Khimenko, I was thinking along the same lines! ^_^ So, when I had already
worked around that problem in my outline. Send me an e-mail and tell me
what you think.
I do not in any way own any of the Ranma ½ characters, I just borrow them on occasion to entertain with...
STARRY NIGHT CHAPTER 15
Hefting the heavy pack on her shoulder, Kurumi felt herself start to actually relax a little. Tenseness had been an everyday occurrence since she and Natsume had entered this picturesque little valley. Nothing had actually happened during their stay, nothing out of the ordinary anyways. Still she couldn't seem to shake the foreboding feeling that had been haunting her. Now that they were leaving though, she could breath a little easier.
Glancing at her sister out of the corner of her eye, Kurumi noticed that she just didn't seem the same. Her walk didn't have the normal bounce and she wasn't humming to herself. Pursing her lips together Kurumi continued to watch her sister finally deciding that she must still be feeling ill.
"Are you sure you feel up to hiking today?" Kurumi asked, her voice full of concern. "It wouldn't take long to put the tent back up."
"I'm fine, Kurumi," Natsume said with a firm tone. "I am full of energy from lying around for so long. I need to be up doing something."
The two sisters pressed on down the overgrown path that wound before them, an uneasy quiet grew between them. Kurumi didn't know what to say to Natsume anymore. Every time she tried to start a conversation with her sister, she was cut short and left wanting. Natsume, on-the-other-hand, was not in the least bit concerned with Kurumi. She was focused solely on herself, and all of the strange thoughts that were coursing through her head. If she didn't know better she would have sworn that there was another person living in her body with her.
The silence was starting to weigh heavy on Kurumi, she felt like she would bust if something wasn't said soon. The problem was she didn't know what to say to her sister. Almost everything she said to Natsume lately was either ignored or curtly answered. At least she knew one subject that she shouldn't bring up, Natsume's health. She really didn't feel like having her head bitten off again.
"So, why do you want to see the Tendos again?" Kurumi said with a fair amount of trepidation. The scowl that formed on Natsume's face told her that she had said the wrong thing yet again.
"I just have to get to the dojo. I have some unfinished business there."
There were so many more questions that Kurumi wanted to ask, so many things she wanted to know. She never asked though. Natsume was pointedly looking down the road, effectively ignoring her little sister. If she were to say anything now, the words would fall on deaf ears.
Feeling dejected, Kurumi resigned herself to the world of silence that she had come to know so well over the past few weeks. From what she could tell the rest of the journey would follow the same pattern.
*************************
"Hey old ghoul, how come Shampoo ain't a cat yet?" Ranma-chan asked, hoping for one particular answer; the one that would lead to his cure.
Cologne cringed inwardly at the crude name that the boy had labeled her with. She held her tongue though, now would not be a good time to have a confrontation. Tuning out the red head next to her, Cologne listened intently to the conversation that was occurring between the two combatants.
"Hey!" Ranma-chan yelled a little vexed at the fact that Cologne was not paying any attention to him. "Can you hear me? Are you deaf too?"
"Quiet!" Cologne commanded as she whacked the insolent boy on the head. She didn't bother to say anything else to the boy, focusing instead on the scene playing out in front of her.
Ranma-chan sat quietly for a few minutes rubbing the top of his head, feeling for the forthcoming bump. Feeling Akane's aura begin to rise, Ranma turned his attention back to the girls. The air between the two crackled with tension as their eyes locked in a mental combat, each daring the other to back down.
Intently, Ranma-chan listened to the pair in the ring, and was quickly confused. For the first time in his life he found himself wishing that he had paid more attention in school. Feeling the gravity of the situation, he watched Cologne's expression to see her reaction to the conversation. He was not disappointed when he saw a look of disbelief cross the old woman's face.
"What's with those two?" Ranma-Chan asked as he saw a smirk form on Akane's face.
Cologne considered not telling the boy of the agreement that the girls had come to, but then thought better of it. If this Yung Ji girl was to win the fight, then Ranma had a right to know. After all, he would be losing the most eligible warrior in the village.
"The warrior in the camouflage made an offer Shampoo couldn't refuse," Cologne said while trying to mask her disapproval of the situation. "If Shampoo wins she gets the amethyst necklace. If Yung Ji wins she gets you."
Watching Ranma closely, Cologne waited for a reaction from the boy. She was sure that he would find the situation distasteful; she was not to be disappointed. Soon a small frown began to work its way onto his features as he thought the situation over, and an irritated gleam shone in his eyes. This was what she had been hoping for, a sign that Shampoo did have a chance with the boy.
"Don't worry, son-in-law, Shampoo doesn't make bets she can't win," Cologne said in an attempt to assuage the boy. All she got in return was a look of contempt. It was almost as if he wanted that Yung Ji girl to win!
As the two combatants started to circle each other, Cologne took a closer look at this Yung Ji girl. There had to be a reason that Ranma would so openly support a total stranger over Shampoo, and she intended to discover it.
**********************
Shampoo glared at the girl that was standing across from her as she tried to find a hole in her defenses. Although trying to maintain a calm appearance, on the inside she was seething. First that girl had the nerve to challenge her for Ranma's hand, and now she was smirking at her!
Every muscle in Shampoo's body wanted to run across the field and slap that smug little girl right across the face! She would not lose control; she needed to keep her composure. She would not risk losing Ranma to that whelp.
Just as Shampoo had started to take some deep breaths, the girl facing her from across the ring started to make messaging gestures with her hands. In a split second Shampoo lost all of the control she had mustered. Flying across the ring at top speed, she hefted her bonbori above her head and prepared to strike.
As Shampoo was charging, the girl, which she was quickly approaching, came out of her defensive front stance and just stood there, staring at her. Shampoo could feel the top blow off of her anger, and wanted nothing more than to knock that girl's head off of her shoulders. Veering off to the right, Shampoo decided to let her speed work for her, and swung the bonbori in her left hand at the offending girl, hitting nothing.
Quickly, Shampoo turned around to avoid a back attack only to find Yung Ji standing in the same spot as before. The girl had not moved an inch. The flaw in her attack plan was very evident to Shampoo, but she was having trouble containing her anger. There was just something about this girl that was rubbing her the wrong way. Something that Shampoo just couldn't quite put her finger on. Leveling her eyes on her opponent, Shampoo started to employ a calming technique that her grandmother had taught her. Now was not the time to try and figure out the mystery behind this girl. She would do that later.
************************
The amazement that Ranma-chan felt, as he watched the fight between Akane and Shampoo progress, was overwhelming. He knew that Akane had been improving during their nightly training sessions, but he had never actually stood back and watched her fight before. The grace and beauty she exhibited in her simple movements was wonderful, and her speed and dexterity were phenomenal. She was truly a sight to see!
Ranma-chan actually felt himself starting to feel sorry for Shampoo as he saw her raise both of bonbori over her head. She was starting to get desperate. Akane could have defended against that tactic before she had improved. The only thing Shampoo could hope to accomplish with this move was to momentarily distract Akane, giving her a chance to set up for her next move.
There was nothing for Ranma-chan to worry about though. Akane was an Amazon now, being trained by some of the worlds most advanced fighters. That's also what was vexing him though. So many questions kept popping into his head, and they all centered around one person, Akane. How had she been accepted into the tribe? How had she gained the trust of such a secretive society? How was this going to affect their future?
With a few well thought out questions he could probably have his answers that night, but was that the direction he wanted to take. For some reason the idea of pressing her for answers while she was sleeping seemed rather deceitful to him. Probably because he knew that she didn't know he was the real Ranma.
He just couldn't do it. Ending up in the same predicament as Ryoga was not something he wanted. He wanted to build his relationship with Akane on something solid, and lies were just filled with too many holes to suit his purpose. Tonight, after the tournament festivities were over, he would explain everything to her. Until that time though, there was one question that he was burning to have answered.
"Hey, Old Ghoul! Did you and Shampoo find a cure or is she using some of that soap?"
**********************************
The soft clinks of the ice cubes bumping the sides of the glass had a slightly soothing effect on Nabiki. Across the Nekohatten her family sat at a table chatting, but the pleasant banter did not reach her ears. Ever since Mousse had held her hand, she had been in a world of her own.
The whole incident had been very disturbing for her, but not in an unpleasant way. There in lied the problem. Never before in her life had Nabiki allowed anyone but her sisters to get so close to her, she kept everyone at a distance. Then came Mousse who, with his quiet supportive mannerisms, had managed to worm his way past her well-constructed defenses.
Nabiki was a firm believer in the concept that there was a perfect match for every person on the planet. Even though she had not been actively searching for hers, she had always assumed that they would cross paths eventually, completing each other in a way that no one else could.
The emotions that were involved with loving someone so deeply was a subject that Nabiki rarely delved into. Love was a subject that she tended to avoid because of the painful memories that she associated with it. Every act of caring, selfless giving reminded her of her mother's love, and the pain she felt when she lost that love. That was a dark period of her life that she did not like to remember, and she never wanted to revisit.
Mousse had managed to do something no other person outside of her family had ever done. He had touched her heart. She had finally found a true friend. Mousse owed her nothing and had no need of her information. For that matter he had never even placed a bet with her. All he did was care about her.
The care he showed for her was not what was bothering her though. The thing that was disturbing her was the plethora of emotions she had felt at his touch. She had never experienced such powerful, raw emotions before. The whole experience left her feeling giddy, yet confused.
"What's wrong," a soft melodic voice whispered into Nabiki's ear, startling her out of her reverie. Nabiki turned to look at Kasumi, trying to decide whether or not she should confide in her sister.
"I'm not sure, sis," Nabiki said as the gentle, caring look in Kasumi's eyes began to make her feel comfortable. "Mousse has become a really good friend."
Kasumi waited a few seconds for Nabiki to continue, but when she noticed that she was at a loss for words, she interjected.
"Did you feel uncomfortable when he held your hand?" Kasumi tenderly asked.
"It didn't really bother me, it's just that.I don't know," Nabiki responded in exasperation. She turned and started to walk away, but then went back to where Kasumi waited. "He made me feel things that I have never felt before. I just don't know what to make of all of this."
"Why don't you think about this for a while. Try and figure out what exactly what you feel," Kasumi said with an understanding smile, she had gone through the same thing with Tofu not that long ago. "We can get together in a couple of days and we will talk."
"Why a couple of days? We're both here now. Come on, tell me what you felt for Tofu in the beginning," Nabiki replied.
