This is it. This is the last time I'm doing a major upgrade to my story. I can't think of any more ways to fix the pacing problem. I've changed some character reactions, moved part of Chapter 4 up to the first chapter, rewrote, added, did very little deletion, and so on.

If you want, you can read the original version at my website. You can get there by going to my author bio and clicking homepage. I may put the second revision up (this is number three, for those counting) when I can find time.

Actually, this came out fairly well. I like to think of it as a directors cut of sorts.

Well, here it is, my first Ranma fic. Read and Review, and all that good stuff.

This story takes place right after the failed wedding, although this takes after the Anime a lot more. I'm more familiar with the Anime than the Manga.

As expected, there are pairings in this fic. Ranma and Akane, Ryoga and Akari (who I think is only in the Manga), and Shampoo and Mousse. I know there are those opposed to these couplings (epecially Ranma and Akane. Some people hate these with a passion!) so don't complain about these. If you really don't like it, don't read it.)

I don't own these characters. They belong to Rumiko Takahashi, Viz, Fuji TV and Kitty Film (I use some characters specific to the Anime, and I'm not sure who came up with who.)

And now, our feature presentation.

Soun sighed and addressed the two people before him. "Clearly the wedding cannot proceed under these conditions. As is proper, lingering relationships should be settled before a couple can be married. We can all see that you have plenty of those. So we have arranged for the wedding to be delayed, until you can sort out your personal affairs." He then took a puff from his cigarette.

It was right after the wedding of Ranma and Akane. Or, what was supposed to be. So much had gone wrong. Basically, Nabiki had invited every person who either had a grudge or a crush on either Akane or Ranma.

"Pay attention! All this mostly applies to YOU, Ranma," Akane said.

"It was just as much your fault, AKANE," Ranma shot back.

"Why couldn't you resolve all your other fiancée problems before this happened? I bet you like them chasing you, you pervert!"

Ranma decided to try to get her to see things from his angle. "Akane, let me explain something…"

"Shut up, you jerk!" she screamed, cutting him off. She pulled back her hand and slapped him.

The hit sent Ranma to the floor. Akane, not even bothering to see if he was okay, ran upstairs, crying.

Ranma just lay on the floor, stunned. Even when he tried to be reasonable, he ended up getting hurt on one way or another.

Soun just shook his head, and took another puff.

- -

Ukyo sat on her bed, not even bothering to turn on the lights. She was glad to be home, but didn't feel like opening up for business. She felt she had done something awful by ruining Ranma's wedding earlier today.

When she first came to town years ago, she was determined to find Ranma and kill him. She never would have guessed that she would end up falling in love with him. He'd grown into a handsome, strong young man.

Then there was Akane. At first, she thought that the violent tomboy was too undeserving of Ranma. She always seemed to be yelling at him or hitting him. It pained Ukyo to see anyone treat her childhood friend this way. How ironic, since she had originally planned to beat him down herself!

Ukyo had decided then and there to challenge Akane for the title of Ranma's fiancée. At first, she just wanted to protect him from the violent tomboy, but it then became love. Or did it? Maybe it was some form of friendship that Ukyo had thought was love. Do I even know what love is? she asked herself.

Ukyo let out a halfhearted chuckle as she listened to the traffic outside her store. If she was trying to protect Ranma, she did a terrible job. She felt bad as she remembered some of the problems she's caused Ranma. The worst to her was when he had that magic bandage on his nose that made him nice to every girl. She tried to force him to sign her marriage license, and Shampoo was trying to do the same. The two girls even fought over the matter. Only Akane actually cared about what Ranma wanted. Ukyo was disgusted at her own actions now. How could she claim to love a man, but then take advantage of him like that? If Ranma would have signed the marriage license, he most likely would have married her out of honor, but probably would come to hate her for it. What kind of life is that?

Her mind drifted to the incident with Saffron and the earlier failed wedding. Ranma had risked his life to save Akane, and even defeated a god to bring her back to life. If that wasn't true love, she didn't know what was. The bad part was, she didn't learn about it until she talked with Shampoo right after the failed wedding. If she had known about what he did, she never would have tried to stop the wedding. She should have been happy for her childhood friend. She just stared at the ceiling with all the lights off, going over everything in her mind. She wanted to go over and apologize to Ranma and Akane, but something told her that she wouldn't be welcomed right now. Who could blame them? Everyone needed to cool down from the days events anyway. She decided to go over and apologize in the morning.

Soun and Genma sat across each other at their favorite spot: their Shogi board. However, neither one seemed to be really into the game.

"There must be a way to solve our kid's problems," Soun said.

Genma nodded. "You've got that right, Tendo. This calls for another great plan."

Happosai came in, carrying his bag of stolen underwear. "Ah, nothing like a nightly panty raid to help get rid of excess water weight." He then noticed his two slaves... err... students, deep in thought. "What's eating you guys?"

"We're trying to figure out how to get Akane and Ranma to get back together, master."

The master of perversion sighed. He wasn't one to offer good advice, but this did involve the school he founded. "I don't think you should."

"You mean, let them get back together on their own?" Genma asked.

"No. I mean forget the whole engagement thing." Happosai then explained why.

Soun cried, but nodded in understanding. "I will tell them immediately."

"No, let them rest. They did have a rough day," Happosai said.

