ask for something, either Ukyou or Shampoo would be all too happy to oblige.  However that was something he preferred to avoid since it also encouraged those two in their efforts to get him into compromising positions.  With Akane around that sort of thing was hazardous to ones health.  Not that Uc-chan and Shampoo couldn't be as dangerous in their own right.  Any way Ranma looked at it showing up at Ucchan's in his current state was going to make dealing with the amorous chef tricky at best.

            Further proving to himself that this was not a lucky day, Ranma had not come across any hot water in the trek toward Ucchan's.  Sighing heavily he resigned himself to his fate as he rounded the corner to the restaurant, looking dejectedly at the wooden frame of the front entrance.  One hand reached up to push open the door, and Ranma poked his head inside for a quick sweep of the interior.  The glance was all he needed to assure that Ucchan's was devoid of patrons tonight.  Oh well, he thought, never passed up a free meal before, so how bad can asking to use the shower be?

            "Ran-chan, isn't it a little late to be stopping by?  Not that I mind, really."  Ukyou turned her head to see who had just walked in as she was cleaning some of the front tables.  She looked over the disheveled Ranma and hazarded a likely guess to herself.  Another fight, but then they were martial artists after all, it was only natural that fights broke out.

            "Yea, hi Uc-chan, I guess I kinda lost track of time when Ryouga…"  Ranma trailed off rubbing the back of his currently red hair with one hand.  "I was in the area, so I decided to stop by since it was closer than the dojo."

            "Ok sugar, did you want something to eat?"  Ukyou asked as a matter of habit.  She thought again for a moment before adding a comment offhandedly, "You look a little roughed up hon.  Want to talk about it?"

            Ranma figured that this was a safe direction to head in, since he felt he could rightly ask about that shower now.  "Uh, sure Uc-chan, but is there any way that I could get, you know, cleaned up first?"  Ukyou laughed after an almost non-existent pause.

            "Sure Ran-chan, my place is yours, you know that," she finished with a warm smile.  "Then you can come back downstairs and have dinner with me," Ukyou winked heartily.  This slow day was just beginning to pay off, in her opinion.

            A few minutes, and a good amount of hot water later Ranma walked down to the front counter where Ukyou was setting down two plates of Okonomiyaki.  Since there wasn't a change of clothes for suitable for Ranma here he had just cleaned his red Chinese shirt and pants as best he could, and put those back on.  There was a nagging moment of doubt in his mind, though once he caught sight of the food it was pushed to the side.  It wasn't so much that he liked Okonomiyaki, really he was just famished from the bout with Ryouga.  "Thanks, Uc-chan, for the shower.  It really made a world of difference."

            Ukyou watched Ranma dig into his food before she started on her own.  As silence continued its reign over the restaurant she thought of something that they could talk about.  She knew even idle chatter would suffice for now.  Ukyou wanted him to stay  longer than it took for him to finish eating.  With Ranma it was certainly a possibility that he would eat and leave, calling it a night.  "Ran-chan, who where you playing with this time, hmm?"

            Ranma's brow lapsed into a furrow before he straightened his face and gave his reply.  "Had a run in with Ryouga again.  Said he was upset about some hell or another.  You know how he gets, or, how he is all the time."  Ranma shrugged at the last, taking another bite of food.  "I was kinda hoping he had a real reason today, but nah…more of the same."

Ukyou made a small murmur in agreement, everyone knew how Ryouga was.  Ranma was right about one thing, nothing ever changed around here.  Sure there was the obligatory chaos now and then, although everything always dropped back into this twisted merry-go-round afterwards.  "You never told me what you were doing out this way so late sugar.  As much as I'd like to think it had something to do with me, I won't, unless you tell me otherwise," she flavored her words with a soft smile that lightly touched her cheeks.

"It's nuthin, like I said, Ryouga just keeping me out late."  From his mixed tone she could tell that there was more to it than what he claimed.  Then again, things with Ranma tended to be complicated one way or another.  With everything else considered, she was willing to bet that it had something to do with either Akane, or one of the other girls chasing after Ukyou's Ran-chan.  Ukyou was surprised to see that he had not finished his Okonomiyaki yet, that in of itself was a sure sign that something was amiss.

Ranma picked at the remainder on his plate, waiting for Ukyou to ask him something that would be harder to brush off.  He knew that he wasn't his usual confident self at the moment.  Rare times like these were when people began to pry and prod at the walls he usually kept up around his emotions.  He had come here instead of going home since he knew that for the most part, he could count on Ukyou to just be a friend and leave certain things unsaid.  When she kept silent, Ranma knew that coming here was the right choice, tonight anyway.