"I think you might need to sort through some of this on your own before asking someone else how their experience was. They are not all the same," Kasumi said with a wink and started to walk back to the table. Then, as an afterthought, she said over her shoulder, "I think you should put some of that ice in the glasses."
A soft blush crept its way across Nabiki's face as she looked down and saw ice littering the counter all around the glasses.
****************************
For what seemed like the hundredth time that day, Ryoga found himself walking around a corner in the hopes that this one would reveal the street that would lead him to the Tendo Dojo. The only thing that was keeping him going was the knowledge that he was in Tokyo, or at least he thought he was. A few streets back he had stopped to read the address on the side of a business, and he was certain that it had said Tokyo.
After walking for a few minutes, the scenery that Ryoga was passing began to look familiar to him. The further he went, the more things he recognized. Finally, his long journey came to an end as he stopped in front of a closed wood gate.
Giving a push, Ryoga stepped into the Tendo compound and headed for the door to the house. He hadn't wanted to return to this place with its memories of Akane, but he had made a promise to a friend and he intended to see it through.
Ryoga hesitated for a moment before knocking on the front door, expecting an explosion of heart-wrenching memories that never came. Instead of heartache he was feeling something new, something that he had never really experienced before. There was a warm, bubbly feeling flowing through him that made him want to smile. Whatever the feeling was it made him feel better than his almost continual depression. He also enjoyed it more than the short burst of exhausting nervousness that he felt around Akane, this one was much more comforting.
Minutes passed, and the door was never answered. Carefully, Ryoga skirted around the outside of the house. In an attempt not to get lost, his hand never left the wall until he reached the doors to the dojo. Stepping into the cool darkness within, he sat and waited for the family to return home.
*******************************
The trip from across the sea between Japan and China was never an arduous task, but it was one that Pantyhose Tauro didn't particularly like. The flight seemed to take forever with no one to talk to, and nothing to look at except for the endless blue waters. Occasionally a pod of dolphins could be seen playing on the waves, but they just provided a momentary distraction to the monotony of the journey. Considering everything, he was just happy to be on the ground again.
To say the least, he was more than happy to be on the ground again, even if he was in Amazon territory. For some reason, he had a feeling that he could find fem-boy in the Amazon village. Anytime fem-boy ever went to China that was where he always ended up.
Fate was working in Pantyhose Tauro's favor, the village was not heavily guarded. Sneaking around the village would have been out of the question if the they had been at their posts. There was no way he would have been able to walk around with his umbrella and not be noticed by one of them. At least he hadn't gotten wet yet then he really would have noticed.
Still, the fact that the guards were missing was bothering him. For all he knew, he could be walking into some trap that fem-boy set up for him. Until he knew what was happening and where everyone was, there was no way he would start to relax.
A loud noise up ahead of him caught his attention. It sounded as if there was a crowd assembled up ahead. The thought of getting caught was looming in his mind, so he cautiously made his way forward to see what was happening. He paused at the last hut that he came to and peered around the corner, he had come to the village square. Suddenly he knew where all of the guards were. For that matter, he knew where everyone was.
**********************************
Akane managed to glare at Shampoo, in spite of the rain that kept getting into her eyes. Every now and again the image before her would go blurry, but that didn't matter. She could tell by the amount of hot ki the girl was putting off that she was beginning to get very angry. All Akane needed to do now was maintain her cool.
"You want me to stand still so you can hit me?" Akane asked with an innocent grin on her face.
Silently she watched as the anger smoldered in Shampoo's eyes, the girl looked like she was going to erupt. Just as quickly as her temper flared, she was able to bite some of it back.
"I don't need any favors from the likes of you," Shampoo replied. "Don't you know who I am?"
"Yeah, you're the little kitten that likes to pretend it's human. Glad to see you had enough no-change soap, otherwise I would have squashed you by now," Akane shot back with an edge in her voice.
"Looks like the forest girl needs to be shown her place," Shampoo said. "Ranma is my husband, and no one is going to take him from me!"
Before anything more could be said, Shampoo raised both of her bonbori over her head and made a reckless rush towards Akane. This was more than Akane could have hoped for. All she needed to do now was side step the attack and then land a punch between Shampoo's shoulder blades.
Just before Shampoo could reach her Akane took her stance and waited to make her move. Expecting to see the bonbori being brought down on top of her head, Akane almost didn't see Shampoo plant her feet. Before she knew what was happening, the other girl had sprung up in the air and was beginning to arc over her head.
Without even thinking Akane dropped to the ground, relieved to see the two bonbori pass through empty air. Moving quickly, she came up into a crouching position, and rolled backwards like she was doing a summersault. When her hands were firmly planted on the ground, instead of completing the roll, she extended out into a front extension aimed for Shampoo's midsection.
Akane's feet connected with Shampoo's stomach before the girl could complete her flip, filling Akane with a satisfaction she had never felt before. The wounded girl fell to the ground, gasping for air, letting her bonbori roll out of her hands. Acting on the opportunity that presented its self, Akane ran towards the girl and grabbed the bonbori, throwing them into the growing crowd.
"Oh, did I hurt you?" Akane asked Shampoo with mock empathy. She continued to stand over the girl until her breathing started to become less ragged; then she backed away.
"So, Yung Ji, you are scared of me!" Shampoo said to Akane after she had stood up.
"Not at all, I just wanted to make sure you had enough room to move," Akane returned with a smile. "Wouldn't want to cramp your style, you know."
Once again Akane could feel Shampoo's ki start to swell. This time though when the girl started to charge at her, Akane made her own charge. The anticipation she felt for the up coming melee was so great that she couldn't help but smile. She had waited for this moment for so long! Finally, she was holding her own against Shampoo, and she could even win this bout.
Shampoo's ki started to grow even hotter causing Akane to chuckle. Shampoo was losing and she knew it! The thought helped to boost her confidence off the charts, but she still kept her wits about her. She had seen enough of Ranma's fights to know what could happen if she allowed herself to get too cocky. This was one fight she could not lose! She needed to give Ranma his freedom.
When Shampoo was just a little shy of an arms length away from Akane, she planted her foot for a spinning kick aimed at her opponent's head. Quickly assessing the situation, Akane stopped and waited for Shampoo's foot to get closer to her, planting her feet and lowering her center of gravity as she waited.
When Shampoo's foot started to reach its apex, Akane reached up with her hands and grabbed ahold of it. Akane decided to use Shampoo's momentum to her advantage and pivoted in the same direction the other girl had been going. Then, like she was no more than a rag doll, Akane released Shampoo's foot and flung her into a tree several yards away. Shampoo fell to the ground unconscious.
***********************************
Pantyhose Tauro watched closely from his spot by the hut. From where he stood not only did he have a good vantage point of the fight, he could clearly see Ranma-chan. What he saw greatly pleased him.
The first thing that happened was this girl took out Shampoo, the champion of the village. The second thing that happened was fem-boy, who was known to be Shampoo's unwilling husband, showed more than a passing interest in the girl. He needed to find out who the girl was.
The rain stopped as the girl, Yung Ji, was declared the winner of the fight. Soon after the prize was awarded the crowd began to dissipate, giving Pantyhose Tauro the opportunity he was waiting for.
Blending in with the crowd, he started to make his way towards the group of women that surrounded the girl. The plan was to use some of the baser animal instincts he seemed to have inherited with his curse to smell the scents in the air surrounding the group. He had an idea of who this girl was; she looked very familiar. He had to know for sure though, and if she was who he thought she was then he would recognize her smell.
He stopped at the edge of the crowd a few feet away from his quandary. This was the closest that he could get. Closing his eyes and turning his nose slightly up towards the breeze, he inhaled deeply and began to try to sort through the myriad of scents that he smelled. He ignored all of the unfamiliar scents, tossing them aside like an unwanted bone.
Soon he was rewarded for his diligence as he came across the scent he wanted. He could clearly remember the first time he had smelled the tantalizing aroma, it was as if no time had passed at all. The building perched high up on the cliff, and the scared, yet defiant girl that he held there. She had impressed herself so well upon him that he would never be able to forget her musky aroma of sandalwood and lavender.
This was going to greatly help his plans along. There was no way he would ever try to harm Akane Tendo again, but if he could find someone else to do it for him then he could get fem-boy while he was down. Now all he had to do was wait for an opportunity to talk with the all-around loser. Knowing how competitive the two girls were, he could just imagine how Shampoo would react when she found out whom she had lost to.
*******************************
"To Kasumi and Tofu!" the cheer echoed across the empty dinning room, the raised glasses clinked in reply.
Except for one person, every person shared the merry atmosphere in the room. He tried to hide his anguish though. This was his daughter's day after all, and he did not want to ruin it. So instead of crying, he glued a smile on his face. He owed her that much.
"Are you having a good time Daddy?" Kasumi asked Soun after she had noticed him taking a shuddering breath.
He didn't answer right away; instead he closed his eyes and tried to squash his melancholy mood. After a few minutes he decided that, for him, a festive mood would not be possible that day, he would have to muddle through.
"I'm fine Kasumi," he said, giving her a weak smile. The concerned look in her eyes let him know that she didn't believe him. He didn't want to ruin her special day, but he had no choice. He knew Kasumi, and she wouldn't leave until he told her what was wrong.
"I wasn't there when you became Tofu's wife," Soun said with a sigh. "I had no clue that Akane was hurting so much until she left. Other than her love for money, I really don't know Nabiki at all, and now I have missed your marriage. Even if all you did was see a judge and sign papers, I wasn't there."
Some of Soun's remorse left him when he felt Kasumi gently take his hand in hers. There was so much he regretted, so much he had missed being a part of.
"I have spent so much time in my own little world mourning over the loss of your mother that I have missed my time with you girls," Soun said while looking down at the floor. He was too full of shame to look his eldest daughter in the eye. "You have grown into a beautiful lady despite my shortcomings, and you have raised your sisters to be incredible women. I, I apologize for not being there."
His heart began to break as he felt Kasumi let go of his hand and start to walk away. Tears began to course down his face as he thought about how unforgivable his crimes against his daughters were. He had forced two of them to mature at such a young age by saddling them with the running of a household, and the other he had forced into an unwanted engagement.
As far as he was concerned, there was only one honorable thing left for him to do, correct his mistakes. He would take care for himself and get Nabiki to show him the books for the household finances, but first he had to talk to Saotome. His little girl should not have to suffer because he was an imbecile.
