Something didn't feel quite right. Ranma sat up groggily and looked out the window. It was a bright morning, the overhead sun making the dew on the grass sparkle. He was in his room. That was normal. He was on his bedroll. That was normal, too. Wait a minute… overhead? "Damn! I'm late!"
"Now, Ranma, Tofu-sensei says you need to get your rest, so you'll be staying home for the next few days at least. And Ukyou left you a whole stack of okonomiyaki for breakfast, so eat up."
"Akane? What're you doin' here? Don'tcha gotta get ta class, too?"
She huffed at him. "Well, if you don't mind, I thought I'd take a few days off of school to stay here and take care of you. But if you'd rather, I guess I wouldn't be too late if I left now…"
"Uh, no, I jus' meant… 'cause I didn't think ya would—"
"Oh, I see how it is. I shouldn't have expected an accomplished martial artist such as yourself to need help from a girl. Fine, I'm going to get my bag; I'll see you—"
"No, wait! I… I don' mind, really… I, uh… well, y'know…" He bowed his head sheepishly, and finished in a tiny voice, "Thanks."
Akane turned back from the doorway, giving him a knowing look. "You're very welcome, Ranma," she replied with a sincere smile.
"Ano… did somethin' happen? You're in an awfully good mood."
"Oh, so 'something' has to happen for me to want to spend time with my fiancée when he's sick?" Ranma proceeded to stare at her like she was the one with three arms. "Okay, so it's not something I do a lot—"
He barely held in a snort.
"—but, well, at least I didn't make breakfast, right?" she said, and stuck out her tongue at him. "And besides, it gives Kasumi a much-needed break, to go visit Tofu-sensei…."
"Ah… right. Hey, where'd ya say Ucchan left th' okonomiyaki?"
Soun and Genma peeked in from opposite sides of the window, watching the exchange. They looked at each other with grins on their faces and glints in their eyes; it wouldn't be long now….
Akane walked back in from the kitchen, a plate stacked with pastries in one hand. She sat down on the edge of the bed and handed him the plate. "Here you go, Ranma. Fifteen fresh-cooked okonomiyaki with your name on them—literally," she said with a dark expression. "Eat up."
"Mmm, smells good; thanks Akane."
"I didn't make them."
He shrugged. "So? Ucchan ain't here, and you brought 'em up for me. So like I said, thanks."
"Oh… okay. Do you want anything to drink?" Akane asked, standing.
Ranma was sure something was wrong, but couldn't quite put his finger on it. But he wasn't one to pass up an offer of food—or drink. "Uh, sure, could I have some milk?" Catching himself, he added, "Please."
She giggled at his uncharacteristic politeness. "All right, I'll be right back up. You just lay down and relax, okay?" She stepped out into the hallway, closing the door partway behind her.
I wonder what's gotten into her, Ranma thought, once Akane had left the room.
Yeah, the Voice replied. She's being nice. Maybe things will work out all right, after all.
I hope so… I mean, she's really cute—even though I tell her the opposite. I wonder what she'd say…
Sounds like a good idea to me; give it a try.
"Yeah, I think I will."
"Will what?" Akane questioned, coming back into the room with a glass of milk.
He hadn't realized he'd spoken aloud. "Oh, I… uh, it's nothin', just thinkin' ta myself."
"Oh… all right." She shrugged. "Here's your—" She was cut off by a loud cry from the hallway.
"Airen! Is Airen okay? Shampoo come with ramen, so Ranma no be hungry so much!" The busty Amazon nearly trampled Akane coming through the door. She did, however, knock the glass out of her hands—and all over Ranma.
"AAAAAUUUUGGGHHHH!!!" He screamed, and doubled over in intense pain. The girls could only watch in horror as Ranma convulsed on the bed, screaming—then in amazement, as another arm and two new legs erupted from his side.
"Oh my God!" Akane cried, rushing over to the bed. "Oh my God, Ranma, are you all right? What the hell just happened?"
He was still clutching at his abdomen in agony, tears beginning to form in his eyes. He breathed deeply a few times, trying to calm himself, to forget the pain, even as it subsided. "Urk… yeah… I'm—I'm okay…" he managed between twinges of pain.
Akane turned in rage toward Shampoo. "And what do you think you're doing? Barging in here like you own the place! Bothering Ranma when he's trying to get some sleep! And then—then—doing that to him! You bitch!" She wildly swung her fists at the other girl, but the Amazon dodged them nimbly.
"What kitchen-wrecker mean? Shampoo bring food for Airen, so he no hungry! Shampoo try help him! You get in way!"
She continued to dodge Akane's furious attacks. Her carefully-balanced ramen bentou, unfortunately, could not. It took the full force of one powerful punch, and, like the milk in the glass before it, its near-boiling contents landed all over Ranma. Like the first transformation, he was visited with extreme pain; his head throbbed, his heart beat like a war drum, his lungs could barely hold a breath.
And then, he began to split. A bluish aura—not his battle aura, simply an ambient glow—surrounded his body. Starting from his feet, it slowly changed to a reddish hue, and it traveled up his legs, reaching his torso, his body cinching down the middle. The red front reached his neck, and his sobs of torment stopped abruptly, turning instead into a silent shriek as he threw his head back. The girls had to shield their eyes from a blinding flash that lit the room.
When the light had died down, they looked back toward the bed. The pigtailed boy lay on the floor beside it, unconscious, unmoving save to breathe. The pigtailed girl hung off the side of the bed, her legs askew across the boy's chest. Akane and Shampoo looked at each other, eyes wide, mouths agape.
"Hello, Nekohanten. What would you… Oh, so it's happened, has it? Well, I'll be right along." Cologne hung up the phone, then motioned to Mousse. "Close up shop. We're going to the Tendos'."
Author's Notes:
Sorry to do another one of these. Two weeks of insufficient funds, insufficient sleep, and worst of all, "insufficient disk space" made my writing a bit slow… -er than usual. I'll do my best to finish this chapter off ASAP.
I'd like to thank everyone who's review this story; I really appreciate the support!
And now things like life, the Universe, and double-stack cheeseburgers are calling… hasta luego ("see ya later")!