He usually comes to me with his problems, and this time is no different.  I guess he isn't ready to talk about it yet, and he might, no he will leave if I try to drag it out of him.  It's been quiet in here all night, I on the other hand need to hear something.  Even if it is the sound of my own voice, that thought brought a wan smile to her lips.  "Ran-chan, I was thinking, maybe…"

Akane lay on her bed, looking to the ceiling at the shadows cast there from the moonlight coming in through the open window.  She was still worried over the fact that Ranma had never come back to the dojo since that morning.  Akane had stopped being mad at him over lunch and now she was torn between feeling wanting to be upset that her feelings didn't seem to matter to him, and wondering if he was alright.  If he would just come back then I could get some sleep.  She realized that it was really getting to her if it interfered with her sleep when he wasn't around.

Restless, Akane climbed out of bed and went to go downstairs for something to drink.  Moving to the darkened stairs, she wondered what time it was.  Everyone else was already asleep, or so it appeared to her.  Well worn steps creaked as she put her weight on them.  A hand found the side rail in the dark and she made her way quietly down to the kitchen.  Akane flicked on the light over the stove and turned to open the refrigerator to see what was left to drink, seeing as she didn't feel like water at the moment.

Pouring a glass of juice Akane sighed walking back into the living area.  She sat down on the couch, glass in hand. Akane wondered if she was actually listless, or just waiting up for Ranma to come home.  Home, now that is a funny way of putting it.  Was he still free-loading with his father, or did he really live here now?  Looking over her shoulder at a clock in the kitchen, she saw that it was almost midnight, where was he?

Ranma hopped over the stone wall that surrounded the backyard of the Tendou dojo.  His talk with Ukyou had ended taking much more time than he thought it would.  Nearly six hours, he chided himself mentally as he moved up to the sliding door that opened into the house.  He prayed that everyone was asleep, so they would think he had come back sooner than midnight, it was still a school night.  This was going to leave him with around five hours of sleep.  Assuming, that is, he could get to bed right away.

Pushing the door open with a faint wariness, Ranma looked around the living area.  As he stepped gingerly inside, he slipped his shoes off on the mat tiptoeing toward the stairs.  Something in the room caught his eye in the faint darkness, and he paused, turning to get a better look.  Akane? What is she doing down here?  Indeed, much to Ranma's chagrin, there sleeping on the couch was one Akane Tendou.  She was scrunched up into a ball, a pillow clutched tightly to her chest.

Looks kinda cute laying there like that.  Of course she does, she always looks cute, when she isn't trying to remove your head from your shoulders.  Ranma shook his head at the niggling voice.  He didn't need any help from his conscience at the moment, he was doing fine messing things up on his own.  She doesn't look very comfortable, maybe I could pick her up and put her in her room.  If she wakes up, she might get the wrong idea though.  Or, maybe she might get the right one.

Ranma stepped around to the front of the couch while he debated the pro's and con's of carrying the sleeping Akane up to her room.  He avoided staring for too long at the way her hair fell lightly across her face as she murmured something inaudible, and rolled further to one side of the cushions.  Most likely he assumed she would haul back and slap him a good one if she woke up right now with him standing over her like this.  Idly, some part of him wondered if it would be worth the risk just to gently take her up in his arms and…Cut that out! Ranma nearly scolded himself aloud, when he realized what he had been thinking about doing just then.  She just looks so uneasy is all.  Can't a guy be nice once in a while?

Up to this point, Ranma had avoided thinking about just why she was down here on the couch and not up in her room.  She fell asleep watching something on TV, he hazarded to himself.  Yeah, smooth one…TV's not even on.  Besides, even if someone else came down and turned it off, you think they would have woken her, or took her upstairs themselves, right?  Ranma rubbed the back of his head, it was too late for this.  He was tired, sore and after that talk with Ukyou, feeling more than a little out of it.

"Ranma, where have you been," a tired voice asked with a yawn.

"I, uh, huh?"  he faltered when he realized that Akane was asking the question.  Looking back down at her he saw that she was not quite awake at the moment, since her eyes were still shuttered closed.  He waited for a minute to see if she was going to say, or do, anything else.  When she didn't open her eyes or hit him for not responding he figured she must still be asleep.  I didn't know she talked in her sleep.