Wiping his eyes before he headed back to the table, Soun tried to regain his composure. It would never do for him to be blubbering when he went to talk to his friend. He needed to be taken seriously. The sound of Kasumi walking away from him was still ringing in his ears, reminding him of what he had lost.
Just as he was looking up, Soun felt two pairs of arms encircling him. His girls were there. Timidly he looked up into their faces, afraid of what he might see there.
The love that he saw radiating in their eyes shocked him, and made him realize just how little he really knew about his girls. Realizing that he had a lot to make up for, he wrapped his arms around Kasumi and Nabiki. At that moment Soun vowed to try and be more like the man he had been while their mother was alive. No longer would he allow himself to be a blubbering idiot.
***********************
Standing on a dais, Akane could see practically everybody who had come to see the ceremony. She quickly scanned the crowd, searching for the one face that she wanted to see more than anything. Finally she found him, standing in the back of the crowd. He was looking right at her.
For a brief moment their eyes meet, and she shyly smiled at him. Even though they were several yards apart, she could tell that he was upset with her. She could almost feel his emotions. Anger, disbelief, relief and admiration were all forming a jumbled mess within his mind. There were two more emotions that she couldn't quite identify though. They were encircling the other emotions, keeping them at bay.
Before she could probe deeper into those emotions, their brief contact was broken when she heard elder Soon Hee calling her name.
"Yung Ji, Xian Pu please step forward," the matriarch of the tribe commanded with a quiet tone. She waited as the girls approached her from opposite sides of the stage.
"Xian Pu, you have long been the champion of our tribe. For years our best warriors have been trying to take the title from you, but to no avail. Every time a fellow warrior would challenge you, you would quickly defeat her." Soon Hee looked over at the purple haired girl and noted the forced look of acceptance on her face. This defeat would give the girl a much needed lesson in humility.
Akane also noted the look on Shampoo's face, and silently prayed that the girl never found out who she was.
"Finally, the tribe has been able to train a warrior that rivals Xian Pu! This is indeed a wonderful day for the Amazons!" Soon Hee said as she threw her fists in the air over her head. "With two such powerful warriors training our youth, we will become stronger than ever!"
To the amazement of both Ranma and Akane, every person in the crowd started to cheer wildly at that last proclamation. They both knew how seriously Cologne had taken Shampoo's training, but they had no idea that the whole tribe was like that.
"Yung Ji, please step forward." Once again the matriarch waited as Akane approached her.
"Xian Pu, if you would be so kind as to acknowledge the new champion of the village," Soon Hee said while looking between the two girls.
With a false smile pasted on her face, Shampoo took a step towards Akane. She reached to the bangle on her upper arm and removed it. Akane had seen Shampoo wearing that bangle several times on special occasions, but she had never understood its significance until now.
Akane smiled in spite of the harsh grasp with which Shampoo had taken a hold of her arm, and graciously accepted the bangle from its previous owner.
"Congratulations Yung Ji!" Soon Hee said as soon as the exchange was complete. The crowd erupted in cheers again as Shampoo walked back to stand with her great-grandmother.
Soon Hee grabbed Akane's hand and raised it in the air as the crowd's cheers grew louder, but Akane wasn't paying attention. She was focused on Ranma. For some reason that she couldn't explain she knew that he was going to try to talk to her after she had collected her prize, she didn't want that to happen. She was not ready to try to explain things to him yet.
************************
"Stop for the night, child," Natsume heard the bodiless voice in her head. She had been hearing this voice since yesterday and thought that something in the valley had been adversely affecting her, but here it was again. Taking a few more steps, she tried to resist the voice, but it was no use. With each step she took, the voice laughed and sent waves of pain crashing through her head. She had to obey.
"There child, in that grove of trees," Natsume seemed to instinctively know which way to turn her head. "That is where we will make camp for the night."
The bright light of the afternoon sun started to hurt her eyes causing them to squeeze shut. There was no use. She knew that no matter how much she wanted to continue to the coast there was no way she was going to be able to make it.
"Kurumi," Natsume said while pointing off into the distance, "let's make camp in that grove of trees."
Natsume watched as worry started to inch its way onto her sister's face. Briefly, she felt a moment of comfort as she realized how much Kurumi cared for her. She felt awful for dragging her sister into this mess, but she just couldn't bring herself to leave her.
This was an issue that she had been tearing her apart for some time now. She love Kurumi very much and only wanted the best for her. The thirst for vengeance was so over powering though. There was no way that Natsume would be able to defeat Ranma on her own, and so her sister stayed with her.
Deep down Natsume knew that she was bringing about her own demise, but she could not help herself. She had grown up without a family or home, never knowing what it was to feel secure for the night. Then, when she had finally found all of those things, Ranma and Akane had taken them all away from her. They took away the man that she had thought of as her father for so long, they had taken away the home she had found, and they had taken away her newfound pride.
The day she left the dojo, she had vowed to get revenge on those two for ruining her life. That was what she had been working towards till this very day. The thought of revenge had been the fuel for her fire. It had so wholly obsessed her that she had started to ignore the world around her, including Kurumi.
Now that the voices had come, she finally understood how wrong she was, but it was too late. She couldn't back down now, the voices wouldn't let her. The dojo had to be hers so she could show the world who the true master was.
"Natsume!" Kurumi yelled, trying to get her sister's attention. Natsume stopped walking towards the trees and turned to look at her little sister.
"What is wrong with you?" Kurumi asked on the verge of tears.
"Nothing sis," Natsume said with a smile. "I just think I was pushing myself a little too hard. I need to rest for a while before we can continue to Japan."
"Ok, why don't you sit down while I put up the tent. Then you can sleep while I make some dinner," Kurumi said and then continued to walk towards the trees. Natsume was more than willing to comply.
*******************
"Mother," Akane said as she made her way to the side of the stage that her group of friends was standing on. "I need some help again."
Wu Shan quickly looked the girl over. Just as soon as Soon Hee had released her hand, Akane had bolted over to them. She needed to make sure there was nothing wrong with her adopted daughter.
"What is it," Wu Shan asked when Akane had gotten closer to the group.
"Do you remember the boy I was telling you about earlier?" Akane asked quickly.
"Yes, Xian Pu's ex-husband. The boy in the red shirt with the pig tail." Wu Shan replied.
"Well, I think that he is going to want to talk to me."
"Is there a problem with that? He is your husband now."
"You don't understand! I don't want to force him to marry me!"
"Oh, you want him to come to you of his own free will."
"Yes, besides he doesn't even know who I am right now. I don't want him thinking that he has been pawned off on another woman."
"I understand," Wu Shan said sympathetically. "I think I have an idea of what we can do."
"Quick, tell me!" Akane eagerly said.
"Patience child," Wu Shan admonished. "I need to speak with the matriarch to make sure it is legal, then I will tell you. Wait here."
Anxiously, Akane scanned the crowd. She had lost sight of Ranma when she bolted to the side of the stage and didn't know exactly where he was. She seemed to be able to sense him though, and she knew that he was still extremely close by.
A hand reached out and tapped Akane on the shoulder, causing her to jump. She quickly turned to see Wu Shan smiling at her.
"Come child. I will tell you what we are going to do on our way to collect your reward."
Akane obediently followed.
********************
After making a quick stop for some hot water, Ranma tried to make his way to Akane as quickly as he could, but was making little progress. The majority of the crowd was traveling in the opposite direction, trying to take him with them. He kept pressing on though. He needed to reach the prize table before Akane got there.
Up ahead, in the distance, Ranma could make out a table heaped with various types of food. Akane was nowhere to be seen, but he still knew that he had to hurry. For some reason he got the distinct feeling that she was trying to avoid him.
Determination took a hold of him as he continued to push his way through the crowd. The sight of the winner's table continually growing closer caused his anticipation to grow. He was just a few feet away from his goal when he saw Akane and her friends walk out to the table and start to collect the winnings.
"Yung Ji!" Ranma yelled, not knowing if anyone knew who she really was. "Yung Ji, wait!"
Akane's head snapped up the second time he yelled at her. He was sure that she would wait for him, but instead she seemed to be moving faster.
Frantically he tried to speed his progress through the crowd so she could reach her, but they didn't seem to understand his urgency. He was just reaching the edge of the crowd when Akane turned and walked off down the road. He couldn't believe what he saw! She knew that he was there and she was still choosing to walk away!
Much to his relief, two of the girls that were at the table with Akane had stayed behind. They never took their eyes off of him as he made his way towards the road that Akane went down. Silently he wondered where they were going to take him.
"Hi guys!" Ranma said as he started to walk past the two girls. He quickly stopped when a short sword and bonbori appeared in his face.
"Hey, what's that for!" Ranma yelled at the two girls.
"Yung Ji does not wish to see you," the girl with the short sword said, "she asked us to give you a message."
Ranma stared at the two girls, not quite believing what he was hearing. He looked down the road all the way to where it disappeared into the trees, but saw no sign of Akane. He would listen for now. Hopefully they would make his job easier and just take him to Akane.
"Yung Ji says that she understands your plight, she knows what it is like to be forced into an unwanted engagement. That is why she fought Xian Pu for your hand." The girl with the bonbori said. "Everyone in the village knew about you and Xian Pu. Everyone knew that you didn't want anything to do with her."
"That is why she made the deal with Xian Pu," the girl with the short sword took over. "Yung Ji believes that every person should be able to choose their own mate. She is setting you free. She wants you to know that you have no further obligations to her, and that Xian Pu should no longer bother you either."
Ranma just stared at the girls in complete silence. After Cologne had told him of the deal Akane made with Shampoo, he had spent most of his day being upset with her. Now he wasn't sure what he felt. Part of him was happy that one of his fiancées understood that he didn't want to be forced into anything. The other part of him was hurt that Akane didn't seem to want him. He wasn't sure what to think anymore.
The girl with the bonbori put her weapon away when she saw the look on his face and approached him. Tenderly, she reached out and put her hand on his shoulder.
"Please understand that Yung Ji didn't want to hurt you. She just wanted to give you the freedom to choose your own future."
A deep ache started to throb in Ranma's heart causing him more pain than he had ever felt in his life. He started to run off in the opposite direction that Akane had gone. He needed to be alone.
***********************
Ryoga quickly awoke from the nap he was taking when he heard the door to the dojo slide open. The bright light shinning in blinded him for a moment, but when his eyes adjusted he was awestruck by the beauty before him.
