Disclaimer: Some of these characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi. About half, I should say.
Chapter 8
Akane leapt off the bed and rushed to the window. She could see a vague outline of a man on the beach, jumping from rock to rock. Ranma. Her heart lurched in her chest. No, Ranma didn't know, Ranma couldn't fight Mousse unless he knew about the new transformation . . .She jumped out the window after him and yelped painfully as her ankle twisted, not quite holding her weight.
"Ranma! Wait! You can't fight Mousse yet! He fell into Jusenkyo again, and he's a monster!" She screamed. He didn't even acknowledge her, but then she could hardly see him anymore. She took off after him at a dead run, ignoring the pain in her ankle.
"Young lady! That is a bad idea! Bad! Bad bad bad bad!" old Miraku shouted after her. She ignored him. She could see Ranma now, the moon was almost full and the light glinting off the ocean illuminated him, just barely, so he looked like a shadow. And then another shadow joined him. Akane ran faster, faster as the first blows were exchanged, and the combatants plunged into the sea together.
"RANMAAAA!" she screamed. Stupid, stupid man!
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Icy cold ocean water enveloped Ranma, and he felt the sublime shock of remaining in his male form. He smiled, opening his eyes a crack. The ocean had stretched out, so inviting and pure and cold, the perfect way to make Mousse a tiny little duck whose best ability was throwing knives. He broke the surface, and grinned as he looked around him. Mousse was going to pay for what he'd done, and it was going to be sweet, and easy.
Something sharp and small, like hooves, hit his head. He reeled for a moment, then turned, ready to face Mousse the duck on land or water. For a moment, he just stared in shock at what greeted him. It was incredible. His mind failed to grasp that this creature could be Mousse. . . it couldn't be. Where had this come from? Where did the duck go?
A giant lion's paw crashed into the side of his face, and he awoke from his shock. He glared at the creature, and prepared to fight. No matter what it was, it couldn't beat him! They stared at each other, and the lion's head loomed near his. . . then the last thing he'd expected to happen, happened.
Flames shot out of the lion's mouth.
Fire, fire, his upper body was engulfed in flames. . . tiny pinpricks of heat that turned into infernos and daggers racing across his flesh. He screamed, and the flames scorched even the inside of his mouth. . . humans aren't supposed to be this flammable. . .
As he screamed, he felt a hard slap across his back and legs. Scales ripped at his flesh, scales on a huge reptilian tail that was slinging him out of the water, dousing the flames in the splashes it caused as it flung him onto the black rocks. A rock bit into the seemingly soft protection of his skull, and he knew no more.
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"RANMAAAA!" Akane screamed. She could hear Miraku running behind her, as eager as she to see this fight. Well, not as eager as she. She watched the two men emerge from the water. . . except, now it was one man. One man and a . . . a. . . creature.
Mousse arose out of the waters slowly, as if building dramatic effect. First, the water crested around a lion's head. She could see them both so much more clearly now! Ranma was facing her, looking around for Mousse. She stopped on the sand and fell to her knees, her heart pounding too hard in her throat for her to speak, much less shout. The lion emerged from the water behind Ranma, tawny, upright like a human being. Its paws hung down loosely by its sides. And, as the lion's torso gave way to its lower body, a truly shocking transformation occurred. The tawny fur disappeared in a shield of black scales, shiny, hard, with tiny jagged white edges. The serpent tail was huge, she could see the end curling up out of the water twenty feet from Ranma and the monster.
"Ranma," she tried to shout, but it came out as a whisper. She kept trying to shout his name, over and over, as the blows were exchanged, as the fire engulfed him, as he was tossed to the shore. The word only ripped itself from her mouth as she saw him hit the rocks, and lie very still.
"RANNNMAA!" she cried, scrambling to her feet and running towards him again. She fell to her knees beside him, heedless of the scrapes the rocks carved in her skin. Breathing. She looked out to the ocean, to see if the creature was still there. He had turned from her, and began to walk away. She could see, out of the back of the lion, a goat's head and forefeet protruded, grotesquely. It was as if half a goat were growing out of Mousse's back. It would have made him so comical, if only she felt like laughing now.