If he didn't make up his mind soon, he might as well sleep down here too since he could be standing here all night long debating.  Ah, can't be that hard, with that he slid one arm behind her neck and his other slipped under her thighs.  So situated, he lifted her up into his arms, readjusting to not awaken her in the transition.  See, light as a feather, for someone that swims like a hammer.  His mind fell into old habit with one last undeserving jibe.

Quietly and carefully, Ranma walked around the couch with Akane secure in his arms.  He prayed that the steps wouldn't creak much under the combined weight, and moved to go upstairs.  Akane muttered something, but Ranma couldn't hear what it was since she had shifted slightly to nestle in closer to the warmth of his chest.  He made it the rest of the way up the stairs uneventfully, where he turned down the hall facing her room.  Akane didn't stir again as he carried her to her door, nudging it open with his foot.

It wasn't like he hadn't carried her before, only this time it felt different, a difference he was unable to put a fitting name to.  Stepping around the scant few objects on the floor, he moved across the room to her bed.  Holding his breath, Ranma lowered her down to the mattress, pushing back the covers before setting her all the way down.  Taking care no to move her too much, he pulled the sheets up to her chest and took a step back.  Satisfied she was settled in, he turned and walked out of the room, pulling the door closed after he left.

Wary of the others, Ranma crept over to his own room to get some much needed sleep.  When he was finally inside he slumped onto his bedroll and lay on his back.  For a few minutes he simply lay there, unmoving while his thoughts turned to the last half-hour.  He wasn't sure, but things could be changing around here.  Ranma just wanted to know if it was for the better, or for the worse.  With that in mind, he drifted off into a soundless slumber.

Early the next morning everyone was up and about getting ready for the day, with the exception of Ranma, who was valiantly trying to hoard as many extra minutes of sleep as he could.  Everyone had eaten by the time Ranma roused himself, and he was still just a little sore from the previous afternoon with Ryouga.  Stretching and grumbling to himself, he cleaned up and got dressed, heading to the kitchen.  He wanted to make sure that he had a decent lunch this time around, not like yesterday.  Kasumi smiled nonchalantly in her own way, handing Ranma food for lunch.

Only fifteen minutes prior to Ranma's departure from the realm of dreams, Akane had awoken.  She looked around at her surroundings, puzzled.  On the one hand she was pleased to be in her own room, and not have Kasumi or her Father find her sleeping on the couch downstairs.  That could've made a scene at the least.  On the other hand, she had no idea how she was back up here.  She did remember snippets of a strange, though pleasant dream.  More introspection was dashed aside when she got a look at the time, I'm going to be late for class!

Both Akane and Ranma rushed out the door to get to school at almost the same instant.  Nearly colliding, neither said much in the way of a curse, or apology, to the other, and they were off, running pell-mell down the side of the street. Though Ranma was a little farther ahead up on the fence, Akane found herself almost keeping pace.  Is he tired, or running like this on purpose?  Whatever the reason, she was grateful that he didn't leave her so far behind in their rush to get to class.  Normally they raced against each other to get to the front gate, but today they were just running and praying not to be tardy.

Lunchtime rolled around once again, this time Akane was relieved to see that Ranma had decided to sit with her.  She had thought that he would still be mad over yesterday.  After all, one could only take so much before it was enough.  Akane found that sentiment easy to agree with, and maybe Ranma did too since he had not once said anything to vex her today.  Which was pretty easy, considering he hadn't but spoken two words to her so far, and that had been earlier that morning before they left the house.  She supposed 'Morning, Akane' would have to do for now, since he had said it in a nice enough way.

Akane finished her lunch, watching Ranma do the same.  He still had not talked to her, so she was unsure whether or not to say anything.  She wanted him to say something, even if it was just to see if he was still mad about yesterday.  A silent Ranma was beginning to bother her now, but Akane didn't want to get mad over it.  Not right now anyway.  So, refraining from huffing, she gathered her books and rose to toss her garbage away.

Ranma watched Akane get up and walk away, he could tell she had something on her mind since she wasn't talking to him.  At the same time, he didn't want to disrupt whatever uneasy truce had been established, by uttering a condemning phrase.  He couldn't tell if this fragile break was a blessing or a curse.  Ranma got up as well, cleaning the remainder of the lunch from the table.  Tossing the paper sack away, he joined Akane and walked with her back to the main building.  Together, the two headed inside, each wondering for the hundredth time what the other was thinking about.

Chapter Two: Room for Doubt - Coming Soon