A girl with long, flowing brown hair stood in the doorway. The sun, which was directly behind her, formed a halo of light around her body, which made her look like she was glowing. For second, Ryoga thought he had died and gone to heaven.
"Hey, sugar," the creature in the doorway said, "what are you doing here? Did you get lost again?"
"Oh, it's you Ukyou," Ryoga said, regretting the fact that she was his angel. "Ranma asked me to come help out at the dojo while he was gone."
Ukyou crossed the room and sat in front of Ryoga. She gave him a small smile before she continued.
"You too? He asked me to help out just before he left to find Akane."
"Why didn't you stop him?" Ryoga asked.
Ukyou didn't answer right away, instead she got a far away look in her eyes. Ryoga just sat and looked at her, wondering why he never noticed how cute she was before.
"I guess you can say I rudely had my eyes opened," Ukyou finally answered. "Well maybe not rudely, but I did have reality thrown in my face."
"What do you mean?" Ryoga asked, a little upset from the hurt look in Ukyou's eyes.
"Ranma came to my shop the day he left to look for Akane. He spelled everything out for me," Ukyou said with a sigh. "I didn't want to believe him at first, but then when I started to cry he just walked away. I could always get him to stop with my tears before, but not this time."
"So you knew that he was serious?"
"Yeah, that was when I knew that I didn't have a chance with him. You know what though? Losing him doesn't hurt as much as I thought it would."
"I know what you mean. When I came here I thought I would be all depressed over losing Akane, but it wasn't like that."
"It was more like a relief," they both said in unison, and then started laughing.
"Well sugar, are we both a bunch of chumps or what? We both wanted something we couldn't have, only to find out we never really wanted it."
"Yeah, it's funny isn't it," Ryoga said.
They both sat quietly after that, lost in thought. The silence wasn't uncomfortable, but rather companionable.
"You know," Ryoga said after a few minutes, " I think I liked Akane because it was safe."
"What do you mean?" Ukyou asked.
"She loved my pig form. Deep down I knew that she would never love my human form because I saw the way she looked at Ranma."
"So either way you knew that she would always love you in one form," Ukyou finished for him.
"Yeah and it was the one I hated the most. She loved the part of me that I hated."
"I don't think I ever really loved Ranma," Ukyou admitted after they had sat in silence for a few more minutes. " I was so focused on getting Ranma and then I found out that he was a nice guy. All of a sudden I didn't want to hurt him anymore, so I kind of switched tracks."
"So your telling me that since you couldn't get him through revenge that you decided to get him through marriage?" Ryoga asked incredulously.
"Hey, don't make fun of me! I've never told that to anyone!" Ukyou said trying to defend herself. "Yeah, it went something like that, but with less thought."
"Well, if you are going to help around here you had better get up," Ukyou said while jumping up. "I'm in charge of teaching the beginners class and they are due to show up any minute."
"What do you want me to do?" Ryoga asked, standing up as well.
"Help me warm up, would ya? I haven't had a good sparring partner in a while."
Ryoga smiled at Ukyou and then bowed. Things were definitely starting to look up for him.
***********************
"Name please," the lady at the front desk asked the couple standing before her.
"Dr and Mrs. Ono," Dr Tofu said as he looked at the beautiful woman standing next to him.
"Ah yes, here we are. The honeymoon suite," the lady said without looking up. Pulling open the drawer next to her, she quickly pulled out two key cards and put them in an envelope.
"Congratulations," she said, finally looking up. She smiled warmly at them and shook their hands after handing over the keys to the room.
The walk to their room was spent in complete silence, each of them lost in thought about what the night would hold. After what seemed like an eternity to each of them, the porter stopped in front of a door and opened it for them.
The room that they were looking into was beautiful to say the least. After the porter had put the bags in the room, Tofu picked Kasumi up in his arms and carried her into the room, closing the door behind him. A goofy grin could be seen on the porter's face as he walked back to the front desk. He knew that the couple in there was too occupied to think about his tip.
*****************
Shampoo sat under a tree in front of her great-grandmother's hut. The day was starting to cool off as the sun started to set leaving a chill in the air. Shivering as a breeze blew past her, Shampoo rubbed her arms, refusing to get up. She had been sitting there since the festivities had ended, fuming over the girl she had lost to.
In her mind she should have won the fight. After all her fighting skills were far superior to that girl! What made her even madder was that Ranma had not even been upset that he was the husband of this new girl! For that matter Shampoo had seen him searching her out after she had collected her prize! How could he treat her that way after everything she had done for him?
A familiar presence brought Shampoo out of her reverie. She looked up in time to see Pantyhose Tauro sit down next to her.
"There's something I think you should know," Pantyhose said before she could tell him to leave. "I know who Yung Ji is."
"Yeah, she's an Amazon warrior," Shampoo said as she started to get up. Pantyhose Tauro put a hand on her shoulder to keep her from leaving.
"She is more than just an Amazon warrior, and I think you know that." Pantyhose stopped there and waited a second for the information to soak in. "I have a proposition for you."
"First tell me who Yung Ji is and then I will listen to your proposition," Shampoo said while knocking his hand off of her shoulder.
"You have to listen to the proposition before I give you the information, or there is no deal." Pantyhose said with a smile.
"Are you related to Nabiki?" Shampoo said in exasperation. "Tell me your proposition."
"I want you to help me set a trap for Ranma" Pantyhose quickly said.
"Why would I want to help you do that?" Shampoo asked. "I would never help anyone hurt Ranma."
"Did you know that they have been plotting against you the whole time?" Pantyhose Tauro casually asked.
"Who has?" Shampoo asked.
"Ranma and Yung Ji," Pantyhose Tauro responded. He was happy to see that his plan was working.
"Ranma doesn't know Yung Ji," Shampoo frantically insisted. She would not allow herself to think that Ranma had purposely done something to hurt her.
"Yes he does Shampoo," Pantyhose Tauro said with a smile. "Yung Ji is none other than Akane Tendo."
Shampoo had to stop and think after hearing the answer. She knew that she should never help to bring about the demise of a fellow Amazon, but this was different. Those two had humiliated her for the last time! She would show Ranma who the better girl was!
The look on Shampoo's face was all the answer that Pantyhose Tauro needed. Smiling, he thought about how wonderful his plan had turned out. He had gotten Shampoo to go after Akane and no one knew of his involvement. Now all he had to do was wait until Shampoo had Ranma distracted enough, then he would go in for the kill.
**************************
The sun was starting to go down on the valley as Ranma emerged from the woods in search of Akane. He had been thinking all day about the message that Akane had left for him and had come to the conclusion that he had to tell her what he felt. Then, if she still decided to let him go, he could accept her decision knowing he had been able to lay all of his cards on the table.
When he had started walking, he wasn't quite sure where he was headed. For that matter he still wasn't sure where he was headed. All he knew was that he had a feeling in his body that he was getting closer to Akane. It was almost as if her ki was drawing him towards her, like a magnet.
After walking a little further, Ranma began to recognize the scenery he was passing. There was no way he could forget the area. He was coming up on the valley of Jusenkyo.
Goosebumps rose on his arm as he remembered the last time he had been in the valley. That was a period of his life that he wished he could erase. The guilt he felt at having to take a life was enormous, but he really didn't have a choice. Saffron should have just let him cure Akane before he had turned the water hot, but nothing in his life could ever be that simple. So he found himself having to chose between the girl he loved and taking a life. He didn't even have to think about it, he would always choose to save Akane.
In the distance he could see a large lake reflecting the colors of the twilight sky. Without hesitating, Ranma altered his course and started to head towards the lake. He watched the surface of the water as he walked. Slowly the colors began to give way to tiny points of light until the entire surface was like a piece of bejeweled black velvet.
Following the pull that he felt within his heart, Ranma walked around the shore until he saw a body lying in the grass next to the water. He didn't need to be told that it was Akane; he just knew that it was her.
He sat next to her in silence for a few moments, entranced by the sight of her eyes. They were literally glowing from the starlight that was being reflected by them. The only thought that came to his mind was how much he wanted to kiss her, but he couldn't do that. Not yet anyways.
"Hello Yung Ji," Ranma said, pretending he didn't know who she was.
"Hello, Ranma," Akane replied still gazing at the stars.
"I wanted to thank you for giving me my freedom."
"I had too. I know how frustrated a person can feel when they have no say about their future."
"Yeah, I know what ya mean. I had three fiancées being forced on me, and a wacko that claimed me as her own." Ranma lied down as he was talking, putting his arms under his head. "No matter where I went, two of my fiancées were always trying to get me alone, and the third one was always getting jealous."
"So, what happened?" Ranma could hear the hurt in her voice at his description of her, but decided to continue anyways.
"Well, that was pretty much my life for a while. The two were always trying to get me to choose them and the wacko would show up just to aggravate me."
"Well, what about the jealous one?"
"She was the only one that didn't try to force me into picking her. For that matter I think she wanted her freedom to choose too. You see, our fathers engaged us when we were born."
"Really, at least she sounds nicer than the other two."
"Yeah, she is. She sure is something."
"Sounds like you like her," Akane said, her voice showing her newfound interest.
"Yeah, I do," Ranma responded, and then took a deep breath. He needed to keep his wits about him before he wound up putting his foot in his mouth again. "You'd understand if you meet her."
"Well, tell me about her."
"She is the most beautiful person I have ever met. She is kind and caring, well at least when I'm not making her mad.
Ranma stopped there and turned his head to look at Akane. She was still looking at the sky, but there was a hint of a smile on her face now.
"Did you make her mad a lot?"
"I didn't mean too. Sometimes I would say things that I didn't mean just to keep our parents off of our backs, and sometimes she would jump to conclusions about me." Ranma smiled at her when she turned her head to look at him. "Do you know that you have the most incredible eyes?"
"Really?"
"I just want to be able to look at them forever," Ranma said in a husky voice as he propped his head on his hand so it was just inches away from Akane's face.
He had been watching her intently as he was speaking. Her eyes were starting to mist up and she looked like she was about to cry, but she didn't pull away from him. That was all the encouragement that he needed.
"I love you, Akane Tendo!" he whispered as he leaned forward and kissed her for the first time.
@)------------------------
Yea!! I finally finished the chapter! I want to thank my wonderful pre- readers taechunsa, D-chan, Maura and aznfantasee! (Hi guys ^_^) With your help this chapter is even better than when I started!
