Heart of Fire, Soul of Ice
Part 1: Just Nerves?
Ranma and Akane noticed a dreadfully large crowd in front of the
school as they approached. Ranma glanced worriedly down at Akane.
"I thought they'd stopped this..."
"Me too..." Akane said softly. It was the first thing she'd said since
they'd left the house. Her eyes were sad, her face almost hopeless. "I
hope they're not after me..."
He grit his teeth together. *If it is...they aren't going to touch you...*
He thougtht, his face angry.
As they reached the school, they saw a girl with long, impossibly red,
impossibly curly hair entering. She wore what appeared to be the newer
style of uniform. Her figure was one that would put Ranma's to shame,
her build tall and lean, her waist slender, her figure petite, if not for that
impossibly tall, lithe form. She was probably taller than Ranma.
Ranma was shocked at first. "We have a new student?" He glanced
down at Akane, curiously.
Akane's eyes were wide with shock as she watched the girl walk past
the drooling boys, an air of annoyance flowing around her like water.
"Who is that...?" She wondered, as she began to run. If those idiots
were after her, she wanted to get through with it quickly. But as they
approached, the crowd closed in front of Ranma and Akane, and several
guys attacked the new girl.
"You heard Kuno! Who ever beats her, DATES HER!"
Akane watched the spectical she'd only ever participated in as if a bug
looking through a window. Her heart thumped harder and harder. "I...I
don't..."
Ranma looked down at her and noticed that she looked slightly hurt.
His heart broke. He didn't want to see Akane hurting. He wanted to see
her HAPPY. He bit his lip, swallowing damply, then, caught her wrist.
"Come on, Akane, we need to get to class, or we'll be late..." He slowly
drug her away from the fight and into the schools empty halls.
She didn't look at him. She could remember in the beginning, when
they'd been attacking HER in the mornings before school. She longed
for the attention again. When she'd been considered the most beautiful
and desirable girl at Furinkan.
He could see those longings in her eyes. He stared at her, his face sad.
"Akane..." He started, pulling her into a gentle hug and out of the line
where anyone could see. "You don't need to be attacked to-"
She looked up at him, her face full of anguish.
And his voice stopped.
His brain stopped.
His heart stopped.
His hand, however, caught her chin, holding her sad face still. He could
see the shock on her face as he leaned down, drawing her against him
completely, till he could feel every bit of her against him in the warm
hug. "Akane..." He whispered, pressing his face into her shoulder.
"I...I know it's sick...why the hell do I want to go through with all that
again...why would I want to be harrased on a daily basis...Who'd want
what I went through...every day...But I need it..." She felt tears
gathering in her eyes and she allowed herself to accept the strength
Ranma was offering her. Such offers were rare, and almost non-existant
when it came to her awkward fiancee. So she held on to him,
desperately accepting his strength.
*So strong...* She thought drowzily. Her eyes closed, so she didn't see
the red-haired girl watching from nearby. Her aura grew and gently
caressed his as her defenses dropped and she clung to the person she
needed so desperately, but wouldn't let herself know.
Ranma slowly pulled back, feeling oddly drained. He looked down at
Akane, who now seemed in a much better mood and smiled. "You feelin
better?" He asked softly, slowly unwinding his arms from around her.
He looked at the clock and realized in horror they were late.
Again.
"Akane...we're late..." He said, gently easing her down the hall and to
the class. He was quick to release her when they reached it and
instantely felt bad. He wanted to hold her against his side more. They
crept in silently and the pair managed to make it to their seats, as the
teacher was out of the room.
They relaxed and Ranma looked at the roof, relaxing for the moment.
But his nerves wouldn't let him. After that brief interlude with Akane,
he was frazzled and very, very confused. The deep rooted feeling of
'All hells about to break loose and I don't know if it's gonna target me
AGAIN' wouldn't let him go either. His eyes nervously glanced towards
his fiancee.
*Whatever happens, I have to protect her...she's not like me...Sure,
she's a martial artist, but she refuses to see her lack in the art.* If he
could train her-
He imidiately stopped that train of thought. *No, I don't want to hurt
her. I...I love her...* His eyes flitted over to her again and he sighed.
He just knew if he tried to train her, he'd misjudge himself or she would
and he'd severely hurt her. He bit his lip. He'd never forgive himself if
he did that.
"Class..."
Ranma sat upright at the sound of the teacher entering the room. The
sense of uneasiness was temporarily put on his back mental burner.
Not that he had one close to the front of his brain or on the right side.
"Class, this is Tokiko Fushicho, let's see..." The teacher almost placed
her next to Ranma, but rethought it, considering the trouble that
attracted the boy. "Go sit next to Tendo Akane."
Fushicho walked towards Akane and sat, resting her books on the desk
and smiling over at Akane. "Hi." She said, slightly shyly.
Akane placed a finger over her lips to hush her. "Shhhh. Get out a
notebook."
The girl looked genuinely distraught. "I don't have one..." She said, her
eyes sad.
Akane looked at the girl. Her hair was red, yet topped with golden red
hair on top. Copper highlights on the already impossibly red hair. Her
eyes were black, but bottomless, whirpools of mystery. Akane felt a tug
of jealousy and handed the girl her spare notebook.
Fushicho opened it and took out a pen topped with bright red peacock
looking feathers. She stared at the pen a moment, reforming the head
into a ballpoint. Then, she began to neatly scrawl notes.
Ranma looked over at Fushicho and felt the uneasy feeling grow. *That
girl...she...isn't natural...not like cursed unnatural...like NOT OF THIS
WORLD unnatural...* He looked towards Akane and didn't mistake the
look of complete jealousy that made her pretty face bitter. He sighed,
his face sad.
The teacher droned on, Ranma barely listening as usual. He never did
have the brain for this kind of learning. Now, put him in a situation for
training, he'll pick up a new move faster than thought, but when it came
to mundane subjects, he had no aptitude for it.
Instead, he focused on Akane, her chi, her lifeforce, which seemed so
drained before they reached school seemed to have replenished in mere
moments.
Then, it hit him.
Akane couldn't control her chi, so when she felt weak and vulnerable, if
there was a strong source of chi nearby, she'd drain some of the chi
from that person.
