Disclaimer: I do not own Ranma ½, nor claim to.

Chapter Ten: Taking Flight:

"I'd do anything just to hold you in my arms, to try to make you laugh, 'cuz somehow I can't put you in the past." Simple Plan: I'd do Anything

"Please be okay!" Sakura whispered loudly one more time, staring at the pile of clothes, made up of Auska's school uniform and her small pink apron. She stared in horror for a moment; she couldn't see anything! Was Auska crushed? It couldn't be happening! Suddenly, what looked like a bulge in the cloth turned out to be a large lump, which was now moving towards the large opening at the collar.

Sakura held her breath. It had to be Auska, but she could still be hurt. But she had to be alive! The older sister reached back, placing the pot down on the floor. Slowly, gingerly, she reached for the lump, lifting the cloth away, hoping to reveal her sister without hurting her. Sauske tightened his grip on the phone, as Sakura flicked the last bit of the shirt away.

"TWEET TWEET!"

Sakura stared down, paralyzed, as the small bird shook its head rapidly. There was a small mist of water flowing off, before it hopped forward a few inches, and looked up at Sakura, then at Sauske, then back to Sakura. "TWEET!"

"Auska?" Sakura asked, as if she didn't even know what her sister turned into. The bird bobbed her head, then puffed out her red chest to fluff the feathers that were still wet. "Are you okay?" The bird bobbed again. "Are you sure?" Auska bobbed again. "I mean completely. Absolutely nothings wrong? You don't feel sick? You don't have any pain anywhere?"

The bird glanced back at Sauske, who was still pale, before hopping around on the ground. She fluffed out her feathers, shook her small head, spreading and flapping her wings a bit, and wriggled her tail feathers. Then, Auska hopped back up to her sister. "TWEET TWEET TWEET!"

There was a sudden sigh of relief, as both Sauske and Sakura relaxed their shoulders, breathing out. "Uncle, I'm sorry for worrying you. Auska's fine."

There was a small chuckle on the other side of the line. "Don't worry about it, Sauske. That is good to hear; I'm glad she's safe." He paused for a moment. "Is there anything else I can do for you?"

Sauske paused a moment, thinking. "No, that's all."

"Well, then, I have to get back to my patient. Goodbye."

"Goodbye, uncle, and thank you." With that, Sauske hung up the phone, as a rumbling of feet came down the stairs. Sauske turned to see Amy, and now Joseph, running into the room.

"The bath is ready, Sakura!" Amy shouted, only slowing when Sauske held his hand out in front of them.

Joseph peered over the arm, glancing down on the floor. "Is she okay?!"

Sakura sighed happily, then turned to them, smiling. "Yeah, she's fine, Joseph, Amy." Sakura reached her hand down, holding out her index finger. "Hop on, Auska, and I'll get you changed back." The bird looked for a moment, before she hopped powerfully up, and landed softly onto Sakura's finger, digging her claws in gently. Sakura raised her hand up, before turning back to Amy and Joseph. "Amy, go get some clean clothes from Auska's room, and Joseph, help Sauske clean up the mess in here."

"Yes." The two chorused together, as everyone went to work. Amy rushed back out into the house, while Joseph moved carefully around to clear the clothes and pot from the floor. Sauske went to a closet to get a towel to wipe up the water. Sakura carried her younger sister up to the bath, thinking over the last few minutes over again.

- - -

The robin glanced around as Sakura lowered her down to the edge of the bath. The bird hopped down, standing on the side, before hopping along to the water's edge. She paused a moment, hopping around to look up at her sister, before turning around again and leaping into the water.

The bird sank beneath the water, before the ripples calmed. Suddenly, the water bulged up in the same place, before exploding as Auska breached the surface, smiling.

"Okay, Auska, how did you turn back into a . . ." Sakura began, before being interrupted.

"Can I be a bird for a while?!" Auska asked, smiling up at her sister.

"W-what?"