"You stupid, arrogant, stupid, stupid, stupid . . ." Akane cursed, running a shaking hand over Ranma's face, needing to feel the breath hit her skin. His skin was rough, maybe from the burns. She picked him up gently, using that ox strength he always teased her about. She walked with him, slowly, back to the hotel. She met Miraku on the way back, and he tried to take Ranma from her. She jerked away from him.
They reached the hotel door, and it was thrown wide open for them. Akane looked at Miraku in shock. And old woman with white curls touht around her head was standing in the doorway, frowning at them all.
"Who's she?" Akane asked Miraku. He cleared his throat.
"My wife. But don't listen to a damn thing she says, she's a dirty witch," he said, with vehemence. The little old woman just glared at hem all.
"You shut up. Girl, bring him in here. My sister and I will tend to his wounds," the old woman instructed. Akane carried him through the door, down the hall, and into their room. She laid him down gently on the bed, only half-aware of the argument behind her.
"You brought that little FemiNazi into my hotel? What is wrong with you, a few potions addle your wits? I can't believe you. . ." Miraku began. An irritated female voice cut him off.
"Oh, just shut up before I turn you into a newt."
"You can't do that, all you can do is tell the future."
"Try me. I just got a new terrarium, and heaven knows you'll be more economical as a lizard."
"Oh, both of you. Quiet," said a new female voice. "Miraku, keep your wrinkled, useless bum out here in the hall."
Akane watched the two women, identical except for one had a braid and one had curls, enter her room with scowls on their faces. The new one, the one with the braid, was carrying a huge basket full of bandages and jars with oozy, creamy contents.
"Who are you people? How did you know he'd need help?" she asked, not in what could be called a civil tone of voice. She'd had a VERY rough day, her stomach felt like it was about to digest her spine, and Ranma was lying in front of her with blood pouring from his head. The one with curly hair snorted.
"Don't have to be a fortune-teller to know THAT one was bound to get himself hurt sooner or later. I take it you're the little woman he misplaced?" she said. Akane blinked at her in surprise. Miraku had called them witches, but the word fortune-teller brought Mio to her mind. She couldn't bring herself to be afraid of them, no matter what they knew. No matter what they could tell her.
"Ah. . . yes. You. . . know Ranma?" she asked, confused. The one with the braid laid a gentle hand on her shoulder, stepping closer to Ranma's prone form,
"Yes, child. He came to see us just a little while ago, to see if we could find you," she said, smiling. "Funny man, that one. I think you should know what he did to find you," she took a deep breath. "When I found out that you weren't married, that you had no oath between you, I told him I couldn't find you. He was upset, so I told him of a way to at least tell if you were alive and well. I told him, if he loved you and yearned to be with you, and you loved him and yearned to be with him, I could find a way to show him how you were, maybe even what you could see, and who you were with. I warned him that sometimes, when this method of locating a person is used, the person trying to find them dies of heart failure. He wanted to do it anyway," the woman with the braid smiled, and patted Akane's hand. "You two must have a very special relationship."
Akane stared at the woman blankly. ::Love and yearn for,:: her mind whispered to her. She blushed. Some of her resentment towards him for not looking in the very most obvious place began to fade. A warm rush flooded her chest, and she wondered. . . just what was that? She didn't have very much time to puzzle over that question, because the woman with the braid pressed on.
"And because of that special relationship, you are going to go out in the hallway and trust us to take care of him. He's worth it to you, isn't he?" she asked, still smiling gently. Akane blinked at her. Even starved, angry, and worried out of her mind, that logic made no sense.
"Like hell I am," she said, glaring. The curly haired woman pushed her down to sit on the floor forcibly. Akane began to stand again, but was stopped by a firm hand pushing on the top of her head.
"Fine, stay. But if you speak or move, you break our concentration. You break our concentration, and he might die. You fine with that?" Miraku's wife said roughly. Akane gulped. Tears, silent and cold, began to run down her cheeks. When the old woman let go of her head, she moved to stand in the corner. She couldn't leave him alone with strangers. . . but she couldn't risk distracting them. There was just one more question nagging at her mind. . .