He frowned. She was a aural vampire, she fed off other people's life
forces. Most martial artists did. Yet, most people who studied the art
could control their chi, so they didn't need to drain as much.
He had to train her.
At least, he had to train her so she could replenish her own chi without
stealing someone elses. He frowned, wondering how he was going to
tell her what she did to him when she held him in the hall way. He'd
understood after Akane got injured, he'd frequently feel drained,
especially if he was close to her afterwards, like holding her in Jusendo,
especially after Jusendo. She probably had died, and his chi had been
the only thing that had helped her survive.
Yet, as a seasoned martial artist, he knew if he started with chi attacks,
he'd kill her. He could remember when he'd shot her up into the Hiryuu
shoten ha because she was trying to save the sheet with his cure for the
weakness moxibustion, and she'd passed out inside the spiral. If he
hadn't gone after her, she probably would have died.
He looked at his desk, deep in thought. She was HIS fiancee. Those
jibes he made to Kuno about her being an uncute tomboy and if the
True Blunder of Furinkan High wanted her, he could have her, all were
lies. Painful, hurtful, but lies. He couldn't tell her the truth. He couldn't
tell her how deep his feelings ran. He could NOT let her know how
much he loved her, needed her, as much as she needed him. Wanted
her, despite her misgivings, despite her lack of trust in him, and despite
his inability to say so. All because he didn't want to lose her.
He was so afraid of rejection.
It scared him more than the memory of Nekoken training.
But not as much as the thought of losing her.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Akane sat at lunch and could feel Ranma's eyes on her, as she'd been
able to feel them most of the day. He had rarely taken his eyes off of
her, as if he were afraid that if he did, she'd vanish.
The only thing that kept her from braining him was her new friend,
Fushicho. The girl was a fire brand, like herself. A tomboy. A skilled
martial artist.
She liked the thought of not being the only martial artist in the school
who was a girl. A smile crept onto her face as she listened to the girl
fondly speak of her master, who'd trained her to be so wonderful at
martial arts. She'd even gotten to watch her do the most complex kata
she'd ever seen in her life. She wanted to learn from her.
"Fushicho-chan?"
"Hai, Akane-chan?" She looked over at her with her mysterious black
eyes and Akane had to supress a shudder.
"Could you...would you teach me martial arts?" She asked, her voice
sounding soft and weak.
Fushicho looked genuinely distressed. "Oh, Akane-chan, I wish I
could...but I can't...my arts...they're dangerous...and I don't want to hurt
you...you're my friend..."
Disappointment surged through her. "I...I understand..." She looked
into bowl of udon soup and sighed. "It's alright..."
The red haired girl put a comforting arm around Akane's shoulder.
"Why don't you get that guy, Ranma to teach you, he's as good as I
am..."
Akane had to hold in her derisive snort of laughter. "Ranma?! Teach
me?! I can't even get him to spar seriously with me..." She sighed,
looking down. "And I don't understand why..."
"Maybe he doesn't want to hurt you either..."
"Hmph..." Akane tried to wound scoffing, but she ended up sounding
rather hurt, pained. "I don't know why he doesn't see I'm a martial artist
too...I'm not made of China...I don't break that easily..." She sighed, her
face sad.
Ranma listened from behind the tree. *Akane...* His eyes saddened as
he listened. *Does it hurt you that much? Does me not wanting to hurt
you do what I'm trying not to do?* He swallowed, his face torn. He had
to train her. Something was coming, he could feel it. But she looked so
fragile this morning...and now...
He swallowed, stepping from behind the tree and standing behind them.
"Akane...she's right...I don't want to see you get hurt...especially when
it was me..."
He watched his fiancee jump and spin around.
He bit his lip and looked down. "Akane, I'm strong...and I'm afraid I'll
hurt you-"
"YOU IDIOT!" She screamed. "EVERYTIME YOU DO THAT OR
CALL ME UNCUTE OR UNDESIREABLE, YOU HURT ME! DON'T
YOU UNDERSTAND AT ALL, BAKA?!"
He barely managed to keep from crying. "Let me finish, Akane. Just
this once, shut up and let me finish..."
Her eyes snapped wide and she did.
"I'm afraid I'll hurt you...or worse...I'm afraid you'll ask me to go all out
on you and I'll end up putting you into a hospital..." He took a deep,
shuddering breath and looked at her. "But...I'll train you...you did
something to me this morning...you didn't realized you did it, but you
did." He said softly.
She looked up at him, her face nervous. "What did I do?"
He looked at his slowly regenerating ki. "You stole some of my chi.
You felt weak this morning. I remember, normally, if I accidentally walk
in on you in the bath, I'm taking a first class ticket to the next island,
but..." He looked down. "I only hit the wall."
Her eyes widened. "I stole your chi...?"
He nodded. "It's an automatic reaction. I was the same way, so oyaji
taught me to control my chi when I was very, VERY young...you never
learned to control yours, and it controls you." He looked down. "Just
as your anger does, but I'm willing to help you...if you want my help..."
Her face was pale. Waxen almost. She felt as though she'd stepped off
a building and only just now realized it. "Ranma...I'm sorry..."
He shook his head. "Naw, don't go apoligizing for something you didn't
know you did. It's automatic. When you're injured, your chi can't
replenish as fast and you're more vulnerable. Same as when you're tired,
or upset. If you control it, you can keep an equal amount of it at any
given time...but before I teach you to do that, I think we better refresh
you on the basics..."
She looked furious. "BASICS?!"
He shrank away from her. "Geeze, Akane, I just said REFRESH! Just
the easy stuff! You got it down, but your out of practice!"
She looked at him warily. "Alright...we're starting as soon as we get
home..." She said softly, her face not at all happy.
Fushicho smiled at the exchange. *Hmmm...maybe they don't need my
help after all...*
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ranma stood in the dojo across from Akane. "I am NOT going to start
you off with my full speed or strength, but as you improve, I'll increase
them, alright?"
She hung her head. "Can I really stop you, sensei?" She asked, her
face angry.
He moved towards her and took her shoulders between his hands.