I also want to thank all of the people who take the time to write reviews. I read all of them! They encourage me when I am working on the next chapter, so keep them coming! ^_^
I do not in any way own any of the Ranma ½ characters, I just borrow them on occasion to entertain with...
STARRY NIGHT CHAPTER 15
Hefting the heavy pack on her shoulder, Kurumi felt herself start to actually relax a little. Tenseness had been an everyday occurrence since she and Natsume had entered this picturesque little valley. Nothing had actually happened during their stay, nothing out of the ordinary anyways. Still she couldn't seem to shake the foreboding feeling that had been haunting her. Now that they were leaving though, she could breath a little easier.
Glancing at her sister out of the corner of her eye, Kurumi noticed that she just didn't seem the same. Her walk didn't have the normal bounce and she wasn't humming to herself. Pursing her lips together Kurumi continued to watch her sister finally deciding that she must still be feeling ill.
"Are you sure you feel up to hiking today?" Kurumi asked, her voice full of concern. "It wouldn't take long to put the tent back up."
"I'm fine, Kurumi," Natsume said with a firm tone. "I am full of energy from lying around for so long. I need to be up doing something."
The two sisters pressed on down the overgrown path that wound before them, an uneasy quiet grew between them. Kurumi didn't know what to say to Natsume anymore. Every time she tried to start a conversation with her sister, she was cut short and left wanting. Natsume, on-the-other-hand, was not in the least bit concerned with Kurumi. She was focused solely on herself, and all of the strange thoughts that were coursing through her head. If she didn't know better she would have sworn that there was another person living in her body with her.
The silence was starting to weigh heavy on Kurumi, she felt like she would bust if something wasn't said soon. The problem was she didn't know what to say to her sister. Almost everything she said to Natsume lately was either ignored or curtly answered. At least she knew one subject that she shouldn't bring up, Natsume's health. She really didn't feel like having her head bitten off again.
"So, why do you want to see the Tendos again?" Kurumi said with a fair amount of trepidation. The scowl that formed on Natsume's face told her that she had said the wrong thing yet again.
"I just have to get to the dojo. I have some unfinished business there."
There were so many more questions that Kurumi wanted to ask, so many things she wanted to know. She never asked though. Natsume was pointedly looking down the road, effectively ignoring her little sister. If she were to say anything now, the words would fall on deaf ears.
Feeling dejected, Kurumi resigned herself to the world of silence that she had come to know so well over the past few weeks. From what she could tell the rest of the journey would follow the same pattern.
*************************
"Hey old ghoul, how come Shampoo ain't a cat yet?" Ranma-chan asked, hoping for one particular answer; the one that would lead to his cure.
Cologne cringed inwardly at the crude name that the boy had labeled her with. She held her tongue though, now would not be a good time to have a confrontation. Tuning out the red head next to her, Cologne listened intently to the conversation that was occurring between the two combatants.
"Hey!" Ranma-chan yelled a little vexed at the fact that Cologne was not paying any attention to him. "Can you hear me? Are you deaf too?"
"Quiet!" Cologne commanded as she whacked the insolent boy on the head. She didn't bother to say anything else to the boy, focusing instead on the scene playing out in front of her.
Ranma-chan sat quietly for a few minutes rubbing the top of his head, feeling for the forthcoming bump. Feeling Akane's aura begin to rise, Ranma turned his attention back to the girls. The air between the two crackled with tension as their eyes locked in a mental combat, each daring the other to back down.
Intently, Ranma-chan listened to the pair in the ring, and was quickly confused. For the first time in his life he found himself wishing that he had paid more attention in school. Feeling the gravity of the situation, he watched Cologne's expression to see her reaction to the conversation. He was not disappointed when he saw a look of disbelief cross the old woman's face.
"What's with those two?" Ranma-Chan asked as he saw a smirk form on Akane's face.
Cologne considered not telling the boy of the agreement that the girls had come to, but then thought better of it. If this Yung Ji girl was to win the fight, then Ranma had a right to know. After all, he would be losing the most eligible warrior in the village.
"The warrior in the camouflage made an offer Shampoo couldn't refuse," Cologne said while trying to mask her disapproval of the situation. "If Shampoo wins she gets the amethyst necklace. If Yung Ji wins she gets you."
Watching Ranma closely, Cologne waited for a reaction from the boy. She was sure that he would find the situation distasteful; she was not to be disappointed. Soon a small frown began to work its way onto his features as he thought the situation over, and an irritated gleam shone in his eyes. This was what she had been hoping for, a sign that Shampoo did have a chance with the boy.
"Don't worry, son-in-law, Shampoo doesn't make bets she can't win," Cologne said in an attempt to assuage the boy. All she got in return was a look of contempt. It was almost as if he wanted that Yung Ji girl to win!
As the two combatants started to circle each other, Cologne took a closer look at this Yung Ji girl. There had to be a reason that Ranma would so openly support a total stranger over Shampoo, and she intended to discover it.
**********************
Shampoo glared at the girl that was standing across from her as she tried to find a hole in her defenses. Although trying to maintain a calm appearance, on the inside she was seething. First that girl had the nerve to challenge her for Ranma's hand, and now she was smirking at her!
Every muscle in Shampoo's body wanted to run across the field and slap that smug little girl right across the face! She would not lose control; she needed to keep her composure. She would not risk losing Ranma to that whelp.
Just as Shampoo had started to take some deep breaths, the girl facing her from across the ring started to make messaging gestures with her hands. In a split second Shampoo lost all of the control she had mustered. Flying across the ring at top speed, she hefted her bonbori above her head and prepared to strike.
As Shampoo was charging, the girl, which she was quickly approaching, came out of her defensive front stance and just stood there, staring at her. Shampoo could feel the top blow off of her anger, and wanted nothing more than to knock that girl's head off of her shoulders. Veering off to the right, Shampoo decided to let her speed work for her, and swung the bonbori in her left hand at the offending girl, hitting nothing.
Quickly, Shampoo turned around to avoid a back attack only to find Yung Ji standing in the same spot as before. The girl had not moved an inch. The flaw in her attack plan was very evident to Shampoo, but she was having trouble containing her anger. There was just something about this girl that was rubbing her the wrong way. Something that Shampoo just couldn't quite put her finger on. Leveling her eyes on her opponent, Shampoo started to employ a calming technique that her grandmother had taught her. Now was not the time to try and figure out the mystery behind this girl. She would do that later.
************************
The amazement that Ranma-chan felt, as he watched the fight between Akane and Shampoo progress, was overwhelming. He knew that Akane had been improving during their nightly training sessions, but he had never actually stood back and watched her fight before. The grace and beauty she exhibited in her simple movements was wonderful, and her speed and dexterity were phenomenal. She was truly a sight to see!
Ranma-chan actually felt himself starting to feel sorry for Shampoo as he saw her raise both of bonbori over her head. She was starting to get desperate. Akane could have defended against that tactic before she had improved. The only thing Shampoo could hope to accomplish with this move was to momentarily distract Akane, giving her a chance to set up for her next move.
There was nothing for Ranma-chan to worry about though. Akane was an Amazon now, being trained by some of the worlds most advanced fighters. That's also what was vexing him though. So many questions kept popping into his head, and they all centered around one person, Akane. How had she been accepted into the tribe? How had she gained the trust of such a secretive society? How was this going to affect their future?
With a few well thought out questions he could probably have his answers that night, but was that the direction he wanted to take. For some reason the idea of pressing her for answers while she was sleeping seemed rather deceitful to him. Probably because he knew that she didn't know he was the real Ranma.
He just couldn't do it. Ending up in the same predicament as Ryoga was not something he wanted. He wanted to build his relationship with Akane on something solid, and lies were just filled with too many holes to suit his purpose. Tonight, after the tournament festivities were over, he would explain everything to her. Until that time though, there was one question that he was burning to have answered.
"Hey, Old Ghoul! Did you and Shampoo find a cure or is she using some of that soap?"
**********************************
The soft clinks of the ice cubes bumping the sides of the glass had a slightly soothing effect on Nabiki. Across the Nekohatten her family sat at a table chatting, but the pleasant banter did not reach her ears. Ever since Mousse had held her hand, she had been in a world of her own.
The whole incident had been very disturbing for her, but not in an unpleasant way. There in lied the problem. Never before in her life had Nabiki allowed anyone but her sisters to get so close to her, she kept everyone at a distance. Then came Mousse who, with his quiet supportive mannerisms, had managed to worm his way past her well-constructed defenses.
Nabiki was a firm believer in the concept that there was a perfect match for every person on the planet. Even though she had not been actively searching for hers, she had always assumed that they would cross paths eventually, completing each other in a way that no one else could.
The emotions that were involved with loving someone so deeply was a subject that Nabiki rarely delved into. Love was a subject that she tended to avoid because of the painful memories that she associated with it. Every act of caring, selfless giving reminded her of her mother's love, and the pain she felt when she lost that love. That was a dark period of her life that she did not like to remember, and she never wanted to revisit.
Mousse had managed to do something no other person outside of her family had ever done. He had touched her heart. She had finally found a true friend. Mousse owed her nothing and had no need of her information. For that matter he had never even placed a bet with her. All he did was care about her.
The care he showed for her was not what was bothering her though. The thing that was disturbing her was the plethora of emotions she had felt at his touch. She had never experienced such powerful, raw emotions before. The whole experience left her feeling giddy, yet confused.
"What's wrong," a soft melodic voice whispered into Nabiki's ear, startling her out of her reverie. Nabiki turned to look at Kasumi, trying to decide whether or not she should confide in her sister.
"I'm not sure, sis," Nabiki said as the gentle, caring look in Kasumi's eyes began to make her feel comfortable. "Mousse has become a really good friend."
Kasumi waited a few seconds for Nabiki to continue, but when she noticed that she was at a loss for words, she interjected.
"Did you feel uncomfortable when he held your hand?" Kasumi tenderly asked.
"It didn't really bother me, it's just that.I don't know," Nabiki responded in exasperation. She turned and started to walk away, but then went back to where Kasumi waited. "He made me feel things that I have never felt before. I just don't know what to make of all of this."
"Why don't you think about this for a while. Try and figure out what exactly what you feel," Kasumi said with an understanding smile, she had gone through the same thing with Tofu not that long ago. "We can get together in a couple of days and we will talk."
"Why a couple of days? We're both here now. Come on, tell me what you felt for Tofu in the beginning," Nabiki replied.