"Can I be a bird for a while? I want to try flying again! It's been almost a whole year, and I really want to fly again!"

"Whoa whoa whoa!" Sakura said loudly, shaking her head. "You're supposed to be the one who's not going to change, remember?! That's why Father gave you all the waterproof soap!"

"Why do I have to be human all the time?!" Auska asked, clinging to the side of the bath.

"Because, your form is a bird. Which, therefor, has a weakened heart, ultra light bones, and an extremely small size. And let's not forget the fact that lots of things out there like to eat robins!"

"Please?!" Auska asked, hunching lower onto the edge.

Sakura shook her head. "No."

"Please?!"

"No."

"Pleeeeeeeeaaaasssee?!"

"No."

"Pretty please with lots and lots of sugar?!"

Sakura looked down at her sister, now with huge, trembling, ultra-cute eyes looking up at her. Sakura gritted her teeth. "Fine!"

"YAAAAAAAAAY!"

"Two things, though." Sakura added quickly, holding up her hand to get her sister to stop yelling. "One, you get half an hour, you must stay within my sight, and if I call you back, you come back right away." Auska nodded. "And two, tell me how come you turned back into a robin."

Auska pondered that for a moment, before shrugging. "I dunno, it just happened. I used the new waterproof soap I found." She reached over, grabbing her soap, and handing it to her sister.

Sakura looked at it for a moment, before turning it over. There was a big smiley face drawn on, with the words "April Fools" carved in. Sakura paused, before shuddering. "Stupid American holiday. I tried pulling one trick on my father, and look what happened."

Auska looked up, blinking, before Sakura leaned back, sighing. "All right, lets go."

- - -

"Auska! Don't go so high!" Sakura shouted as the robin zipped by in the sky, before shooting higher into the air. After a rocky fifteen minutes, Auska was quickly learning how to fly, and the turns and dives became more graceful and controlled.

"TWEET TWEET TWEET TWEET!" the bid chirped loudly, as diving again, towards Sakura. The girl lifted her arm, holding it out to provide a landing spot for her sister.

The red bird dove down, before fluttering quickly, turning up, and slowing to nearly an absolute stop a few inches from Sakura. There, she floated, before dropping gently onto the arm, gripping in, and folding her wings back.

"Well, that was a good landing. Finished?" her sister asked hopefully, to which the bird shook its head rapidly, and chirped twice. "You want to keep flying?" The bird chirped once, bobbing its head, then hopping to the end of the arm, and then hopping greatly to spin around in the air, landing softly back onto the arm.

The bird stretched out its wings, before flapping hard, and leaping forward. She dove for a moment, to build up speed, before flapping powerfully to turn back up and rise higher into the air. Soon, Auska was back to full speed, racing around the yard, before taking a big turn, and zipping around one of the sides of the house.

"Sakura!" a voice shouted. The girl turned, and her blood immediately froze. She knew this was going to be bad. "Whatcha' doin'?" Why hadn't she smelled him coming? The wind breezed along the back of her neck. Perfect; she was upwind of the road.

"Oh, heh, um, hi, father." Sakura mumbled loudly, struggling to keep talking. "Nothing, really, just checking something outside. Mom's out, and there as a bit of an accident in the kitchen, so could you go inside and help get the rice started."

"Where's Auska?" Ranma asked, walking towards his daughter.

"Wh-wh-why would you need her?!" Sakura asked, trying to contain her fear.

"Well, she loves ta' cook, so why not ask her ta' help too?"

"Oh, right, good idea. Well, she's somewhere inside," Sakura started dragging her father towards the house, "so why don't you start looking for her, and I'll be inside in a minute."

"Sakura, what's really . . ."

"TWEET TWEET TWEET TWEET!"

Ranma looked back, stopping several feet from the front door, and ignored his daughter's renewed pull towards the house. A red robin zoomed by, coming unusually close for a bird, before turning away, and flying out towards the street. There, it turned sharply, and came back towards them.

"TWEET TWEET TWEET TWEET!"

