Chapter Two
Ranma quietly walked into Akane's room and scanned the interior. Nothing was out of place and nothing seemed to be missing, so why did everything seem so wrong. This morning all he had wanted to do was start a real relationship with Akane, and he had been happy. For the first time in his life he was truly happy. Now, however, he could not seem to shake this feeling of dread building in the pit of his stomach. Something was definitely not right.
Scanning the room a second time Ranma noticed something that he had looked over the first time. On the desk was an envelope with a flower lying on the top of it. The flower was just like the one that he had given Akane the day her hat had blown out onto the water. Thinking of that day brought so many precious memories to Ranma's mind. The ones that contained Akane without her ever present mallet. The feel of her body leaning against his side, the feel of her hand in his, the joy that flooded his soul when she said his name in Jusenkyo. He was deeply moved that she had remembered his attempt to cheer her up on that day. Suddenly Ranma felt a new, and very strong conviction; one that he had never really been able to acknowledge before. Akane was the other half of his soul. No other girl would ever have the privilege of claiming his heart. That would always belong to Akane, and Akane alone.
A tender smile touched Ranma's face as he reached for the flower on Akane's desk. He gently picked the small blossom up and smelled it's delicate fragrance. He then placed the bloom in the top buttonhole on his shirt. As soon as he finished reading the note he would ask Kasumi to press the bloom for him, then he would place it in his Akane box along with her pictures and a rather sizable lock of her hair. With that decision made Ranma reached for the note. He was eager to read what Akane had written, no doubt it was her declaration of undying love for him. No, Akane would never write anything like that. She was way to tomboyish. This was probably just another one of those challenges she would give him on occasion, a plea for him to spar with her. Well, maybe he would accept her invitation this time. That way he could touch her without fear of being struck by her mallet.
Ever so slowly Ranma opened the seal on the envelope; afraid to find out what the content was. Finally there could be no more stalling; the letter was removed from its temporary prison allowing the sunlight to change reality, the letter's reality as-well-as Ranma's.
Ranma's eyes clouded as he slowly read the message that his Akane had left him. His world was crumbling before him, and there was nothing he could do to stop the pain. He had finally gotten the courage to tell Akane how he felt, and he was too late. How could he live without her? How could anyone live when their soul had been ripped from their body? Ranma savagely wiped the tears from his eyes as he continued to read, the explanation of how events happened. The finality of a situation played out for way too long. Everything was coming to a head, but not the way he had planned. Just as he was finishing, he heard a noise in the doorway and looked to see who was there. As he lifted his head he fought to bury his feelings deep within his being, dropped the letter to the ground, and walked past an ever-smiling Kasumi without saying one word.
"Oh my, the night is very misty. I can barely see anything at all!" Akane thought to herself as she walked down a forest path. Try as she might she could not recognize anything through the heavy fog that enveloped her.
"Surly I couldn't have wandered too far away from home. I am sure if I just keep following this path I will figure out where I am." The forest however was not co-operating with Akane. The vegetation just got denser the further she went. The tangles of branches overhead were falling closer to her. She had already hit her head on a thick knot of branches once. This was not right. The forest was not familiar. The path beneath her feet was quickly disappearing, she was starting to get scared.
"Did I wander of the main trail in all of this fog? Maybe I should wait for the fog to clear before I move on. Then I should be able to get my bearings straight." With this thought in mind Akane sat on an old, decaying log by the side of the road. She was alone. She hated to be alone. She always had someone with her, either a friend, a family member, or P-chan. This was a new experience for her, and a rather frightening one too. Everything seemed to be so dark and mysterious in this place. The fog added to the mysteriousness in an eerie sort of way.
Trying to fight off the feeling that something was standing right behind her, Akane folded her legs and dropped into a meditation. She was hoping that this would help her to regain control and focus her frazzled senses. Slowly, her breathing rate dropped and her muscles began to relax. Her thoughts began to turn inward, towards the events of her life. Happy days that were filled with love and warmth. Kasumi was in the kitchen making a hot meal for her family. The whole house was filled with the tempting aromas of her cooking. In the background Akane could hear the gentle clicking noise coming from Nabiki's room. She was totaling the day's receipts. Her sisters were always taking care of her. Making sure that every need was met before she could ever anticipate it. Her meditation deepened.
Akane wandered towards the back porch of the house. Her father was here. Weeping tears of joy for his family. He was so emotional all of the time, he held nothing back. He was never afraid of what people would think about him. He loved his family and did not care who knew. Once again, Akane's meditation deepened.