"Akane, I will NOT put your life in danger. I refuse. You're..." He
swallowed his pride momentarily. "You're my best friend and my
fiancee, I refuse to put you in danger."
She snorted. "Ranma, your LIFE is danger." She said softly. She'd
meant it as a joke, but she felt Ranma stiffen and imidiately cursed her
unthought words. She'd just used 'Secret Saotome Technique: How to
Shove your Foot down your Throat and Still have Room for your Leg'.
Ranma pulled away from her and turned away. "I know that..." He said
softly. "I...I try not to get you involved...but..." He cursed at his
poorness with words. "Akane, I don't like seeing you hurt..." He faced
her, his eyes haunted.
He wasn't here right now, he was in the past, when he'd been convinced
she was dead while they were in Ryugenzawa. He swallowed damply,
his face pained. "I've seen it...and it scares the hell out of me every time
I remember..." He whispered, pulling her into a tight hug. "Please,
please Akane...you have to understand...I'm begging you..."
She stood, shocked in his arms. "Ranma..." She whispered, her face
shocked. "I...I don't know what to say..." She whispered, her eyes
teary.
He bit his lip. "Please, just say you'll do it my way...you can brain me
with that mallet of yours all you want, just let me do this my way..." He
pressed his face into her shoulder.
She closed her eyes. Her choices weren't great. Say yes and deal with
him treating her like china, or say no and keep sucking chi from the
strongest available source. Ranma.
"How could I say no...?" She asked, lifting her arms and hugging him
back.
He pulled back slowly, staring down at her.
Then, he smiled.
And it was like Rainbows.
She held her breath. She'd never seen him look so grateful before. No,
that wasn't true. He'd given her that wonderful look once before. When
he'd first come here. When she thought he was a girl and asked if she
wanted to be her friend.
She swallowed hard and dropped her arms, standing back from him. She
adopted a student like stance and waited for him to come at her.
He did.
As usual, she couldn't stop him before he'd popped her a few times in
the chest lightly.
"Ranma!" She cried angrily.
He stopped staring at her, his face calm. "I'm just trying to see where
we need to do the most work..." He frowned, taking a ready stance.
"Come on, let's go. For real."
She lunged towards him and he danced out of the way gracefully and
they began sparring. Ranma frequently jabbed at her, gently. Not with
enough force to hurt her, but with enough to let her know where her
holes were. Where she needed to tighten her defenses. It was,
unfortunately, everywhere.
Finally, she held up her hands to stop. Her face was pale, her eyes
terribly upset. "What's wrong with me...?" She looked at her hands,
and tried not to cry.
He bit his lip, looking down and away. "Akane, you're just out of
practice. You haven't been fighting regularly, except with me...if you
could call what we do, fighting..." He hesitantely added to that.
"And...you aren't feeling joy in the training..."
She looked surprised.
"If you can't find something to strengthen with the art, an emotion, then
it wont get strong..."
She closed her eyes, collapsing. She was so tired. She couldn't do any
more tonight. She was so tired...
Ranma watched her collapse and moved towards her, sinking to his
knees and gently pulling her into his arms.
She stiffened. "Ranma...what about my chi... isn't that dangerous for
you to do?!"
He didn't release her. "Shhhh..." He said softly, his hands gently
running through her hair. "I'll be fine...trust me..." He said, pushing her
hair aside with his nose and pressing his face into the crook of her neck.
She was so soft...his dreamy thoughts didn't stop.
Akane felt her strength slowly returning and whimpered. She didn't
want to drain Ranma.
Finally, he pulled away from her, his face pale. He smiled, none the less,
however. "Easy, my little vampire..." He said, smiling down at her, his
face a bit weak.
She looked up at him, her face frightened. She watched as his stance
gradually grew stronger. "When are you going to teach me to replenish
my own chi?!" She asked, her face frightened.
Ranma gently helped her to her feet and hugged her again. "Akane...it's
alright. Don't worry, you wont drain me. If I was worried about that, I
wouldn't have offered to train you, now RELAX." He gently caressed
her hair and noticed she was trembling. "If I'm going to be your sensei,
you're going to have to trust me, Akane..."
She winced at the word. She did trust him, but sometimes it was just so
damn hard to...She lifted her face and stared into his eyes. "Ranma..."
She started. "I...I do trust you." She whispered finally.
He smiled, giving her a light squeeze before releasing her. "I'll teach
you how to control your chi tomorrow. You need to think of an emotion
that'll make the move YOURS."
She nodded slowly. Her face was bleak. She was frightened. Ranma
always preached about being afraid he was going to hurt her. Now she
was afraid she was going to hurt HIM. She was struggling with this,
trying to keep her aura under control.
She slowly pulled away from him, her face calm. "Ranma..." She paused
at the door. "I...Thank you..." She hesitated. "My iinazuke..." She
added in a whisper.
He looked at her in surprise. "Akane..."
She turned and fled the dojo. She made it to the bathroom before she
broke down, sobbing. "Oh, Ranma...I'm so scared..." She whispered.
She hugged her knees and began to sob.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The pair of innocents who lived at the Tendo Dojo didn't know that at
that very moment, martial artists from around the world were flocking to
Nerima. What they didn't know would be their annihilation.
Called by the undeniable need to fight, to become the best. Some
merely went without knowing what they were getting into. Others, for
the possibility of fame.
Some, to knock the spirits of good to their knees. To dominate the
world. To be a leech, feeding of the other artists powers. For reasons
of evil, but no less honorable than those who went innocently, or fame.
Even the lost boy felt an incredible pull to Nerima. Cologne, Happosai,
Pansuto Tarou, and various others, who were determined to gain the
'prize'. A guaranteed place in heaven as practically a god.
Little did they know, that this was merely a game, fixed by the gods
themselves. They didn't realize they would never let these selfish
mortals have the power of a god. Only those who fought for pure
reasons, love, honor, to protect the weak, they were who this test was
for.
Okami looked into the glass, his face calm. The lifeforces of those
people, a million different colors, shades, brilliant, or dulled.
Two caught his eyes. One that was pure, pale blue, another, warm
lemony yellow. But it wasn't the color that caught his eye. It was what
was inside them. Both aura's were lined, almost. The blue one, lined in
the most bright shade of silver, glitter everywhere.