"I think you might need to sort through some of this on your own before asking someone else how their experience was. They are not all the same," Kasumi said with a wink and started to walk back to the table. Then, as an afterthought, she said over her shoulder, "I think you should put some of that ice in the glasses."
A soft blush crept its way across Nabiki's face as she looked down and saw ice littering the counter all around the glasses.
****************************
For what seemed like the hundredth time that day, Ryoga found himself walking around a corner in the hopes that this one would reveal the street that would lead him to the Tendo Dojo. The only thing that was keeping him going was the knowledge that he was in Tokyo, or at least he thought he was. A few streets back he had stopped to read the address on the side of a business, and he was certain that it had said Tokyo.
After walking for a few minutes, the scenery that Ryoga was passing began to look familiar to him. The further he went, the more things he recognized. Finally, his long journey came to an end as he stopped in front of a closed wood gate.
Giving a push, Ryoga stepped into the Tendo compound and headed for the door to the house. He hadn't wanted to return to this place with its memories of Akane, but he had made a promise to a friend and he intended to see it through.
Ryoga hesitated for a moment before knocking on the front door, expecting an explosion of heart-wrenching memories that never came. Instead of heartache he was feeling something new, something that he had never really experienced before. There was a warm, bubbly feeling flowing through him that made him want to smile. Whatever the feeling was it made him feel better than his almost continual depression. He also enjoyed it more than the short burst of exhausting nervousness that he felt around Akane, this one was much more comforting.
Minutes passed, and the door was never answered. Carefully, Ryoga skirted around the outside of the house. In an attempt not to get lost, his hand never left the wall until he reached the doors to the dojo. Stepping into the cool darkness within, he sat and waited for the family to return home.
*******************************
The trip from across the sea between Japan and China was never an arduous task, but it was one that Pantyhose Tauro didn't particularly like. The flight seemed to take forever with no one to talk to, and nothing to look at except for the endless blue waters. Occasionally a pod of dolphins could be seen playing on the waves, but they just provided a momentary distraction to the monotony of the journey. Considering everything, he was just happy to be on the ground again.
To say the least, he was more than happy to be on the ground again, even if he was in Amazon territory. For some reason, he had a feeling that he could find fem-boy in the Amazon village. Anytime fem-boy ever went to China that was where he always ended up.
Fate was working in Pantyhose Tauro's favor, the village was not heavily guarded. Sneaking around the village would have been out of the question if the they had been at their posts. There was no way he would have been able to walk around with his umbrella and not be noticed by one of them. At least he hadn't gotten wet yet then he really would have noticed.
Still, the fact that the guards were missing was bothering him. For all he knew, he could be walking into some trap that fem-boy set up for him. Until he knew what was happening and where everyone was, there was no way he would start to relax.
A loud noise up ahead of him caught his attention. It sounded as if there was a crowd assembled up ahead. The thought of getting caught was looming in his mind, so he cautiously made his way forward to see what was happening. He paused at the last hut that he came to and peered around the corner, he had come to the village square. Suddenly he knew where all of the guards were. For that matter, he knew where everyone was.
**********************************
Akane managed to glare at Shampoo, in spite of the rain that kept getting into her eyes. Every now and again the image before her would go blurry, but that didn't matter. She could tell by the amount of hot ki the girl was putting off that she was beginning to get very angry. All Akane needed to do now was maintain her cool.
"You want me to stand still so you can hit me?" Akane asked with an innocent grin on her face.
Silently she watched as the anger smoldered in Shampoo's eyes, the girl looked like she was going to erupt. Just as quickly as her temper flared, she was able to bite some of it back.
"I don't need any favors from the likes of you," Shampoo replied. "Don't you know who I am?"
"Yeah, you're the little kitten that likes to pretend it's human. Glad to see you had enough no-change soap, otherwise I would have squashed you by now," Akane shot back with an edge in her voice.
"Looks like the forest girl needs to be shown her place," Shampoo said. "Ranma is my husband, and no one is going to take him from me!"
Before anything more could be said, Shampoo raised both of her bonbori over her head and made a reckless rush towards Akane. This was more than Akane could have hoped for. All she needed to do now was side step the attack and then land a punch between Shampoo's shoulder blades.
Just before Shampoo could reach her Akane took her stance and waited to make her move. Expecting to see the bonbori being brought down on top of her head, Akane almost didn't see Shampoo plant her feet. Before she knew what was happening, the other girl had sprung up in the air and was beginning to arc over her head.
Without even thinking Akane dropped to the ground, relieved to see the two bonbori pass through empty air. Moving quickly, she came up into a crouching position, and rolled backwards like she was doing a summersault. When her hands were firmly planted on the ground, instead of completing the roll, she extended out into a front extension aimed for Shampoo's midsection.
Akane's feet connected with Shampoo's stomach before the girl could complete her flip, filling Akane with a satisfaction she had never felt before. The wounded girl fell to the ground, gasping for air, letting her bonbori roll out of her hands. Acting on the opportunity that presented its self, Akane ran towards the girl and grabbed the bonbori, throwing them into the growing crowd.
"Oh, did I hurt you?" Akane asked Shampoo with mock empathy. She continued to stand over the girl until her breathing started to become less ragged; then she backed away.
"So, Yung Ji, you are scared of me!" Shampoo said to Akane after she had stood up.
"Not at all, I just wanted to make sure you had enough room to move," Akane returned with a smile. "Wouldn't want to cramp your style, you know."
Once again Akane could feel Shampoo's ki start to swell. This time though when the girl started to charge at her, Akane made her own charge. The anticipation she felt for the up coming melee was so great that she couldn't help but smile. She had waited for this moment for so long! Finally, she was holding her own against Shampoo, and she could even win this bout.
Shampoo's ki started to grow even hotter causing Akane to chuckle. Shampoo was losing and she knew it! The thought helped to boost her confidence off the charts, but she still kept her wits about her. She had seen enough of Ranma's fights to know what could happen if she allowed herself to get too cocky. This was one fight she could not lose! She needed to give Ranma his freedom.
When Shampoo was just a little shy of an arms length away from Akane, she planted her foot for a spinning kick aimed at her opponent's head. Quickly assessing the situation, Akane stopped and waited for Shampoo's foot to get closer to her, planting her feet and lowering her center of gravity as she waited.
When Shampoo's foot started to reach its apex, Akane reached up with her hands and grabbed ahold of it. Akane decided to use Shampoo's momentum to her advantage and pivoted in the same direction the other girl had been going. Then, like she was no more than a rag doll, Akane released Shampoo's foot and flung her into a tree several yards away. Shampoo fell to the ground unconscious.
***********************************
Pantyhose Tauro watched closely from his spot by the hut. From where he stood not only did he have a good vantage point of the fight, he could clearly see Ranma-chan. What he saw greatly pleased him.
The first thing that happened was this girl took out Shampoo, the champion of the village. The second thing that happened was fem-boy, who was known to be Shampoo's unwilling husband, showed more than a passing interest in the girl. He needed to find out who the girl was.
The rain stopped as the girl, Yung Ji, was declared the winner of the fight. Soon after the prize was awarded the crowd began to dissipate, giving Pantyhose Tauro the opportunity he was waiting for.
Blending in with the crowd, he started to make his way towards the group of women that surrounded the girl. The plan was to use some of the baser animal instincts he seemed to have inherited with his curse to smell the scents in the air surrounding the group. He had an idea of who this girl was; she looked very familiar. He had to know for sure though, and if she was who he thought she was then he would recognize her smell.
He stopped at the edge of the crowd a few feet away from his quandary. This was the closest that he could get. Closing his eyes and turning his nose slightly up towards the breeze, he inhaled deeply and began to try to sort through the myriad of scents that he smelled. He ignored all of the unfamiliar scents, tossing them aside like an unwanted bone.
Soon he was rewarded for his diligence as he came across the scent he wanted. He could clearly remember the first time he had smelled the tantalizing aroma, it was as if no time had passed at all. The building perched high up on the cliff, and the scared, yet defiant girl that he held there. She had impressed herself so well upon him that he would never be able to forget her musky aroma of sandalwood and lavender.
This was going to greatly help his plans along. There was no way he would ever try to harm Akane Tendo again, but if he could find someone else to do it for him then he could get fem-boy while he was down. Now all he had to do was wait for an opportunity to talk with the all-around loser. Knowing how competitive the two girls were, he could just imagine how Shampoo would react when she found out whom she had lost to.
*******************************
"To Kasumi and Tofu!" the cheer echoed across the empty dinning room, the raised glasses clinked in reply.
Except for one person, every person shared the merry atmosphere in the room. He tried to hide his anguish though. This was his daughter's day after all, and he did not want to ruin it. So instead of crying, he glued a smile on his face. He owed her that much.
"Are you having a good time Daddy?" Kasumi asked Soun after she had noticed him taking a shuddering breath.
He didn't answer right away; instead he closed his eyes and tried to squash his melancholy mood. After a few minutes he decided that, for him, a festive mood would not be possible that day, he would have to muddle through.
"I'm fine Kasumi," he said, giving her a weak smile. The concerned look in her eyes let him know that she didn't believe him. He didn't want to ruin her special day, but he had no choice. He knew Kasumi, and she wouldn't leave until he told her what was wrong.
"I wasn't there when you became Tofu's wife," Soun said with a sigh. "I had no clue that Akane was hurting so much until she left. Other than her love for money, I really don't know Nabiki at all, and now I have missed your marriage. Even if all you did was see a judge and sign papers, I wasn't there."
Some of Soun's remorse left him when he felt Kasumi gently take his hand in hers. There was so much he regretted, so much he had missed being a part of.
"I have spent so much time in my own little world mourning over the loss of your mother that I have missed my time with you girls," Soun said while looking down at the floor. He was too full of shame to look his eldest daughter in the eye. "You have grown into a beautiful lady despite my shortcomings, and you have raised your sisters to be incredible women. I, I apologize for not being there."
His heart began to break as he felt Kasumi let go of his hand and start to walk away. Tears began to course down his face as he thought about how unforgivable his crimes against his daughters were. He had forced two of them to mature at such a young age by saddling them with the running of a household, and the other he had forced into an unwanted engagement.
As far as he was concerned, there was only one honorable thing left for him to do, correct his mistakes. He would take care for himself and get Nabiki to show him the books for the household finances, but first he had to talk to Saotome. His little girl should not have to suffer because he was an imbecile.