There was a noise behind her in the backyard. Not a very obvious noise, it was really more of a soft swish. The sort of noise one would hear if a humming bird were to fly by. Akane knew this was not the case though. Her highly trained senses told her otherwise. A smile formed on her face as she turned, she knew what she would see.
Ranma had entered the yard. He was kneeling on the edge of the water softly stoking its surface. Ever so slowly he turned his head and gazed straight into her eyes, holding her captive with the warmth in their depths. He raised his hand and beckoned her to come closer, and she found herself responding. He smiled brightly at her as she walked towards him. He looked so incredibly happy! As she neared he rose and turned to face her. Then he reached out his hand to her and waited. A confused look briefly crossed Akane's face. This was an event that rarely ever occurred and she was unsure of what to expect. Then Akane remembered that this was Ranma she was looking at, and no matter what words came out of his mouth in the end he truly never wanted to hurt her. Slowly she lifted her hand in turn as her heart started to beat rapidly in her chest. The feel of his fingers on hers sent wild sensations racing through her body. The warmth of his hand closing around hers made the dangers of the world seem insignificant. The strength of the chi flowing from his hand into hers seemed to solidify the bond that had been forming between them since the day they first met. A bond that seemed to transcend all meaning for Akane.
She shivered slightly as Ranma's arm wrapped around her shoulder. A feeling that was just a little to real for a meditation. Was their bond that strong? There again, Akane felt the sensation of something brushing against her shoulder. The pressure was too strong, something was not right.
Bit by bit Akane felt herself rising out of the depths of her meditation. The process only took a few seconds in reality, but to Akane it felt like several minutes had passed. The feeling was still there, something or someone was definitely touching her shoulder. Fighting to remain in control Akane slowly extended her senses trying to feel what was in contact with her. Whatever was there with her had a dark feeling to it; she needed to focus. Gathering all of her strength in to her arms and hands, Akane braced herself to strike this menace with her mallet. If she was right the thing was standing right behind her. She would have to be fast and extend backwards to compensate for any retreat the thing might attempt. Either way she would strike it, and she would strike it hard.
After what felt like an eternity, Akane felt her peak energy flowing through her arms. She snapped her eyes open and released a blood-curdling battle cry as she reached into nether-space for her mallet.
Ranma quietly walked into Akane's room and scanned the interior. Nothing was out of place and nothing seemed to be missing, so why did everything seem so wrong. This morning all he had wanted to do was start a real relationship with Akane, and he had been happy. For the first time in his life he was truly happy. Now, however, he could not seem to shake this feeling of dread building in the pit of his stomach. Something was definitely not right.
Scanning the room a second time Ranma noticed something that he had looked over the first time. On the desk was an envelope with a flower lying on the top of it. The flower was just like the one that he had given Akane the day her hat had blown out onto the water. Thinking of that day brought so many precious memories to Ranma's mind. The ones that contained Akane without her ever present mallet. The feel of her body leaning against his side, the feel of her hand in his, the joy that flooded his soul when she said his name in Jusenkyo. He was deeply moved that she had remembered his attempt to cheer her up on that day. Suddenly Ranma felt a new, and very strong conviction; one that he had never really been able to acknowledge before. Akane was the other half of his soul. No other girl would ever have the privilege of claiming his heart. That would always belong to Akane, and Akane alone.
A tender smile touched Ranma's face as he reached for the flower on Akane's desk. He gently picked the small blossom up and smelled it's delicate fragrance. He then placed the bloom in the top buttonhole on his shirt. As soon as he finished reading the note he would ask Kasumi to press the bloom for him, then he would place it in his Akane box along with her pictures and a rather sizable lock of her hair. With that decision made Ranma reached for the note. He was eager to read what Akane had written, no doubt it was her declaration of undying love for him. No, Akane would never write anything like that. She was way to tomboyish. This was probably just another one of those challenges she would give him on occasion, a plea for him to spar with her. Well, maybe he would accept her invitation this time. That way he could touch her without fear of being struck by her mallet.
Ever so slowly Ranma opened the seal on the envelope; afraid to find out what the content was. Finally there could be no more stalling; the letter was removed from its temporary prison allowing the sunlight to change reality, the letter's reality as-well-as Ranma's.