The yellow, lined with an incredible gold, aching to grow more, nowhere
near it's peak power.
Okami frowned. The aura's belonged to a young martial artist and his
fiancee. Saotome Ranma and Tendo Akane.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ranma sat on the roof, staring into the stars. He stared at the stars, his
face serious. Akane was good, there was no doubt about that, but she
had so much *potential*. He had to keep training her, not just teach her
how to control her chi. He sighed.
He knew she needed to be tougher, mentally and physically. One
punch from Shampoo and she could be unconsious, or dead, depending
on where the young amazoness chose to strike. She needed to be
faster, and her defenses needed tightnened. She probably could use to
be a bit more CONTROLLED.
He heard the soft sound of her footsteps on the rooftop and watched
her sit beside him. He looked over at her and sat. "What are you doing
up here?"
She flinched slightly. "If you...don't want me here...I can go..." She
said, preparing to stand.
He caught her hand, holding her there. "I...I didn't mean I wanted you
to leave...I just meant...aw, hell, I don't know...but I don't mind you
bein' here..." He saw her weak smile and gently squeezed her hand.
She sat, her legs stretched out in front of her. She looked down at her
fiancee, and smiled. "Thank you for taking me seriously..." She said
softly. "It means alot to me..."
Ranma swallowed hard and slid his hands under his head, his eyes on
the stars again. "Akane..." He said softly. "I've always taken you
seriously. I just don't want to hurt you...but...I learned today...you have
too much potential to let my desire to be better, or my worry to prevent
you from excelling in martial arts..." He sat slowly and looked at her, his
face worried. "I do this for you because...I care for you...alot..." He
smiled at her and watched as she smiled back.
"I care for you, too..." She whispered, leaning forwards and kissing his
cheek gently.
Ranma's eyes flew wide and he stared at her in shock. "Akane..." He
whispered, his hand on his cheek. "I..." He blushed and almost moved
away from her, but saw the desperate look on her face and stopped.
"I...I'm sorry...I shouldn't have-"
He stopped her apologetic words by laying a finger over her lips. He
stared up at her, mesmerized by the hair that didn't want to stay behind
her ear. He smiled gently up at her. She was beautiful. Her skin was so
clear, translucent. Her hair was the same black as the sky, the stars
shining off her blue highlights. Her warm brown eyes stared down into
his intense, ocean blue, beckoning him. His thoughts, unbidden as
usual, went straight from his mind to his lips and eased through.
"Kirei..." He whispered, tucking the strand behind her ear tenderly.
She blushed, her face now quite red. "R-ranma..." She whispered, afraid
to speak any louder, lest she ruin the moment.
He sat slowly, staring at her. "Akane...no kirei..." He whispered softly,
his hand cupping the base of her head as he scooted till he was directly
in front of her. His other arm went around her, hugging her against him.
His heart lept into his throat as she gingerly held him back.
She couldn't believe this was happening. "You...you think I'm
pretty...?" She let her fingers play with his pig tail, stroaking his hair
gently.
"No...you're beautiful..." He pulled back slightly. "Not cute, cute's for
kids...not pretty, pretty is for girls...but beautiful...that's for a woman,
Akane..." He didn't know why he was saying this. Normally, his
feelings hid behind his mask so well. He'd always called her uncute,
and he wasn't expressing his feelings, but something about her tonight,
the way her eyes were shining, her face looking more beautiful than
should be possible, her hair reflecting the bright stars in the beautiful
blue highlights.
Taking a deep breath, he caressed her hair and leaned towards her,
putting his question into his eyes.
She stared into his eyes and swayed towards him. "Ranma..." She
whispered, closing her eyes. She felt the warmth of his lips on hers and
knew she wasn't dreaming. No dream could be this sweet. This
intoxicating. She moved her other arm up, till they were circling his
neck. She had wanted this so long, to feel loved by someone who was
not a member of her family, not adored, but looked on as an equal, not
someone to pine after, but someone to touch, hold, love. She sighed
dreamily, kissing him back slowly.
Ranma gulped slightly. His face was on fire. *Don't tell me I screwed
up...oh, damn, she isn't kissing me back...oh, gods, she's going to kill
me...* He felt her lips soften slightly and she was kissing him, her lips
parting slightly and he took the initiative to gently caress her lips with
his tounge. An electric shock ran through him and he jumped startled,
as she pulled back slightly.
Akane stared back up at him, her face filled with love and what almost
appeared to be adoration. Her fingers touched her lips, as if trying to
hold the feeling there. "Oh, Ranma..." She whispered, tears filling her
eyes. "Oh, Ranma..."
He was almost certain he was going to get brained by her. He'd never
felt anything like this, but he sure as hell didn't want it to end bad.
Hesitantely, he kissed her again. He brushed his lips across her cheeks,
her tear-filled eyes, her forehead, her ears, her jaw. He felt her trembling
and gently pulled back. "Don't cry...please..." He begged softly.
She gently caressed his face and then, her eyes smiled up at him. "Oh,
Ranma...why...?"
He smiled down at her, his eyes happy. "Akane, you dummy...I thought
you already knew...I love you..." He watched her eyes widen. "You
told me, but I didn't listen...I didn't want to admit you were right..." He
brought his lips to hers again. "I was afraid you hated me..."
She stared up at him in wonder. "Oh, Ranma..." She threw her arms
around his neck, hugging him tightly. "Do you still think I hate you?"
She asked soflty, blowing into his ear.
He shivered slightly. "I...I don't see how anything so nice could
happen...if either of us didn't care about the other..." He pressed his
lips to her shoulder. "...You should go to bed, Akane-chan..." He
whispered, releasing her.
She stared at him, shocked. "Ranma...do you want me to leave?"
He looked at his hands. "No..."
The softly spoken word was like a thunderclap in the quiet of the night
air. Akane reached towards him. "Ranma..." She caught his face,
forcing him to look at her. "I...I love you, too, Ranma..." She whispered,
kissing him gently before standing and moving towards the ladder.
He watched her go, and as she disappeared down the ladder, he flopped
back, his heart singing. *Oh, Akane...*
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
End Part 1
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Part 1: Just Nerves?