"Shouldn't we get him to a hospital?" she asked.
"Wouldn't make it, more than likely. He's got a terrible head wound," the braided woman muttered. "Now shush."
Akane watched in silence as they took off his shirt and washed the salt water from the burns with the contents of one of their jars. ::Thought salt water cleansed wounds:: she thought dully, but she didn't say anything. Having done that, the old women proceeded to ignore his burns and focus on his head wound. Akane noticed for the first time that most of his hair had been burnt off. It hung around his face in tattered strings, the ends ragged. It was far too short to go in a pigtail. ::At least he still has some, the idiot should be grateful. Why wouldn't he listen about Mousse?:: she thought, carefully avoiding the thought that these two strangers were poking around in his skull. After a few moments, the braided woman sighed with relief and smiled at Miraku's wife.
"Only cracked," she grinned. Akane felt a surge of hope. Ranma could survive that, no problem. She was almost surprised at a little thing like a fractured skull had knocked him out, she'd thought he'd at least had a gaping hole. The two old women put a compress over the wound, bandaged him up, and put some creamy, smelly stuff all over his burns. When it seemed there was no more they could do for him, they turned to Akane.
"Well, then. Introductions," Miraku's wife grinned. Akane blinked at her. NOW they were going to introduce themselves? "I'm Kariko, and this is my sister Kaya. We live about a mile up the coast, now that Miraku and I don't get along." She gave Akane an encouraging smile.
"I'm Akane Tendo," she said softly. Both the old women stared at her in shock. She squirmed a bit under their wide-eyed stares. "What?"
"I THOUGHT she looked like that loafer!" Kaya cried, her shocked face breaking out into a happy, if confused, smile. Kariko was nodding sagely.
"Yes, yes. I ought to have known. Too bad she doesn't take more after Kimiko, isn't it?" she nodded. Akane blinked at them in confusion.
"Kimiko?" she asked. Her mother? Had these two old women known her mother?
"Yes, aren't you the daughter of Kimiko and that good-for-nothing Soun?" Kaya asked. Akane nodded, hesitantly. She yelped in surprise as Kariko jumped forward and hugged her fiercely.
"I haven't seen you since you were in potty training!" she cried, stepping back and looking at Akane. "You're all grown up! Oh, your mother would be so proud of you!"
"WHAT are you TALKING ABOUT?" Akane shouted at last, reaching the last line of her patience. The two old women just grinned at her.
"Kimiko was our baby sister," Kaya explained. "Broke our hearts when she died. The worst part was when your father got drunk with Miraku, and that old goat convinced him that we would corrupt you girls. So he never let us visit," she explained. She frowned at the stricken look on Akane's face. "What, you didn't know you had aunts?"
"I remember hearing about aunts, maybe. . ." she said, uncertainly. "But you two are so much older than my mother! How could you be sisters?"
"Well, half sisters really," Kaya said. "Our father was a horny old goat of a man, and in his old age he took a young wife. Our mother died giving birth to little Kariko here. They had your mother when Kariko and I were already grown, just a few years before she married that good-for- nothing Miraku."
"But. . . why didn't Miraku say something about me being his niece?" she asked. "And how did Mom get to Tokyo to meet dad if she lived all the way out here? And how come Nabiki. . . oh, Nabiki must have known, that's why she sent us to this hotel! Why not tell me, if she knew?" Akane rambled, her brows inching closer and closer together as she talked.
"Oh, hush child. Your sister Nabiki has been shrewd since she was born, she probably asked Miraku not to mention it so you wouldn't mention it to your father. I doubt that little idiot Soun even remembers which hotel Miraku owns, so I doubt he knows you've a chance to meet us. Last I checked, he's still horribly afraid one of you girls will meet us and be enchanted or some such nonsense," Kariko snorted. "As for telling you about us, maybe she just assumed you knew you had aunts. After all, she's only a year older and she remembers us." Akane hung her head, abashed. After all, how could she forget something like a close relative. . . The old woman continued, "As for little Kimiko getting to Tokyo, she hated it here. You see, both Kaya and I have magic abilities. I can see the future, and she can find what is lost. Kimiko didn't have any of that, so it was always really frustrating for her as a child. Father was so hard on her, and her mother made her do much more of the housework than she should have, because the little wench was so afraid of us. . ."