Ranma's eyes clouded as he slowly read the message that his Akane had left him. His world was crumbling before him, and there was nothing he could do to stop the pain. He had finally gotten the courage to tell Akane how he felt, and he was too late. How could he live without her? How could anyone live when their soul had been ripped from their body? Ranma savagely wiped the tears from his eyes as he continued to read, the explanation of how events happened. The finality of a situation played out for way too long. Everything was coming to a head, but not the way he had planned. Just as he was finishing, he heard a noise in the doorway and looked to see who was there. As he lifted his head he fought to bury his feelings deep within his being, dropped the letter to the ground, and walked past an ever-smiling Kasumi without saying one word.
"Oh my, the night is very misty. I can barely see anything at all!" Akane thought to herself as she walked down a forest path. Try as she might she could not recognize anything through the heavy fog that enveloped her.
"Surly I couldn't have wandered too far away from home. I am sure if I just keep following this path I will figure out where I am." The forest however was not co-operating with Akane. The vegetation just got denser the further she went. The tangles of branches overhead were falling closer to her. She had already hit her head on a thick knot of branches once. This was not right. The forest was not familiar. The path beneath her feet was quickly disappearing, she was starting to get scared.
"Did I wander of the main trail in all of this fog? Maybe I should wait for the fog to clear before I move on. Then I should be able to get my bearings straight." With this thought in mind Akane sat on an old, decaying log by the side of the road. She was alone. She hated to be alone. She always had someone with her, either a friend, a family member, or P-chan. This was a new experience for her, and a rather frightening one too. Everything seemed to be so dark and mysterious in this place. The fog added to the mysteriousness in an eerie sort of way.
Trying to fight off the feeling that something was standing right behind her, Akane folded her legs and dropped into a meditation. She was hoping that this would help her to regain control and focus her frazzled senses. Slowly, her breathing rate dropped and her muscles began to relax. Her thoughts began to turn inward, towards the events of her life. Happy days that were filled with love and warmth. Kasumi was in the kitchen making a hot meal for her family. The whole house was filled with the tempting aromas of her cooking. In the background Akane could hear the gentle clicking noise coming from Nabiki's room. She was totaling the day's receipts. Her sisters were always taking care of her. Making sure that every need was met before she could ever anticipate it. Her meditation deepened.
Akane wandered towards the back porch of the house. Her father was here. Weeping tears of joy for his family. He was so emotional all of the time, he held nothing back. He was never afraid of what people would think about him. He loved his family and did not care who knew. Once again, Akane's meditation deepened.
There was a noise behind her in the backyard. Not a very obvious noise, it was really more of a soft swish. The sort of noise one would hear if a humming bird were to fly by. Akane knew this was not the case though. Her highly trained senses told her otherwise. A smile formed on her face as she turned, she knew what she would see.
Ranma had entered the yard. He was kneeling on the edge of the water softly stoking its surface. Ever so slowly he turned his head and gazed straight into her eyes, holding her captive with the warmth in their depths. He raised his hand and beckoned her to come closer, and she found herself responding. He smiled brightly at her as she walked towards him. He looked so incredibly happy! As she neared he rose and turned to face her. Then he reached out his hand to her and waited. A confused look briefly crossed Akane's face. This was an event that rarely ever occurred and she was unsure of what to expect. Then Akane remembered that this was Ranma she was looking at, and no matter what words came out of his mouth in the end he truly never wanted to hurt her. Slowly she lifted her hand in turn as her heart started to beat rapidly in her chest. The feel of his fingers on hers sent wild sensations racing through her body. The warmth of his hand closing around hers made the dangers of the world seem insignificant. The strength of the chi flowing from his hand into hers seemed to solidify the bond that had been forming between them since the day they first met. A bond that seemed to transcend all meaning for Akane.
She shivered slightly as Ranma's arm wrapped around her shoulder. A feeling that was just a little to real for a meditation. Was their bond that strong? There again, Akane felt the sensation of something brushing against her shoulder. The pressure was too strong, something was not right.
Bit by bit Akane felt herself rising out of the depths of her meditation. The process only took a few seconds in reality, but to Akane it felt like several minutes had passed. The feeling was still there, something or someone was definitely touching her shoulder. Fighting to remain in control Akane slowly extended her senses trying to feel what was in contact with her. Whatever was there with her had a dark feeling to it; she needed to focus. Gathering all of her strength in to her arms and hands, Akane braced herself to strike this menace with her mallet. If she was right the thing was standing right behind her. She would have to be fast and extend backwards to compensate for any retreat the thing might attempt. Either way she would strike it, and she would strike it hard.
After what felt like an eternity, Akane felt her peak energy flowing through her arms. She snapped her eyes open and released a blood-curdling battle cry as she reached into nether-space for her mallet.