Wiping his eyes before he headed back to the table, Soun tried to regain his composure. It would never do for him to be blubbering when he went to talk to his friend. He needed to be taken seriously. The sound of Kasumi walking away from him was still ringing in his ears, reminding him of what he had lost.
Just as he was looking up, Soun felt two pairs of arms encircling him. His girls were there. Timidly he looked up into their faces, afraid of what he might see there.
The love that he saw radiating in their eyes shocked him, and made him realize just how little he really knew about his girls. Realizing that he had a lot to make up for, he wrapped his arms around Kasumi and Nabiki. At that moment Soun vowed to try and be more like the man he had been while their mother was alive. No longer would he allow himself to be a blubbering idiot.
***********************
Standing on a dais, Akane could see practically everybody who had come to see the ceremony. She quickly scanned the crowd, searching for the one face that she wanted to see more than anything. Finally she found him, standing in the back of the crowd. He was looking right at her.
For a brief moment their eyes meet, and she shyly smiled at him. Even though they were several yards apart, she could tell that he was upset with her. She could almost feel his emotions. Anger, disbelief, relief and admiration were all forming a jumbled mess within his mind. There were two more emotions that she couldn't quite identify though. They were encircling the other emotions, keeping them at bay.
Before she could probe deeper into those emotions, their brief contact was broken when she heard elder Soon Hee calling her name.
"Yung Ji, Xian Pu please step forward," the matriarch of the tribe commanded with a quiet tone. She waited as the girls approached her from opposite sides of the stage.
"Xian Pu, you have long been the champion of our tribe. For years our best warriors have been trying to take the title from you, but to no avail. Every time a fellow warrior would challenge you, you would quickly defeat her." Soon Hee looked over at the purple haired girl and noted the forced look of acceptance on her face. This defeat would give the girl a much needed lesson in humility.
Akane also noted the look on Shampoo's face, and silently prayed that the girl never found out who she was.
"Finally, the tribe has been able to train a warrior that rivals Xian Pu! This is indeed a wonderful day for the Amazons!" Soon Hee said as she threw her fists in the air over her head. "With two such powerful warriors training our youth, we will become stronger than ever!"
To the amazement of both Ranma and Akane, every person in the crowd started to cheer wildly at that last proclamation. They both knew how seriously Cologne had taken Shampoo's training, but they had no idea that the whole tribe was like that.
"Yung Ji, please step forward." Once again the matriarch waited as Akane approached her.
"Xian Pu, if you would be so kind as to acknowledge the new champion of the village," Soon Hee said while looking between the two girls.
With a false smile pasted on her face, Shampoo took a step towards Akane. She reached to the bangle on her upper arm and removed it. Akane had seen Shampoo wearing that bangle several times on special occasions, but she had never understood its significance until now.
Akane smiled in spite of the harsh grasp with which Shampoo had taken a hold of her arm, and graciously accepted the bangle from its previous owner.
"Congratulations Yung Ji!" Soon Hee said as soon as the exchange was complete. The crowd erupted in cheers again as Shampoo walked back to stand with her great-grandmother.
Soon Hee grabbed Akane's hand and raised it in the air as the crowd's cheers grew louder, but Akane wasn't paying attention. She was focused on Ranma. For some reason that she couldn't explain she knew that he was going to try to talk to her after she had collected her prize, she didn't want that to happen. She was not ready to try to explain things to him yet.
************************
"Stop for the night, child," Natsume heard the bodiless voice in her head. She had been hearing this voice since yesterday and thought that something in the valley had been adversely affecting her, but here it was again. Taking a few more steps, she tried to resist the voice, but it was no use. With each step she took, the voice laughed and sent waves of pain crashing through her head. She had to obey.
"There child, in that grove of trees," Natsume seemed to instinctively know which way to turn her head. "That is where we will make camp for the night."
The bright light of the afternoon sun started to hurt her eyes causing them to squeeze shut. There was no use. She knew that no matter how much she wanted to continue to the coast there was no way she was going to be able to make it.
"Kurumi," Natsume said while pointing off into the distance, "let's make camp in that grove of trees."
Natsume watched as worry started to inch its way onto her sister's face. Briefly, she felt a moment of comfort as she realized how much Kurumi cared for her. She felt awful for dragging her sister into this mess, but she just couldn't bring herself to leave her.
This was an issue that she had been tearing her apart for some time now. She love Kurumi very much and only wanted the best for her. The thirst for vengeance was so over powering though. There was no way that Natsume would be able to defeat Ranma on her own, and so her sister stayed with her.
Deep down Natsume knew that she was bringing about her own demise, but she could not help herself. She had grown up without a family or home, never knowing what it was to feel secure for the night. Then, when she had finally found all of those things, Ranma and Akane had taken them all away from her. They took away the man that she had thought of as her father for so long, they had taken away the home she had found, and they had taken away her newfound pride.
The day she left the dojo, she had vowed to get revenge on those two for ruining her life. That was what she had been working towards till this very day. The thought of revenge had been the fuel for her fire. It had so wholly obsessed her that she had started to ignore the world around her, including Kurumi.
Now that the voices had come, she finally understood how wrong she was, but it was too late. She couldn't back down now, the voices wouldn't let her. The dojo had to be hers so she could show the world who the true master was.
"Natsume!" Kurumi yelled, trying to get her sister's attention. Natsume stopped walking towards the trees and turned to look at her little sister.
"What is wrong with you?" Kurumi asked on the verge of tears.
"Nothing sis," Natsume said with a smile. "I just think I was pushing myself a little too hard. I need to rest for a while before we can continue to Japan."
"Ok, why don't you sit down while I put up the tent. Then you can sleep while I make some dinner," Kurumi said and then continued to walk towards the trees. Natsume was more than willing to comply.
*******************
"Mother," Akane said as she made her way to the side of the stage that her group of friends was standing on. "I need some help again."
Wu Shan quickly looked the girl over. Just as soon as Soon Hee had released her hand, Akane had bolted over to them. She needed to make sure there was nothing wrong with her adopted daughter.
"What is it," Wu Shan asked when Akane had gotten closer to the group.
"Do you remember the boy I was telling you about earlier?" Akane asked quickly.
"Yes, Xian Pu's ex-husband. The boy in the red shirt with the pig tail." Wu Shan replied.
"Well, I think that he is going to want to talk to me."
"Is there a problem with that? He is your husband now."
"You don't understand! I don't want to force him to marry me!"
"Oh, you want him to come to you of his own free will."
"Yes, besides he doesn't even know who I am right now. I don't want him thinking that he has been pawned off on another woman."
"I understand," Wu Shan said sympathetically. "I think I have an idea of what we can do."
"Quick, tell me!" Akane eagerly said.
"Patience child," Wu Shan admonished. "I need to speak with the matriarch to make sure it is legal, then I will tell you. Wait here."
Anxiously, Akane scanned the crowd. She had lost sight of Ranma when she bolted to the side of the stage and didn't know exactly where he was. She seemed to be able to sense him though, and she knew that he was still extremely close by.
A hand reached out and tapped Akane on the shoulder, causing her to jump. She quickly turned to see Wu Shan smiling at her.
"Come child. I will tell you what we are going to do on our way to collect your reward."
Akane obediently followed.
********************
After making a quick stop for some hot water, Ranma tried to make his way to Akane as quickly as he could, but was making little progress. The majority of the crowd was traveling in the opposite direction, trying to take him with them. He kept pressing on though. He needed to reach the prize table before Akane got there.
Up ahead, in the distance, Ranma could make out a table heaped with various types of food. Akane was nowhere to be seen, but he still knew that he had to hurry. For some reason he got the distinct feeling that she was trying to avoid him.
Determination took a hold of him as he continued to push his way through the crowd. The sight of the winner's table continually growing closer caused his anticipation to grow. He was just a few feet away from his goal when he saw Akane and her friends walk out to the table and start to collect the winnings.
"Yung Ji!" Ranma yelled, not knowing if anyone knew who she really was. "Yung Ji, wait!"
Akane's head snapped up the second time he yelled at her. He was sure that she would wait for him, but instead she seemed to be moving faster.
Frantically he tried to speed his progress through the crowd so she could reach her, but they didn't seem to understand his urgency. He was just reaching the edge of the crowd when Akane turned and walked off down the road. He couldn't believe what he saw! She knew that he was there and she was still choosing to walk away!
Much to his relief, two of the girls that were at the table with Akane had stayed behind. They never took their eyes off of him as he made his way towards the road that Akane went down. Silently he wondered where they were going to take him.
"Hi guys!" Ranma said as he started to walk past the two girls. He quickly stopped when a short sword and bonbori appeared in his face.
"Hey, what's that for!" Ranma yelled at the two girls.
"Yung Ji does not wish to see you," the girl with the short sword said, "she asked us to give you a message."
Ranma stared at the two girls, not quite believing what he was hearing. He looked down the road all the way to where it disappeared into the trees, but saw no sign of Akane. He would listen for now. Hopefully they would make his job easier and just take him to Akane.
"Yung Ji says that she understands your plight, she knows what it is like to be forced into an unwanted engagement. That is why she fought Xian Pu for your hand." The girl with the bonbori said. "Everyone in the village knew about you and Xian Pu. Everyone knew that you didn't want anything to do with her."
"That is why she made the deal with Xian Pu," the girl with the short sword took over. "Yung Ji believes that every person should be able to choose their own mate. She is setting you free. She wants you to know that you have no further obligations to her, and that Xian Pu should no longer bother you either."
Ranma just stared at the girls in complete silence. After Cologne had told him of the deal Akane made with Shampoo, he had spent most of his day being upset with her. Now he wasn't sure what he felt. Part of him was happy that one of his fiancées understood that he didn't want to be forced into anything. The other part of him was hurt that Akane didn't seem to want him. He wasn't sure what to think anymore.
The girl with the bonbori put her weapon away when she saw the look on his face and approached him. Tenderly, she reached out and put her hand on his shoulder.
"Please understand that Yung Ji didn't want to hurt you. She just wanted to give you the freedom to choose your own future."
A deep ache started to throb in Ranma's heart causing him more pain than he had ever felt in his life. He started to run off in the opposite direction that Akane had gone. He needed to be alone.
***********************
Ryoga quickly awoke from the nap he was taking when he heard the door to the dojo slide open. The bright light shinning in blinded him for a moment, but when his eyes adjusted he was awestruck by the beauty before him.