"Maybe she would have been less afraid of us if you hadn't muttered in German every time she came near you. Remember that time you threw a lizard on her and told her it was going to eat her soul?" Kaya reminded her. Kariko laughed, then cleared her throat and tried to pretend she hadn't found the memory funny.
"Yes, well, I suppose we had something to do with Kimiko's treatment. We did try to shove off our work on her. But I was only living at home after Miraku and I split, you were there the whole time. In any case, as soon as she finished high school she left to find work in Tokyo. She found work, all right, and a few years later she found your father. Never liked the man."
"Me either," Kaya interceded. Kariko glared at her.
"Well, you don't like anything that doesn't have breasts and bleed five days out of the month, I'm not sure your opinion counts," Kariko said acidly.
"That's not true, you stopped bleeding years ago and I still like you . . ."
"ANYWAY," Kariko said firmly, "Your mother had you and your sisters, then when she died, Miraku and your father got drunk after the funeral. That's when they decided you girls should never see us again. Our father died of old age soon after, and his second wife follwed him into the grave. Most people say she died of grief," Kariko said sadly. Kaya snorted.
"Those of us who are not so generous say she died of a broken neck after she fell off the roof in a drunken stupor," she said harshly. She turned her gaze to Akane and the young woman gulped. "So how is it that Kimiko's daughter ended up in a hotel room with a man who is not her husband?" her eyes narrowed, "Don't tell me that's the Saotome boy?"
"Ah. . ." Akane stammered. "Well, it's a long. . . let me explain. No, there is too much. Let me sum up. He is the Saotome boy, as a matter of fact, and his name is Ranma. He fell into one of the cursed springs at Jusenkyo, and so he turned into a girl whenever he was hit with cold water. But recently he got the curse reversed, so now he only turns into a girl with hot water. Anyway, due to his idiot of a father and a few circumstances that were sort of his own fault, it seemed that every female in the world wanted to marry him. We were both very, very sick of it. Ummmmmm. . . he's a very strong martial artist, by the way. Umm. . . we almost got married a few weeks ago, but all his potential fiancés and all the guys who wanted to marry those potential fiancés decided to show up and try to kill us. So. . . no wedding. And we were getting really sick of our fathers pressuring us to get married, he suggested we go on a training mission so we could get some time alone. . . I said no, everybody will think we eloped, and then I heard our fathers talking about how a marriage between us would be all his decision and not mine. So I decided we should pretend to elope, and then everyone would get off our backs. . . it sort of backfired. I mean, a lot more people are leaving us alone, but our dads sent us on this honeymoon thing when we refused to sleep in the same bed and when I couldn't look at him when he was naked. . ."
"Hold on. THAT's summing up?" Kaya asked. Akane nodded.
"Believe me when I tell you that's the short version."
"What about your potential beaux? Were there no men chasing after you?" Kariko asked, looking her niece up and down. "You're quite pretty."
"Ah, thanks. Yeah, there were some, but none of them were as blatant and shameless as the girls chasing Ranma," Akane answered, fuming a bit as she thought of all those glomping girls. . . but he was hers now, and they couldn't have him. Even if they weren't really married, it was her he'd decided to pretend with. . .
"Well, it's obvious how much you care for each other," Kaya said grudgingly. Akane looked up at her ancient aunt, her face burning.
"Wh-what do you mean, obvious?" she asked, somewhat defensive. Both old women rolled their eyes.
"You remember what I told you about how he found you? How it wouldn't work unless you both loved each other, yearned to be with each other?" she asked. Akane blushed furiously. Kaya continued briskly, "Of course, that's no excuse to behave like a married couple when you really aren't. I trust you have not engaged in any improper behavior?"
"No!" Akane cried. Kariko eyed the handcuffs by the bed suspiciously, and looked pointedly at the open bag of sex toys. Kaya raised her eyebrows questioningly. "Nabiki sent those with us, they've all been trying to get us to . . to. . ."