Sakura, realizing it was probably over, slowly raised her arm to give her sister a place to land. The bird dove down, before flying up a bit, flapping to slow, and carefully landed onto her sister's arm, gripping into the sleeve of her shirt.

Ranma paused, looking at the bird. It hopped around, looking at him, before chirping loudly. Ranma sighed. "Oh, Sakura, would that bird, which you're so intent on me not seein', be your sister?"

Sakura paused. She had to say this the right way. "Yes, but . . ."

"No buts, Sakura." Ranma interrupted. "You can' . . ."

Sakura interrupted him right back. "No, yes buts! Listen, there are three good reasons you can't blame this on me! One: it's not my fault the soap she used toady wasn't the waterproof soap. Two: I've been here watching her carefully for the entire time!"

Ranma paused, still angry, but waited nonetheless. "And the third thing?"

"Three:" Sakura continued, "Would you have been able to say no to Auska's face?"

Ranma paused more, thinking everything over in his head. He saw the little robin's face, with the giant-sized, watery eyes staring hopefully up at him. Sakura paused, hoping this wouldn't make things worse for her. Then, Ranma finally hit his decision.

He started to laugh. "Yeah, you're right, Sakura. I wouldn't have said no, like you. You go fix up the kitchen. I'll watch Auska for ya."

- - -

Sauske had never jumped so high when he heard the door to the door open. The one that leads to the outside, which he saw Aki leave the night before. For an instant he was sure he would be dead. Fortunately, it was Keira at the door.

The kunoichi walked in slowly, assuring herself that she could do this. But something else had caught her eye first, and that broke her train of thought completely. "Sauske-kun? What's wrong?"

"Huh?" he said, relaxing from the state of shock. "Oh, nothing, I thought you were someone else."

"Who?"

"Oh, um, well . . ." Sauske murmured, trying to come up with something. "I just thought you were Naruto again."

"Oh." Keira mumbled, as she returned to the real reason she came here. Sauske stood a distance off, on the other side of the room. Unintentionally, she took a quick look-over of the boy.

He had on his white martial arts gi jacket, a white cloth belt, and a pair of black pants, with a white undershirt barely visible in the small space of the cut of the jacket. His hair was still in disarray, although pressed flat. He had recovered his poise, standing calmly, watching her. Her mind began to drift off, before she caught herself. Forcing out a smile, she recovered, and began to walk towards him.

Sauske watched her as she approached. She had on her deep blue-black body suit, the sword tied behind her, already wired to the sheath, and a large brown pouch hung on her right hip. Her arms were still covered from the shoulder to the elbow by the clothing, but now she had a large black cloth covering her left forearm.

Her brown hair was still tied in the long braid, swaying slightly as she walked towards him. Her bangs had been pulled back behind her ears, and was held in place by the matching blue bandanna tied over her forehead. Her thin body trailed effortlessly forward, as if it was as weightless as it looked.

Sauske pulled his mind back to reality. No sense in making himself any more awkward with people than he already was. Besides, whatever Keira wanted to talk about seemed important.

Keira finished approaching, and took a deep breath. "Um, Sauske-kun, I know we always come here after school when we train and everything."

"I don't mind, Keira." Sauske replied, unsure where this was going.

She nodded back. "I know, but I still wanted to say that . . . um, well if you wanted to come and visit the restaurant, it's fine, and . . . well, um . . ."

Sauske smiled, nodding to her. "Sure, Keira, that would be good. I just can't go tomorrow."

"Oh, I didn't mean for that; I just wanted you to know the offer's there." Keira replied, shuffling her feet.

"I'll be sure to come by sometime, it's just I'm grounded right now."

"Grounded?" Keira asked, pulling herself out of dreamland again. "What happened?"

"Oh, I got in trouble fighting with someone. That's all."

"With who?" Keira asked innocently.