Ranma and Akane noticed a dreadfully large crowd in front of the
school as they approached. Ranma glanced worriedly down at Akane.
"I thought they'd stopped this..."
"Me too..." Akane said softly. It was the first thing she'd said since
they'd left the house. Her eyes were sad, her face almost hopeless. "I
hope they're not after me..."
He grit his teeth together. *If it is...they aren't going to touch you...*
He thougtht, his face angry.
As they reached the school, they saw a girl with long, impossibly red,
impossibly curly hair entering. She wore what appeared to be the newer
style of uniform. Her figure was one that would put Ranma's to shame,
her build tall and lean, her waist slender, her figure petite, if not for that
impossibly tall, lithe form. She was probably taller than Ranma.
Ranma was shocked at first. "We have a new student?" He glanced
down at Akane, curiously.
Akane's eyes were wide with shock as she watched the girl walk past
the drooling boys, an air of annoyance flowing around her like water.
"Who is that...?" She wondered, as she began to run. If those idiots
were after her, she wanted to get through with it quickly. But as they
approached, the crowd closed in front of Ranma and Akane, and several
guys attacked the new girl.
"You heard Kuno! Who ever beats her, DATES HER!"
Akane watched the spectical she'd only ever participated in as if a bug
looking through a window. Her heart thumped harder and harder. "I...I
don't..."
Ranma looked down at her and noticed that she looked slightly hurt.
His heart broke. He didn't want to see Akane hurting. He wanted to see
her HAPPY. He bit his lip, swallowing damply, then, caught her wrist.
"Come on, Akane, we need to get to class, or we'll be late..." He slowly
drug her away from the fight and into the schools empty halls.
She didn't look at him. She could remember in the beginning, when
they'd been attacking HER in the mornings before school. She longed
for the attention again. When she'd been considered the most beautiful
and desirable girl at Furinkan.
He could see those longings in her eyes. He stared at her, his face sad.
"Akane..." He started, pulling her into a gentle hug and out of the line
where anyone could see. "You don't need to be attacked to-"
She looked up at him, her face full of anguish.
And his voice stopped.
His brain stopped.
His heart stopped.
His hand, however, caught her chin, holding her sad face still. He could
see the shock on her face as he leaned down, drawing her against him
completely, till he could feel every bit of her against him in the warm
hug. "Akane..." He whispered, pressing his face into her shoulder.
"I...I know it's sick...why the hell do I want to go through with all that
again...why would I want to be harrased on a daily basis...Who'd want
what I went through...every day...But I need it..." She felt tears
gathering in her eyes and she allowed herself to accept the strength
Ranma was offering her. Such offers were rare, and almost non-existant
when it came to her awkward fiancee. So she held on to him,
desperately accepting his strength.
*So strong...* She thought drowzily. Her eyes closed, so she didn't see
the red-haired girl watching from nearby. Her aura grew and gently
caressed his as her defenses dropped and she clung to the person she
needed so desperately, but wouldn't let herself know.
Ranma slowly pulled back, feeling oddly drained. He looked down at
Akane, who now seemed in a much better mood and smiled. "You feelin
better?" He asked softly, slowly unwinding his arms from around her.
He looked at the clock and realized in horror they were late.
Again.
"Akane...we're late..." He said, gently easing her down the hall and to
the class. He was quick to release her when they reached it and
instantely felt bad. He wanted to hold her against his side more. They
crept in silently and the pair managed to make it to their seats, as the
teacher was out of the room.
They relaxed and Ranma looked at the roof, relaxing for the moment.
But his nerves wouldn't let him. After that brief interlude with Akane,
he was frazzled and very, very confused. The deep rooted feeling of
'All hells about to break loose and I don't know if it's gonna target me
AGAIN' wouldn't let him go either. His eyes nervously glanced towards
his fiancee.
*Whatever happens, I have to protect her...she's not like me...Sure,
she's a martial artist, but she refuses to see her lack in the art.* If he
could train her-
He imidiately stopped that train of thought. *No, I don't want to hurt
her. I...I love her...* His eyes flitted over to her again and he sighed.
He just knew if he tried to train her, he'd misjudge himself or she would
and he'd severely hurt her. He bit his lip. He'd never forgive himself if
he did that.
"Class..."
Ranma sat upright at the sound of the teacher entering the room. The
sense of uneasiness was temporarily put on his back mental burner.
Not that he had one close to the front of his brain or on the right side.
"Class, this is Tokiko Fushicho, let's see..." The teacher almost placed
her next to Ranma, but rethought it, considering the trouble that
attracted the boy. "Go sit next to Tendo Akane."
Fushicho walked towards Akane and sat, resting her books on the desk
and smiling over at Akane. "Hi." She said, slightly shyly.
Akane placed a finger over her lips to hush her. "Shhhh. Get out a
notebook."
The girl looked genuinely distraught. "I don't have one..." She said, her
eyes sad.
Akane looked at the girl. Her hair was red, yet topped with golden red
hair on top. Copper highlights on the already impossibly red hair. Her
eyes were black, but bottomless, whirpools of mystery. Akane felt a tug
of jealousy and handed the girl her spare notebook.
Fushicho opened it and took out a pen topped with bright red peacock
looking feathers. She stared at the pen a moment, reforming the head
into a ballpoint. Then, she began to neatly scrawl notes.
Ranma looked over at Fushicho and felt the uneasy feeling grow. *That
girl...she...isn't natural...not like cursed unnatural...like NOT OF THIS
WORLD unnatural...* He looked towards Akane and didn't mistake the
look of complete jealousy that made her pretty face bitter. He sighed,
his face sad.
The teacher droned on, Ranma barely listening as usual. He never did
have the brain for this kind of learning. Now, put him in a situation for
training, he'll pick up a new move faster than thought, but when it came
to mundane subjects, he had no aptitude for it.
Instead, he focused on Akane, her chi, her lifeforce, which seemed so
drained before they reached school seemed to have replenished in mere
moments.
Then, it hit him.
Akane couldn't control her chi, so when she felt weak and vulnerable, if
there was a strong source of chi nearby, she'd drain some of the chi
from that person.