"Shameless," Kariko sighed, looking at her sister. They stared at each other for a moment, then nodded in unison.
"We shall go bully Miraku into keeping his mouth shut. No doubt he's been eavesdropping," Kaya announced. They heard a scuffling in the hallway, and all three women sighed. "And we will not tell your family you're not really married. But keep in mind that you're dealing with witches here. You may engage in innocent behavior, you may kiss and even sleep in the same bed—provided you truly sleep—to further your ruse. But we will not allow the ruin of one of Kimiko's daughters. If any improper behavior goes on, any at all, Kariko shall know of it and we will not only tell your family of the false elopement, we will put a powerful curse on you both," she pointed her finger at Akane's belly, "All children born of you, conceived out of wedlock, shall be born with the tails of pigs!"
::Bet Ranma would think they were Ryouga's:: Akane thought, and she couldn't help laughing. Her aunts looked at her in surprise.
"I thought that was a pretty foul curse," Kaya said, lowering her hand. Kariko shrugged and winked at Akane.
"I think it's a good reason to wait till you really are married, don't you? You wouldn't want him to think you'd cheated on him with a pig," she said. The thought mirrored Akane's so closely that she wanted to laugh again, but she suppressed it.
"Of course not. We'll wait," she promised gravely. ::I don't think they really needed to establish that, we can barely get up the nerve to kiss each other,:: she thought. But their secret was safe, she had aunts who seemed wise and kind, and Ranma was going to be just fine.
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Akane put down the book her aunts had left with her, sighing. It was a translated novel, written originally in English, and she found it rather hard to muddle through. The story was good enough, but there was a lot she didn't understand. The translator had left no cultural notes.
The book wasn't all they left behind. They'd brought up food for her, and for Ranma whenever he woke up. They'd also left an assortment of jars with contents of various color and viscosity, and some rather strict instructions. She was to stay awake until Ranma awoke, make him eat the broth they'd brought, hot or cold, and make sure he didn't go back to sleep for the next three hours. After that, he had to wake up every hour, on the hour, and stay conscious for fifteen minutes. She was very, very grateful for the coffee, and for the stack of reading material, but sleep was still tugging at her eyes. She stood and went to the window.
The moon was out of sight now, probably on the other side of the building. She could hear the crashing of the waves on the rocks, trying to lull her to sleep. Well, it wasn't going to work. ::Do your worst, you bloody soothing ocean," she thought, glaring out at it.
"What're you glaring at?" a voice asked groggily. She turned to it, and was shocked to see Ranma staring up at her. Well, peeking really. Only one of his eyes was open, and it was squinting. She knelt down next to him.
"I was beginning to think you'd never wake up," she said softly. He grimaced as both eyes opened.
"Me too. Does it have to be so bright in here?" he asked.
"There's only the one light, sorry," she said. All of a sudden, both his eyes flew wide and he tried to sit up. He thought better of it halfway there, and lay back down.
"Where's Mousse? We didn't finish our fight," he said. She sighed.
"Well, actually you did," she told him, gently. She explained to him all Mousse had told her over the day, about his new curse and his promise to Shampoo. When she was finished, he took a deep breath and closed his eyes again.
"Ranma! You can't go to sleep yet!" she said frantically. He groaned and opened his eyes again. She forced him to drink the cold broth, which woke him up considerably, and fed him a rice ball with chopsticks as she told him about her aunts. She left out the part about how he'd found her, he didn't really need to know she knew about that. Yet. After the rice ball was finished, he looked at her speculatively for a moment.
"I guess you ought to know how I found you," he said, sighing. She was about to interrupt, tell him she already knew, but something stopped her. She wanted to know what he would say about it, if he would tell her the truth. "The old witch Kaya helped me, she said I could find you if we both wanted to be with each other," he paused, then turned away. "I had to find you, Akane, I was willing to try anything. When I saw your scarf on the rocks . . .I thought you'd drowned. I spent most of the day in the water, looking for your body, and when I couldn't even find that. . .I felt like I'd died too. I thought I lost you once before, back in Saffron's lair. And twice. . . twice was too much," his voice grew very soft, and he looked back at her, his eyes narrow, glaring. "If there is a third time, if you let me think you're gone a third time, I might just die of a heart failure right then and there. And I'll come back to haunt you, do you understand?" he threatened. Akane glared at him for a moment. How dare he, did he think she LIKED being kidnapped, or dehydrated down into a doll, or half-murdered. . . then what he'd really said sunk in, and she stopped glaring. She kissed him lightly on the nose, coming away with some of the burn salve on her lips.