"Who?" Sauske replied tentatively. "Oh, um, it was, uh, some girl, uh, that my Dad, uh, said I shouldn't fight at all. And, um, things happened, so I, uh, ended up fighting her, and I got grounded for two days."

"Who was she?"

"Oh, um, just the daughter of one of my dad's friends. That was why I wasn't supposed to fight her."

Keira scratched her head. "Well Sauske-kun, I never thought you would be one to get violent. Well, except for . . ." her eyes widened, "You didn't . . ."

"No, no, nothing like that, Keira. I kind of got talked into it, that's all. Nobody was hurt."

Keira nodded, sighing in relief. "Well, that's all I came to say. Since you're grounded, you probably have homework and chores to do, so we can't spar . . ."

"Finished them already. So if you want to, we can." He said with a smile.

"Sure, sounds like fun." Keira replied, smiling back.

- - -

"I'm home!" a woman's voice shouted into the home.

"In here!" Sakura shouted from the kitchen. She listened as footsteps approached, and her mother peeked into the kitchen. "Hi, Mom. Just working on dinner, like you asked."

"Here, I can take over. You have homework, I'm guessing." Akane replied, and her daughter reluctantly agreed.

"Hi, Mommy!" Auska said, merrily walking towards Akane. "Daddy wants to see you."

"Oh? And where is he?"

"Up in your room, readin'."

"And what have you been doing today, Auska?" Akane asked, smiling, and walking out of the kitchen.

"Flying!"

- - -

Akane slid the door open, noticing her husband curled up on their bed, reading another copy of Shonen Sunday. "Ranma?" Ranma glanced up, realized who it was, and closed his book, sitting up. "You wanted to talk to me?"

"Didn't think you'd get back so soon. Where were ya, anyway?"

Akane sighed, walking in, closing the door behind her. "Oh, Ryoga came by, so I walked him home. And let him borrow some clothes." Noticing Ranma's questioning glance, Akane continued. "He was P-chan when he came."

"Oh, I get ya."

Akane sat down on the bed next to him. "So, what did you want to talk about?"

"Well, I heard something very interestin' at Shampoo and Mousse's new home."

Akane blinked. "What was it?"

"Well, besides meeting their other children and hearin' all about why they moved here, they told me Aki hasn't said anythin' about being engaged to Sauske. Not one word 'bout him, or their fight. So, they brought her in, and asked her about it."

Akane waited, as Ranma paused. "Well?" she asked, tired of waiting.

"She said she didn't know what we were talkin' about!" Ranma exclaimed, before calming down. "She said she knew who Sauske was, but never remembered anythin' about fighting him, including losin' to him."

Akane nodded. "You're right, Ranma, that is interesting. What do you think? Could it be possible for Sauske and Sakura to be lying?"

"Don't see why they would. I mean, do they really wanna get engaged to someone?"

"Yeah, I know. So, that means Aki is lying. But why? They don't live in China anymore; would they really still follow the laws?"

Ranma sighed. "Unfortunately, Akane, yeah. Since they still live in an Amazon village."

Akane blinked. "Excuse me?"

"That's why Shampoo and Mousse are here. Since they left Japan, a lot of Amazons came to live here after hearin' all the stories. And so, there's a bunch of them all grouped around there too. It's like a little Chinatown down there."

"Anyway, Akane," Ranma continued, "this means Sauske and Aki aren't engaged."

"Which is good."

"But they could be as soon as we figure out what's really goin' on."

"Which is bad."

Ranma nodded. "Yeah, so what are we gonna' do?"

Akane paused, thinking it over in her head. "Well, I don't want to, but we should probably help straighten this out."

"Yeah, but how?"

Akane sighed. "Well, let's give it a few days, and we'll think of something."

All Ranma could do was nod.

- - -

Keira walked along the road for the first time in years. Usually, she ran from one place to another, bolting past every person along the sidewalks and such. But this time, she just walked. Sure, it was along the fence, but that was nothing special.

The important thing was she had done it. She had gone and asked Sauske to come and visit her. She smiled as she walked along, her mind drifting off again.