He frowned. She was a aural vampire, she fed off other people's life
forces. Most martial artists did. Yet, most people who studied the art
could control their chi, so they didn't need to drain as much.
He had to train her.
At least, he had to train her so she could replenish her own chi without
stealing someone elses. He frowned, wondering how he was going to
tell her what she did to him when she held him in the hall way. He'd
understood after Akane got injured, he'd frequently feel drained,
especially if he was close to her afterwards, like holding her in Jusendo,
especially after Jusendo. She probably had died, and his chi had been
the only thing that had helped her survive.
Yet, as a seasoned martial artist, he knew if he started with chi attacks,
he'd kill her. He could remember when he'd shot her up into the Hiryuu
shoten ha because she was trying to save the sheet with his cure for the
weakness moxibustion, and she'd passed out inside the spiral. If he
hadn't gone after her, she probably would have died.
He looked at his desk, deep in thought. She was HIS fiancee. Those
jibes he made to Kuno about her being an uncute tomboy and if the
True Blunder of Furinkan High wanted her, he could have her, all were
lies. Painful, hurtful, but lies. He couldn't tell her the truth. He couldn't
tell her how deep his feelings ran. He could NOT let her know how
much he loved her, needed her, as much as she needed him. Wanted
her, despite her misgivings, despite her lack of trust in him, and despite
his inability to say so. All because he didn't want to lose her.
He was so afraid of rejection.
It scared him more than the memory of Nekoken training.
But not as much as the thought of losing her.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Akane sat at lunch and could feel Ranma's eyes on her, as she'd been
able to feel them most of the day. He had rarely taken his eyes off of
her, as if he were afraid that if he did, she'd vanish.
The only thing that kept her from braining him was her new friend,
Fushicho. The girl was a fire brand, like herself. A tomboy. A skilled
martial artist.
She liked the thought of not being the only martial artist in the school
who was a girl. A smile crept onto her face as she listened to the girl
fondly speak of her master, who'd trained her to be so wonderful at
martial arts. She'd even gotten to watch her do the most complex kata
she'd ever seen in her life. She wanted to learn from her.
"Fushicho-chan?"
"Hai, Akane-chan?" She looked over at her with her mysterious black
eyes and Akane had to supress a shudder.
"Could you...would you teach me martial arts?" She asked, her voice
sounding soft and weak.
Fushicho looked genuinely distressed. "Oh, Akane-chan, I wish I
could...but I can't...my arts...they're dangerous...and I don't want to hurt
you...you're my friend..."
Disappointment surged through her. "I...I understand..." She looked
into bowl of udon soup and sighed. "It's alright..."
The red haired girl put a comforting arm around Akane's shoulder.
"Why don't you get that guy, Ranma to teach you, he's as good as I
am..."
Akane had to hold in her derisive snort of laughter. "Ranma?! Teach
me?! I can't even get him to spar seriously with me..." She sighed,
looking down. "And I don't understand why..."
"Maybe he doesn't want to hurt you either..."
"Hmph..." Akane tried to wound scoffing, but she ended up sounding
rather hurt, pained. "I don't know why he doesn't see I'm a martial artist
too...I'm not made of China...I don't break that easily..." She sighed, her
face sad.
Ranma listened from behind the tree. *Akane...* His eyes saddened as
he listened. *Does it hurt you that much? Does me not wanting to hurt
you do what I'm trying not to do?* He swallowed, his face torn. He had
to train her. Something was coming, he could feel it. But she looked so
fragile this morning...and now...
He swallowed, stepping from behind the tree and standing behind them.
"Akane...she's right...I don't want to see you get hurt...especially when
it was me..."
He watched his fiancee jump and spin around.
He bit his lip and looked down. "Akane, I'm strong...and I'm afraid I'll
hurt you-"
"YOU IDIOT!" She screamed. "EVERYTIME YOU DO THAT OR
CALL ME UNCUTE OR UNDESIREABLE, YOU HURT ME! DON'T
YOU UNDERSTAND AT ALL, BAKA?!"
He barely managed to keep from crying. "Let me finish, Akane. Just
this once, shut up and let me finish..."
Her eyes snapped wide and she did.
"I'm afraid I'll hurt you...or worse...I'm afraid you'll ask me to go all out
on you and I'll end up putting you into a hospital..." He took a deep,
shuddering breath and looked at her. "But...I'll train you...you did
something to me this morning...you didn't realized you did it, but you
did." He said softly.
She looked up at him, her face nervous. "What did I do?"
He looked at his slowly regenerating ki. "You stole some of my chi.
You felt weak this morning. I remember, normally, if I accidentally walk
in on you in the bath, I'm taking a first class ticket to the next island,
but..." He looked down. "I only hit the wall."
Her eyes widened. "I stole your chi...?"
He nodded. "It's an automatic reaction. I was the same way, so oyaji
taught me to control my chi when I was very, VERY young...you never
learned to control yours, and it controls you." He looked down. "Just
as your anger does, but I'm willing to help you...if you want my help..."
Her face was pale. Waxen almost. She felt as though she'd stepped off
a building and only just now realized it. "Ranma...I'm sorry..."
He shook his head. "Naw, don't go apoligizing for something you didn't
know you did. It's automatic. When you're injured, your chi can't
replenish as fast and you're more vulnerable. Same as when you're tired,
or upset. If you control it, you can keep an equal amount of it at any
given time...but before I teach you to do that, I think we better refresh
you on the basics..."
She looked furious. "BASICS?!"
He shrank away from her. "Geeze, Akane, I just said REFRESH! Just
the easy stuff! You got it down, but your out of practice!"
She looked at him warily. "Alright...we're starting as soon as we get
home..." She said softly, her face not at all happy.
Fushicho smiled at the exchange. *Hmmm...maybe they don't need my
help after all...*
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ranma stood in the dojo across from Akane. "I am NOT going to start
you off with my full speed or strength, but as you improve, I'll increase
them, alright?"
She hung her head. "Can I really stop you, sensei?" She asked, her
face angry.
He moved towards her and took her shoulders between his hands.