"Love you too, baka," she said softly. He blinked at her, then blushed.
"You wh-what?" he stammered, a deep crimson spreading over his face, down his neck, all the way across his bared chest. Akane watched the blood flowing to the surface with amusement.
"My aunts said I have to reapply that salve every few hours. You're just about due, don't you think?" she said, rising to her feet and turning to hide her face from him. She shouldn't have said that. It had just sort of slipped out, that's all she'd been thinking of while she waited for him to wake up. Of course, he'd already said he didn't know what love was, so she didn't expect a confession from him. . . but she definitely hadn't planned on confessing herself. She busied herself with the jars, and only turned back to him when she had her face under careful control. She pulled out a dollop of the creamy, greenish salve and began to spread it on his shoulder. He was looking up at her with an intensity that was almost frightening.
He let her spread the smelly cream all over his chest and arms, and turned obediently so she could spread it on the few burnt parts of his back. She wiped her hands on her pants absently, and ran a hand along the tips of his hair.
"It'll have to be trimmed, you know. You're lucky you have any at all," she said, briskly. Ranma turned back over and began regarding her with that intensity again. She swallowed nervously, and turned away to tidy up the jars again.
"Did you mean that, Akane?" he asked, softly. She laughed a bit, nervously.
"Yes, of course I meant it. Your hair has been badly burned, and it'll have to be trimmed down," she said, feigning ignorance. She felt a hand on her arm, warm and insistent.
"Not about that," he said softly. She finally got the nerve to look down at him. She could feel herself falling into those blue eyes, drowning as if she were falling into that crashing ocean. . . she shook her head to clear it, and his face fell.
"Ah," he said, harshly, and turned away. She blinked at him in surprise, until she realized what he'd taken her shaking head to mean.
"Ranma, I. . ." she began, but he cut her off.
"Don't worry about it. Why don't you go ahead and go to sleep. Someplace else," he said, abruptly. She stood there, frozen, unsure of what to do.
"Ranma. . ."
"Just go away!" he cried, and she heard the beginnings of tears in his voice. She reached out to touch his shoulder, and it turned stiff and tense under her hand.
"Ranma, please, stop being such a child and listen," she said, lapsing into a patronizing tone out of habit. He turned back to face her, as angry as she had ever seen him.
"Would you just go away and leave me alone?" he shouted. She tightened her lips to keep them from trembling at his outburst.
"Someone has to wake you up every hour," she said softly. He glowered at her.
"Not if I don't go to sleep at all," he said grumpily. "Go find another room, I'm tired of sharing this one with a stupid, ugly tomboy!" he snarled. She glared down at him for a moment, as if she were going to retort, then the ran out of the room in tears. With a snort, Ranma turned to the window.
::Who does she think she is, teasing me like that? After what the old witch said, I thought maybe Akane might. . . but of course not. She thinks I'm a stupid pervert, why would she fall in love with me? I mean, not that I really expected her to. . . or maybe I did, or maybe because she kissed me. . . that stupid, violent tease! How dare she lead me on like that, when she had no feelings for me? She's the only one I ever wanted, the only one I ever. . . How could she trick me, I thought at least that we were friends. . . .::
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Over the next two days, Ranma's gradual improvement was marked by his gradual increase in grumpiness. By the first morning, he was well enough to curse at anything and everything in sight. By that night, he was well enough to throw a bowl of broth at Miraku's head before lapsing into unconsciousness, and he was well enough to throw insults at whoever was waking him up every hour. By the second morning, he was well enough to throw pillows at the door whenever it opened. And by the next night, he was well enough to shatter his glass of water in his hand, which left quite a few scratches, and made him even more irritable. Fortunately, the burns had all been 1st degree, and were healing nicely. By the time he shattered the glass, most of his skin was healed.