Sauske sat happily at the counter of Ucchan's, wearing his clean school uniform, and waiting on his food. The restaurant was absolutely empty, except for the two of them.

Keira, on the kitchen side, was happily flipping an okonomiyaki of her own creation up, before it landed perfectly on the grill again. She smiled more, watching the toppings sizzle, while the little design remained in perfect order. She brushed her skirt down, straightening it, before sliding the okonomiyaki off the grill and onto a plate, and bringing it over to Sauske.

Sauske was about to take it and eat, when he saw something. "Uh, Keira?" Sauske asked tentatively, his cheeks growing a slight rosy tint. Keira, removing her apron, hung it on the hook and straightened her uniform shirt before walking over to him, wondering what he wanted, but secretly hoping she already knew. "Keira? Do you really mean this?" he continued, pointing to his food.

Keira glanced down, making sure her words were still there. This was her final piece to play. After everything, it was time to put it all on the line. "Yes, Sauske-kun. That's exactly how I feel."

Sauske couldn't believe it. There were only five words written there, but they probably meant more than any other five words had before. "Sauske. I love you. Keira." Sauske re-read them one more time. He blushed more.

Keira bit her lip, wondering why he was hesitating. "Well?"

Sauske sat in silence for a moment. Slowly, he began to speak. "Keira, I don't know what to say." Keira didn't like the way his voice sounded. "But, . . . I'll try. For the past few months, since I first went to your restaurant after being grounded, I've always liked spending more time with you. I didn't know what to say, or what to do, I just followed you, and hoped I could keep myself from making a mistake that would cost us our friendship."

Keira, walking around the counter and sitting at a stool next to him, shook her head. "Sauske-kun, we'll always be friends, no matter what happens. You have to believe that."

Sauske nodded, sighing. "Well, I couldn't stop thinking of you. Because . . ." His voice trailed away, as he turned towards Keira.

Keira, instructively, leaned slightly closer. "Yes?" she asked softly.

Sauske leaned a bit closer. "For a very long time now, Keira, . . ." his voice barely had any volume, but the blush was slowly fading, as his fear drained away.

They both inched their faces a bit closer together. "Yes?" Keira asked again, her eyes watching him with a gentle, encouraging glance.

His eyes suddenly met hers, and the words tumbled out softly. "I love you too."

Keira only murmured in acknowledgment, as their faces moved closer. Sauske tilted his head slightly, as Keira gently closed her eyes, the distance between their lips continuing to shorten. Sauske, his hand originally resting on his knee, slowly reached up, landing delicately on Keira's shoulder.

The girl shuddered a tiny bit, as she felt the boy's breath passing gently onto her lips. They were only three inches away from kissing . . . two inches . . . one inch . . .

"WHAAAAAA!" Keira screamed, as she accidentally stepped off the fence. Flailing around, her body spun, and she fell off the fence, landing on her back.

She lay there for a minute, before sitting up, rubbing the back of her head. "Okay, new idea. Don't daydream until I get home." Keira thought silently in her head. She sighed, getting up, and started running off for home.

After a while, her head clear, she sighed to herself. "What was I thinking?! No way would things turn out like that! I mean, really . . . I was wearing one of those evil school uniforms!"

- - -

The darkness of night shone through her window, but none of that mattered. She reached into the trunk she had under her bed, carefully looking through to find what she needed. Some of her hair draped over her shoulder, which she then flipped back to keep it out of her face. Even with the light of her room, it took her a minute or two to find what she was looking for.

Once her hands reached the cloth, she pulled it out of the box, and unfolded it, laying the weapon out on her bed. It was a bow. Realizing this wasn't what she wanted, the weapon was bundled up and placed back in the box. Searching for another few minutes, the girl pulled out a different bundle, this time longer and thinner. Placing it on the bed, the cloth was unfurled, and the girl's face lit up.

There was her sword.