"Akane, I will NOT put your life in danger. I refuse. You're..." He
swallowed his pride momentarily. "You're my best friend and my
fiancee, I refuse to put you in danger."
She snorted. "Ranma, your LIFE is danger." She said softly. She'd
meant it as a joke, but she felt Ranma stiffen and imidiately cursed her
unthought words. She'd just used 'Secret Saotome Technique: How to
Shove your Foot down your Throat and Still have Room for your Leg'.
Ranma pulled away from her and turned away. "I know that..." He said
softly. "I...I try not to get you involved...but..." He cursed at his
poorness with words. "Akane, I don't like seeing you hurt..." He faced
her, his eyes haunted.
He wasn't here right now, he was in the past, when he'd been convinced
she was dead while they were in Ryugenzawa. He swallowed damply,
his face pained. "I've seen it...and it scares the hell out of me every time
I remember..." He whispered, pulling her into a tight hug. "Please,
please Akane...you have to understand...I'm begging you..."
She stood, shocked in his arms. "Ranma..." She whispered, her face
shocked. "I...I don't know what to say..." She whispered, her eyes
teary.
He bit his lip. "Please, just say you'll do it my way...you can brain me
with that mallet of yours all you want, just let me do this my way..." He
pressed his face into her shoulder.
She closed her eyes. Her choices weren't great. Say yes and deal with
him treating her like china, or say no and keep sucking chi from the
strongest available source. Ranma.
"How could I say no...?" She asked, lifting her arms and hugging him
back.
He pulled back slowly, staring down at her.
Then, he smiled.
And it was like Rainbows.
She held her breath. She'd never seen him look so grateful before. No,
that wasn't true. He'd given her that wonderful look once before. When
he'd first come here. When she thought he was a girl and asked if she
wanted to be her friend.
She swallowed hard and dropped her arms, standing back from him. She
adopted a student like stance and waited for him to come at her.
He did.
As usual, she couldn't stop him before he'd popped her a few times in
the chest lightly.
"Ranma!" She cried angrily.
He stopped staring at her, his face calm. "I'm just trying to see where
we need to do the most work..." He frowned, taking a ready stance.
"Come on, let's go. For real."
She lunged towards him and he danced out of the way gracefully and
they began sparring. Ranma frequently jabbed at her, gently. Not with
enough force to hurt her, but with enough to let her know where her
holes were. Where she needed to tighten her defenses. It was,
unfortunately, everywhere.
Finally, she held up her hands to stop. Her face was pale, her eyes
terribly upset. "What's wrong with me...?" She looked at her hands,
and tried not to cry.
He bit his lip, looking down and away. "Akane, you're just out of
practice. You haven't been fighting regularly, except with me...if you
could call what we do, fighting..." He hesitantely added to that.
"And...you aren't feeling joy in the training..."
She looked surprised.
"If you can't find something to strengthen with the art, an emotion, then
it wont get strong..."
She closed her eyes, collapsing. She was so tired. She couldn't do any
more tonight. She was so tired...
Ranma watched her collapse and moved towards her, sinking to his
knees and gently pulling her into his arms.
She stiffened. "Ranma...what about my chi... isn't that dangerous for
you to do?!"
He didn't release her. "Shhhh..." He said softly, his hands gently
running through her hair. "I'll be fine...trust me..." He said, pushing her
hair aside with his nose and pressing his face into the crook of her neck.
She was so soft...his dreamy thoughts didn't stop.
Akane felt her strength slowly returning and whimpered. She didn't
want to drain Ranma.
Finally, he pulled away from her, his face pale. He smiled, none the less,
however. "Easy, my little vampire..." He said, smiling down at her, his
face a bit weak.
She looked up at him, her face frightened. She watched as his stance
gradually grew stronger. "When are you going to teach me to replenish
my own chi?!" She asked, her face frightened.
Ranma gently helped her to her feet and hugged her again. "Akane...it's
alright. Don't worry, you wont drain me. If I was worried about that, I
wouldn't have offered to train you, now RELAX." He gently caressed
her hair and noticed she was trembling. "If I'm going to be your sensei,
you're going to have to trust me, Akane..."
She winced at the word. She did trust him, but sometimes it was just so
damn hard to...She lifted her face and stared into his eyes. "Ranma..."
She started. "I...I do trust you." She whispered finally.
He smiled, giving her a light squeeze before releasing her. "I'll teach
you how to control your chi tomorrow. You need to think of an emotion
that'll make the move YOURS."
She nodded slowly. Her face was bleak. She was frightened. Ranma
always preached about being afraid he was going to hurt her. Now she
was afraid she was going to hurt HIM. She was struggling with this,
trying to keep her aura under control.
She slowly pulled away from him, her face calm. "Ranma..." She paused
at the door. "I...Thank you..." She hesitated. "My iinazuke..." She
added in a whisper.
He looked at her in surprise. "Akane..."
She turned and fled the dojo. She made it to the bathroom before she
broke down, sobbing. "Oh, Ranma...I'm so scared..." She whispered.
She hugged her knees and began to sob.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The pair of innocents who lived at the Tendo Dojo didn't know that at
that very moment, martial artists from around the world were flocking to
Nerima. What they didn't know would be their annihilation.
Called by the undeniable need to fight, to become the best. Some
merely went without knowing what they were getting into. Others, for
the possibility of fame.
Some, to knock the spirits of good to their knees. To dominate the
world. To be a leech, feeding of the other artists powers. For reasons
of evil, but no less honorable than those who went innocently, or fame.
Even the lost boy felt an incredible pull to Nerima. Cologne, Happosai,
Pansuto Tarou, and various others, who were determined to gain the
'prize'. A guaranteed place in heaven as practically a god.
Little did they know, that this was merely a game, fixed by the gods
themselves. They didn't realize they would never let these selfish
mortals have the power of a god. Only those who fought for pure
reasons, love, honor, to protect the weak, they were who this test was
for.
Okami looked into the glass, his face calm. The lifeforces of those
people, a million different colors, shades, brilliant, or dulled.
Two caught his eyes. One that was pure, pale blue, another, warm
lemony yellow. But it wasn't the color that caught his eye. It was what
was inside them. Both aura's were lined, almost. The blue one, lined in
the most bright shade of silver, glitter everywhere.