Late that night, Akane came into his room. Their room, really, but she'd been using the room next door since he'd. . . since he'd kicked her out. She'd thought at first that he was just angry, but there was a coldness to him now, a gap between them that had never existed before. Even when they first met, even when they'd hated each other, she hadn't felt this distance between them. It was enough to make her cry, frequently. Actually, more or less constantly. And now, looking at his newly healed skin, she felt the tears starting up again. She knelt my his bed, and cried into her hands.
"What did I say?" she sobbed, letting the words flow as easily as the tears. They were alone, she was the only one awake in the house, and so now she could cry openly and say whatever she wanted. "Why do you hate me so much?" she sobbed. She didn't realize he was listening until he spoke.
"You were leading me on," he said, coldly. She looked up in surprise to see him watching her. A look of surprise crossed his face as well, perhaps at the tears.
"What are you talking about?" she asked, trying to wipe her eyes. She didn't want anyone to see her like that.
"You made me think you cared for me, but then you said it was all a joke," he accused her. She shook her head in confusion. He glared at her. "Remember? You said you loved me, and when I asked if you were serious you shook your head," he said. She bent her head, and he could see the tears falling to her lap.
"You thought I. . . but I wasn't leading you on. You thought that I . . . and that's why you hate me now," she said, bitterly. He watched the tears falling faster and faster, and something inside him softened. He joined her on the floor and gathered her into his arms.
"I could never hate you, Akane. Stop crying already," he said softly, which only made her cry harder. He winced as the salty tears hit the few places on his chest that hadn't quite healed. He rocked her back and forth as she sobbed into his chest, his mind racing. ::If she's this upset, she has to care a little. Akane hardly ever cries for anyone but me, after all.:: The thought sort of startled him, and he looked down at the girl in his arms. Had he been wrong?
"Akane, were you leading me on?" he asked softly. She cried harder, and he cringed.
"Baka! Stupid, stupid, stupid. . . ." she muttered. She drew away and glared up at him.
"How could I have been leading you on? When did I ever promise you anything, or tell you I loved you or even liked you?" she asked, furiously. He felt his intestines twist themselves into a knot, and his blood ran hotter. So. She may not have led him on, in her mind, but she still didn't care for him.
"You did kiss me," he said coldly. She glowered at him.
"And you kissed me back! Quite passionately, I might add. So where do you get off with such an accusation? You know what Aunt Kaya said. Leading you on my foot!" she snarled. He blinked at her. Kaya?
"What about what who said?" he asked, confused now.
"Aunt Kaya, the old woman who helped you find me? She said the method she used only works if the two people . . ." Akane trailed off, and looked away. Ranma thought about that for a moment. That was true, and Kaya's method had worked surprisingly well. . . a fact the old witch had taken to mean that they cared for each other quite a bit. Loved each other, even. And when he'd thought he'd lost her, for the second time, one of the thoughts that kept going through his mind was; I never said the words to her, I was too much of a coward, I was too indecisive, and now I'll never know what she'd say if I said I loved her. . . Ranma took a deep breath. ::Here goes nothing,:: he thought to himself.
"Akane, I love you. I love you so much that whenever I spend a few days without you, on a training trip or something, I begin to see you around every corner, in every tree, in every waterfall. Every time I see a girl with short dark hair, my heart skips a little and I come so close to thinking its you sometimes I almost go up and talk to her. I didn't even realize what it was until recently, when I thought I'd lost you yet again, and it was too much to handle. I just kept thinking of a lifetime full of days in which I couldn't see your face, hear your voice, and the thought alone was almost more than I could bear. Back in Saffron's cave, until I knew there was hope for you, I was ready to let Saffron finish me. Now that I think about it, I've felt this way for a while, but I wasn't sure what it was. Now I think it has to be love, because if this isn't I'll never be capable of feeling anything stronger, of feeling love. So. . . tell me, Akane. Tell me the truth, whatever it is," he said, not daring to look up at her, hardly daring to breath. He hoped to never, ever again need as much courage as those words took. He felt as though he were made of dry sand, at the slightest wind he was going to crumble, break into a million pieces and never be the same again.