Taking the scabbard in her hand, she brought the weapon up to her face, she pulled the sword out, examining the blade. It was a Chinese broadsword, with an edge on both side, and the girl's meticulous eye for weaponry, especially her own, told her that it was still sharp. Very sharp. And so, the blade was slung back into the scabbard.

The sword was leaned against the wall, as the girl thought out a plan. She had the base set already. Of course, she didn't want to have to lie, but she needed time, and if everyone were off trying to solve a story of "he said, she said" there would be plenty of time to get a second chance at this.

Aki sighed to herself as she sat down on the bed. She never wanted to lie to her family, but there was no choice. If they found out, she would have to be engaged to that idiot she had met. This was the only way she could get out of this.

One more fight with that boy, and if she won, she could claim victory, and escape the engagement. But it had to be before anyone else found out. It would have to be tomorrow, the day after at the latest. She would hold her focus this time. She could get out of this engagement safely, before anything happened. Or, at the very least, Aki would get his respect, whether through word or sword.

That included the boy's aura.

Next Chapter: Day two of being grounded.

Well, that's the end of this chapter. I'm not so sure of myself for this one, especially after Keira's daydream, so I hope it's not too bad. Well, anyway, let's go on to the reviews:

The Liz: Well, I hope I already answered why Auska is so weak in her cursed form.

Sleepingbear: Okay, so maybe I wrote a bit much about P-chan with Akari, but it was a big part of her life. And I felt bad not writing so much in the chapter, so I added more. And as for the bios and curses, I'm glad you like them.

angelii: WHOO! Two reviews! Thank you! Anyway, now you know what Auska becomes. And thank you for the kind words.

Shampoo

Age: 39

Occupation: Unemployed, but starting a new, unnamed restaurant

Strength: 2

Stamina: 2

Speed: 3

Ki: 2

Aura: 3

Special Techniques: ?

Shampoo is an example of the minimal amount of change occurred in the last twenty-two years. Appearance wise, Shampoo has changed little beyond her old appearances when she first arrived, other than some slight signs of aging. The most significant would be that her hair, while retaining its violet color, has reached a slightly dulled, matured color, instead of its vibrant purple. As for her martial arts abilities, she has done some training, but the effects of it, since she has only just returned from China, are unknown.

Her feelings have also changed little. She still retains a healthy love for Ranma, emphasis on healthy, which is now reigned in, instead of loose and free like when she first became engaged to him. Shampoo also has a lingering distrust of Ukyo and Akane, a severe sense of apathy for Ryoga, Akari, and Konatsu, and, of course, a profound respect for her culture and heritage. That's not to say she still outwardly hates Ukyo or Akane, or anything similar to before, but the feelings and pressures are still there, even if they are greatly reduced.

But that's not to say she isn't happy with her current life; quite the contrary. Even before breaking off the engagement the only way possible (which Ranma has forced everyone involved to not bring it up ever again), Shampoo had begun to find solace in Mousse, first as a friend, and slowly, as someone more than that. While their relationship was delayed several times by his over-eagerness, eventually they did fall in love.

Their family, counter-intuitively, may be the most fairy-tale of them all. At least as far as the happily-ever-after part goes. Except for a slight resurgence of feelings when Ranma returned to China five years ago, Shampoo and Mousse have had the simplest of all relationships. They had four children, two boys and two girls, ages 17, 16, 16, and 11, respectively. (FYI: The middle sister and brother were fraternal twins. And the girl was born first.)

As for her children, she loves them all, and takes great care training them. Most of her training is focused on her middle children, who have chosen ways of fighting much more similar to herself. Her older son and younger daughter spend much more time training with Mousse, although she helps quite frequently with her daughter's disability.

Overall, as stated above, Shampoo has changed little. She talks the same, looks the same, and fights the same. While there are changes at work in her life, and maturity and parenthood have reached a full swing, she still retains the youth, vibrancy, and intensity many have grown to love and hate (although, unfortunately, many more people prefer the second one to the first).