A girl with long, flowing brown hair stood in the doorway. The sun, which was directly behind her, formed a halo of light around her body, which made her look like she was glowing. For second, Ryoga thought he had died and gone to heaven.
"Hey, sugar," the creature in the doorway said, "what are you doing here? Did you get lost again?"
"Oh, it's you Ukyou," Ryoga said, regretting the fact that she was his angel. "Ranma asked me to come help out at the dojo while he was gone."
Ukyou crossed the room and sat in front of Ryoga. She gave him a small smile before she continued.
"You too? He asked me to help out just before he left to find Akane."
"Why didn't you stop him?" Ryoga asked.
Ukyou didn't answer right away, instead she got a far away look in her eyes. Ryoga just sat and looked at her, wondering why he never noticed how cute she was before.
"I guess you can say I rudely had my eyes opened," Ukyou finally answered. "Well maybe not rudely, but I did have reality thrown in my face."
"What do you mean?" Ryoga asked, a little upset from the hurt look in Ukyou's eyes.
"Ranma came to my shop the day he left to look for Akane. He spelled everything out for me," Ukyou said with a sigh. "I didn't want to believe him at first, but then when I started to cry he just walked away. I could always get him to stop with my tears before, but not this time."
"So you knew that he was serious?"
"Yeah, that was when I knew that I didn't have a chance with him. You know what though? Losing him doesn't hurt as much as I thought it would."
"I know what you mean. When I came here I thought I would be all depressed over losing Akane, but it wasn't like that."
"It was more like a relief," they both said in unison, and then started laughing.
"Well sugar, are we both a bunch of chumps or what? We both wanted something we couldn't have, only to find out we never really wanted it."
"Yeah, it's funny isn't it," Ryoga said.
They both sat quietly after that, lost in thought. The silence wasn't uncomfortable, but rather companionable.
"You know," Ryoga said after a few minutes, " I think I liked Akane because it was safe."
"What do you mean?" Ukyou asked.
"She loved my pig form. Deep down I knew that she would never love my human form because I saw the way she looked at Ranma."
"So either way you knew that she would always love you in one form," Ukyou finished for him.
"Yeah and it was the one I hated the most. She loved the part of me that I hated."
"I don't think I ever really loved Ranma," Ukyou admitted after they had sat in silence for a few more minutes. " I was so focused on getting Ranma and then I found out that he was a nice guy. All of a sudden I didn't want to hurt him anymore, so I kind of switched tracks."
"So your telling me that since you couldn't get him through revenge that you decided to get him through marriage?" Ryoga asked incredulously.
"Hey, don't make fun of me! I've never told that to anyone!" Ukyou said trying to defend herself. "Yeah, it went something like that, but with less thought."
"Well, if you are going to help around here you had better get up," Ukyou said while jumping up. "I'm in charge of teaching the beginners class and they are due to show up any minute."
"What do you want me to do?" Ryoga asked, standing up as well.
"Help me warm up, would ya? I haven't had a good sparring partner in a while."
Ryoga smiled at Ukyou and then bowed. Things were definitely starting to look up for him.
***********************
"Name please," the lady at the front desk asked the couple standing before her.
"Dr and Mrs. Ono," Dr Tofu said as he looked at the beautiful woman standing next to him.
"Ah yes, here we are. The honeymoon suite," the lady said without looking up. Pulling open the drawer next to her, she quickly pulled out two key cards and put them in an envelope.
"Congratulations," she said, finally looking up. She smiled warmly at them and shook their hands after handing over the keys to the room.
The walk to their room was spent in complete silence, each of them lost in thought about what the night would hold. After what seemed like an eternity to each of them, the porter stopped in front of a door and opened it for them.
The room that they were looking into was beautiful to say the least. After the porter had put the bags in the room, Tofu picked Kasumi up in his arms and carried her into the room, closing the door behind him. A goofy grin could be seen on the porter's face as he walked back to the front desk. He knew that the couple in there was too occupied to think about his tip.
*****************
Shampoo sat under a tree in front of her great-grandmother's hut. The day was starting to cool off as the sun started to set leaving a chill in the air. Shivering as a breeze blew past her, Shampoo rubbed her arms, refusing to get up. She had been sitting there since the festivities had ended, fuming over the girl she had lost to.
In her mind she should have won the fight. After all her fighting skills were far superior to that girl! What made her even madder was that Ranma had not even been upset that he was the husband of this new girl! For that matter Shampoo had seen him searching her out after she had collected her prize! How could he treat her that way after everything she had done for him?
A familiar presence brought Shampoo out of her reverie. She looked up in time to see Pantyhose Tauro sit down next to her.
"There's something I think you should know," Pantyhose said before she could tell him to leave. "I know who Yung Ji is."
"Yeah, she's an Amazon warrior," Shampoo said as she started to get up. Pantyhose Tauro put a hand on her shoulder to keep her from leaving.
"She is more than just an Amazon warrior, and I think you know that." Pantyhose stopped there and waited a second for the information to soak in. "I have a proposition for you."
"First tell me who Yung Ji is and then I will listen to your proposition," Shampoo said while knocking his hand off of her shoulder.
"You have to listen to the proposition before I give you the information, or there is no deal." Pantyhose said with a smile.
"Are you related to Nabiki?" Shampoo said in exasperation. "Tell me your proposition."
"I want you to help me set a trap for Ranma" Pantyhose quickly said.
"Why would I want to help you do that?" Shampoo asked. "I would never help anyone hurt Ranma."
"Did you know that they have been plotting against you the whole time?" Pantyhose Tauro casually asked.
"Who has?" Shampoo asked.
"Ranma and Yung Ji," Pantyhose Tauro responded. He was happy to see that his plan was working.
"Ranma doesn't know Yung Ji," Shampoo frantically insisted. She would not allow herself to think that Ranma had purposely done something to hurt her.
"Yes he does Shampoo," Pantyhose Tauro said with a smile. "Yung Ji is none other than Akane Tendo."
Shampoo had to stop and think after hearing the answer. She knew that she should never help to bring about the demise of a fellow Amazon, but this was different. Those two had humiliated her for the last time! She would show Ranma who the better girl was!
The look on Shampoo's face was all the answer that Pantyhose Tauro needed. Smiling, he thought about how wonderful his plan had turned out. He had gotten Shampoo to go after Akane and no one knew of his involvement. Now all he had to do was wait until Shampoo had Ranma distracted enough, then he would go in for the kill.
**************************
The sun was starting to go down on the valley as Ranma emerged from the woods in search of Akane. He had been thinking all day about the message that Akane had left for him and had come to the conclusion that he had to tell her what he felt. Then, if she still decided to let him go, he could accept her decision knowing he had been able to lay all of his cards on the table.
When he had started walking, he wasn't quite sure where he was headed. For that matter he still wasn't sure where he was headed. All he knew was that he had a feeling in his body that he was getting closer to Akane. It was almost as if her ki was drawing him towards her, like a magnet.
After walking a little further, Ranma began to recognize the scenery he was passing. There was no way he could forget the area. He was coming up on the valley of Jusenkyo.
Goosebumps rose on his arm as he remembered the last time he had been in the valley. That was a period of his life that he wished he could erase. The guilt he felt at having to take a life was enormous, but he really didn't have a choice. Saffron should have just let him cure Akane before he had turned the water hot, but nothing in his life could ever be that simple. So he found himself having to chose between the girl he loved and taking a life. He didn't even have to think about it, he would always choose to save Akane.
In the distance he could see a large lake reflecting the colors of the twilight sky. Without hesitating, Ranma altered his course and started to head towards the lake. He watched the surface of the water as he walked. Slowly the colors began to give way to tiny points of light until the entire surface was like a piece of bejeweled black velvet.
Following the pull that he felt within his heart, Ranma walked around the shore until he saw a body lying in the grass next to the water. He didn't need to be told that it was Akane; he just knew that it was her.
He sat next to her in silence for a few moments, entranced by the sight of her eyes. They were literally glowing from the starlight that was being reflected by them. The only thought that came to his mind was how much he wanted to kiss her, but he couldn't do that. Not yet anyways.
"Hello Yung Ji," Ranma said, pretending he didn't know who she was.
"Hello, Ranma," Akane replied still gazing at the stars.
"I wanted to thank you for giving me my freedom."
"I had too. I know how frustrated a person can feel when they have no say about their future."
"Yeah, I know what ya mean. I had three fiancées being forced on me, and a wacko that claimed me as her own." Ranma lied down as he was talking, putting his arms under his head. "No matter where I went, two of my fiancées were always trying to get me alone, and the third one was always getting jealous."
"So, what happened?" Ranma could hear the hurt in her voice at his description of her, but decided to continue anyways.
"Well, that was pretty much my life for a while. The two were always trying to get me to choose them and the wacko would show up just to aggravate me."
"Well, what about the jealous one?"
"She was the only one that didn't try to force me into picking her. For that matter I think she wanted her freedom to choose too. You see, our fathers engaged us when we were born."
"Really, at least she sounds nicer than the other two."
"Yeah, she is. She sure is something."
"Sounds like you like her," Akane said, her voice showing her newfound interest.
"Yeah, I do," Ranma responded, and then took a deep breath. He needed to keep his wits about him before he wound up putting his foot in his mouth again. "You'd understand if you meet her."
"Well, tell me about her."
"She is the most beautiful person I have ever met. She is kind and caring, well at least when I'm not making her mad.
Ranma stopped there and turned his head to look at Akane. She was still looking at the sky, but there was a hint of a smile on her face now.
"Did you make her mad a lot?"
"I didn't mean too. Sometimes I would say things that I didn't mean just to keep our parents off of our backs, and sometimes she would jump to conclusions about me." Ranma smiled at her when she turned her head to look at him. "Do you know that you have the most incredible eyes?"
"Really?"
"I just want to be able to look at them forever," Ranma said in a husky voice as he propped his head on his hand so it was just inches away from Akane's face.
He had been watching her intently as he was speaking. Her eyes were starting to mist up and she looked like she was about to cry, but she didn't pull away from him. That was all the encouragement that he needed.
"I love you, Akane Tendo!" he whispered as he leaned forward and kissed her for the first time.
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Yea!! I finally finished the chapter! I want to thank my wonderful pre- readers taechunsa, D-chan, Maura and aznfantasee! (Hi guys ^_^) With your help this chapter is even better than when I started!
I also want to thank all of the people who take the time to write reviews. I read all of them! They encourage me when I am working on the next chapter, so keep them coming! ^_^