"Ranma. . ." she said, her voice full of astonishment. "I . .I. . ." he could feel himself beginning to shatter, just the beginnings, before she continued. "I was looking through my mother's memory box," she said at last, and he finally looked at her, simply out of shock. Now it was her turn to avoid his gaze. "And I came across something about the arranged marriage. It made me think about who I would have chosen to love, given the choice, and I. . . well, I guess it isn't ever really a choice, is it? Our hearts decide for us. I mean, you and I have been doing everything together for so long now. . . and you were never trying to get in my pants, or claim me as some prize, and I never quite realized why I got so jealous. . . I didn't understand it until after we'd come here, when I was looking through that memory box, but I. . . I guess it was sort of a gradual thing, and I . . .well, I love you too, Ranma. That's the truth," she finished, rambling and not entirely eloquent. They sat in silence for a time, listening to the ocean beat on the rocks. Ranma felt as though he'd been released from chains he'd felt as heavy as boulders. They'd sort of mentioned those kinds of things before, but it wasn't the same as saying them explicitly. He could feel his face burning.
"Akane. . ." he said softly. She looked up at him. Hesitantly, slowly, he lowered his face to hers, and gently brushed her lips with his own. He began to back away, but she pulled him closer, and he felt that shock go through him, just like before. Somehow, his hand was in the thick of that dark blue hair and her hands were running down his spine. . . he felt like he could lose himself in this, just stay here forever like one of those fairy-tale knights seduced by a merciless fey woman. . . Well, not quite.
He made a small, muffled painful sound as her hair caught in one of the cuts on his hand. She drew back, and gasped when she realized he was bleeding. She began to scold him, but he cut her off.
"Honestly, do you think so little of me? Let it go, it's only a scratch," he said, grandly. She narrowed her eyes at him, and he gulped.
"Well, I'd thought you lost some of your resolve to be tough, since you actually stayed in bed for two days just for a concussion," she pointed out. He shrugged.
"That was more moping, really. I'm fine," he protested. It was the truth, as far as that went, though he had liked milking an injury for a change. Usually his dad made him get up immediately, the minute he stopped bleeding. He and Akane stared at each other for a moment, the silence only broken by her yawning. He smiled.
"Tired?" he asked.
"Crying takes a lot out of a person," she admitted. She blushed, and lowered her face, looking up at him through her lashes.
"Do you still . . . do you still not want me in here?" she asked. He blinked at her for a moment.
"Naw, you can sleep in here. But you'll have to share the bed with me," he warned. He didn't want to make her sleep on the floor, but then he had no desire to sleep on the cold, hard surface either. She thought about that for a minute, then shrugged.
"Deal. But no funny business," she admonished sternly. He did his best to look innocent, and she climbed up onto the bed. He followed her. They lay and talked for a while, and when she drifted off to sleep, he sat up to watch her. She was quite a show, tossing and turning, and talking. Most of what she said didn't make sense, and several times he had to block a blow that was coming in his direction. But after what seemed like an eternity, she settled down. She curled into a ball, edging closer and closer to him. He supposed it was because he was a human furnace, he always put out a lot of body heat, and lay down at last. As he was drifting off himself, he felt her edge closer.
"Ranma," she said softly, and he opened his eyes. Still asleep, but smiling, she curled up inches away from his skin. He touched her arm lightly, and she rolled, so she was facing him. He watched her for a moment, wondering if she was dreaming of him.
"I think the baby looks just like you, Ranma. So what if it has a tail?" she murmured. THAT woke him up.
"What the HELL are you dreaming about?" he muttered.
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I would like to share with you the story my eight year old sister told me tonight before I tucked her in. Word for word.
"Ok, so P-chan gets stuck in a girl's body, and him and Ranma get married. And they kiss, and then P-chan gets wet, and Ranma's like, oh you're P- chan, and he spits and gets some mouthwash. Then he goes home and goes to sleep."
That is all. I should never, ever have shown her that anime. At least I don't show her the nekkid parts. elaborate sigh