The yellow, lined with an incredible gold, aching to grow more, nowhere
near it's peak power.
Okami frowned. The aura's belonged to a young martial artist and his
fiancee. Saotome Ranma and Tendo Akane.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ranma sat on the roof, staring into the stars. He stared at the stars, his
face serious. Akane was good, there was no doubt about that, but she
had so much *potential*. He had to keep training her, not just teach her
how to control her chi. He sighed.
He knew she needed to be tougher, mentally and physically. One
punch from Shampoo and she could be unconsious, or dead, depending
on where the young amazoness chose to strike. She needed to be
faster, and her defenses needed tightnened. She probably could use to
be a bit more CONTROLLED.
He heard the soft sound of her footsteps on the rooftop and watched
her sit beside him. He looked over at her and sat. "What are you doing
up here?"
She flinched slightly. "If you...don't want me here...I can go..." She
said, preparing to stand.
He caught her hand, holding her there. "I...I didn't mean I wanted you
to leave...I just meant...aw, hell, I don't know...but I don't mind you
bein' here..." He saw her weak smile and gently squeezed her hand.
She sat, her legs stretched out in front of her. She looked down at her
fiancee, and smiled. "Thank you for taking me seriously..." She said
softly. "It means alot to me..."
Ranma swallowed hard and slid his hands under his head, his eyes on
the stars again. "Akane..." He said softly. "I've always taken you
seriously. I just don't want to hurt you...but...I learned today...you have
too much potential to let my desire to be better, or my worry to prevent
you from excelling in martial arts..." He sat slowly and looked at her, his
face worried. "I do this for you because...I care for you...alot..." He
smiled at her and watched as she smiled back.
"I care for you, too..." She whispered, leaning forwards and kissing his
cheek gently.
Ranma's eyes flew wide and he stared at her in shock. "Akane..." He
whispered, his hand on his cheek. "I..." He blushed and almost moved
away from her, but saw the desperate look on her face and stopped.
"I...I'm sorry...I shouldn't have-"
He stopped her apologetic words by laying a finger over her lips. He
stared up at her, mesmerized by the hair that didn't want to stay behind
her ear. He smiled gently up at her. She was beautiful. Her skin was so
clear, translucent. Her hair was the same black as the sky, the stars
shining off her blue highlights. Her warm brown eyes stared down into
his intense, ocean blue, beckoning him. His thoughts, unbidden as
usual, went straight from his mind to his lips and eased through.
"Kirei..." He whispered, tucking the strand behind her ear tenderly.
She blushed, her face now quite red. "R-ranma..." She whispered, afraid
to speak any louder, lest she ruin the moment.
He sat slowly, staring at her. "Akane...no kirei..." He whispered softly,
his hand cupping the base of her head as he scooted till he was directly
in front of her. His other arm went around her, hugging her against him.
His heart lept into his throat as she gingerly held him back.
She couldn't believe this was happening. "You...you think I'm
pretty...?" She let her fingers play with his pig tail, stroaking his hair
gently.
"No...you're beautiful..." He pulled back slightly. "Not cute, cute's for
kids...not pretty, pretty is for girls...but beautiful...that's for a woman,
Akane..." He didn't know why he was saying this. Normally, his
feelings hid behind his mask so well. He'd always called her uncute,
and he wasn't expressing his feelings, but something about her tonight,
the way her eyes were shining, her face looking more beautiful than
should be possible, her hair reflecting the bright stars in the beautiful
blue highlights.
Taking a deep breath, he caressed her hair and leaned towards her,
putting his question into his eyes.
She stared into his eyes and swayed towards him. "Ranma..." She
whispered, closing her eyes. She felt the warmth of his lips on hers and
knew she wasn't dreaming. No dream could be this sweet. This
intoxicating. She moved her other arm up, till they were circling his
neck. She had wanted this so long, to feel loved by someone who was
not a member of her family, not adored, but looked on as an equal, not
someone to pine after, but someone to touch, hold, love. She sighed
dreamily, kissing him back slowly.
Ranma gulped slightly. His face was on fire. *Don't tell me I screwed
up...oh, damn, she isn't kissing me back...oh, gods, she's going to kill
me...* He felt her lips soften slightly and she was kissing him, her lips
parting slightly and he took the initiative to gently caress her lips with
his tounge. An electric shock ran through him and he jumped startled,
as she pulled back slightly.
Akane stared back up at him, her face filled with love and what almost
appeared to be adoration. Her fingers touched her lips, as if trying to
hold the feeling there. "Oh, Ranma..." She whispered, tears filling her
eyes. "Oh, Ranma..."
He was almost certain he was going to get brained by her. He'd never
felt anything like this, but he sure as hell didn't want it to end bad.
Hesitantely, he kissed her again. He brushed his lips across her cheeks,
her tear-filled eyes, her forehead, her ears, her jaw. He felt her trembling
and gently pulled back. "Don't cry...please..." He begged softly.
She gently caressed his face and then, her eyes smiled up at him. "Oh,
Ranma...why...?"
He smiled down at her, his eyes happy. "Akane, you dummy...I thought
you already knew...I love you..." He watched her eyes widen. "You
told me, but I didn't listen...I didn't want to admit you were right..." He
brought his lips to hers again. "I was afraid you hated me..."
She stared up at him in wonder. "Oh, Ranma..." She threw her arms
around his neck, hugging him tightly. "Do you still think I hate you?"
She asked soflty, blowing into his ear.
He shivered slightly. "I...I don't see how anything so nice could
happen...if either of us didn't care about the other..." He pressed his
lips to her shoulder. "...You should go to bed, Akane-chan..." He
whispered, releasing her.
She stared at him, shocked. "Ranma...do you want me to leave?"
He looked at his hands. "No..."
The softly spoken word was like a thunderclap in the quiet of the night
air. Akane reached towards him. "Ranma..." She caught his face,
forcing him to look at her. "I...I love you, too, Ranma..." She whispered,
kissing him gently before standing and moving towards the ladder.
He watched her go, and as she disappeared down the ladder, he flopped
back, his heart singing. *Oh, Akane...*
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
End Part 1
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~