"We'll tell them tomorrow, then," Genma said.

Happosai nodded. "Now, if you excuse me, nature calls for the 16th time today."

- -

Nabiki was upstairs in her room, going over repair estimates. The damage was far greater than what they could pay. She felt bad for inviting all those party crashers. Even ignoring the problem with the damage, she felt bad for inviting people she knew would try to stop the wedding. It was her sister's decision to go through with it, after all. She wouldn't like it if someone interfered with her own love life. But still, she didn't know if her tomboy sister had any feelings for the cursed martial artist. Sighing, she went back to trying to figure out where to get more money from. She understood finances better than fiancées anyway.

- -

Shampoo sat in her room, watching some shows on a small television she had. She wasn't really paying attention to it, though. She was thinking about the failed wedding earlier that day and about the Saffron battle. She had told Ukyo about what Ranma did to Saffron, and noticed Ukyo's reactions. She was wondering about Ukyo's reactions when it hit her. Ranma loved Akane! He had done so much for the girl, and Shampoo couldn't deny that Akane had come to Ranma's aid a lot too. The couple fought a lot, but Akane was behind him on most of his battles. She thought about the bandage incident also. Sure, being an Amazon, she had been taught to fight for what is hers, but she didn't realize that she treated Ranma like a trophy. Akane never did that. She treated him like a person, both the good and bad parts.

Akane had once planned to sacrifice herself for Ranma too. She had jumped in the way of what she thought was of some cursed water from the Frog Hermit. Sure, the water was not actually cursed, but both Akane and Ranma were unaware of that. Shampoo had heard all this from Mousse. She didn't believe it, until Ranma told her the same story.

Mousse came into Shampoo's room. "How are you doing?" he asked softly, concern in his voice.

"Shampoo busy now! Go away, stupid duck boy!" she yelled. Mousse turned around and started heading towards the door.

"Wait!" she said, turning off the television. "Please...sit with Shampoo."

Mousse nodded and did so. Shampoo expected him to yell something about getting revenge on Ranma for doing such a thing to Shampoo, but he didn't. He only asked her again how she was doing.

Shampoo didn't say anything. She just put her head against Mousse's chest and cried. Mousse lightly patted her back. "It's okay," he said softly.

Shampoo continued to cry. She didn't know what to do now. She new Akane and Ranma loved each other. He didn't accept the kiss of marriage as something he should respect.

The kiss of marriage! Could it be that she was only following tradition? That her love for Ranma wasn't real?

"Shampoo go to Ranma and Akane tomorrow. Shampoo say she sorry for ruining wedding," the Amazon said, her head still against Mousse's chest.

She expected Mousse to jump up and start shouting how happy he was, but he didn't. He just took some of Shampoo's hair that had fallen in front of her face and gently pulled it back behind her ear.

"I'll come too," he said softly. "I have to apologize for my own actions, and for fighting over that water."

Mousse smiled. A few minutes ago, he wasn't sure Shampoo would ever be happy again. He was worried about her. After all, when the ghost cat, Maomolin trapped her in the temple and tried to make her a cat, she did try to kill herself with a small knife. As an Amazon, she would have gone through with it. Mousse was sure of it.

Mouse knew she needed a friend right now. He resisted the urge to just run over and hug her, knowing that she hated it. How odd, he thought, that she does that to Ranma, who hates it just as much.

Mousse thought about it. He hated Ranma because Shampoo gave him all her attention. It really wasn't Ranma's fault, but, as their people were taught, Ranma was in his way. In Mousse's mind, Ranma used to be nothing more than an obstacle. Obstacles were to be removed. But Ranma wasn't an obstacle. He was a person. A person with enough power to overcome anything in his path, including gods. He fought hard to protect his friends, and even people he didn't even really know. Even Mousse had to give him some respect for that.

- -

An empty void.

That's what Akane was currently standing in.

"I'm in a dream," she said to herself out loud. This wasn't the first time she was in a dream and realized it. However, she had heard stories of people who, once they knew they were in a dream, could control it, or fly through the air, or stuff like that. For Akane, no such control existed. She was forced to be with whatever her subconscious came up with.

Turning around, she came face to face with Ranma.

"How could you!" She yelled. But it wasn't her. It just came out of her mouth before she realized it.

"Why couldn't you resolve all your other fiancée problems before this happened? I bet you like them chasing you, you pervert!"

Akane then realized what was going on. She had this argument with Ranma in the real world yesterday, right after the failed wedding. Actually, she was the one that was doing all the yelling. Ranma just stood there and took it all.

"Akane, let me explain something…"

Oh no, she thought. This is where she called him a jerk, and then she had slapped him. It had actually knocked him to the floor, but at the time, she didn't care. She tried to keep the words from coming out of her mouth now, but they still came out.

"Shut up, you jerk!" she screamed, and pulled back her hand to slap him. She saw the look in his eyes. Not of anger or fear, but of hurt. She tried to use all her will to keep her hand back, but it still flew forward. She tried to close her eyes and look away, but she couldn't even do that.

Surprisingly, Ranma caught her hand before it could strike him. Akane was shocked, this didn't happen last night.

"Why?" he asked.

Akane found she had control over her body now, but she was at a loss for words. He let go of her hand, and she pulled it back.

"Why do you always yell at me? Why are you always hitting me? Always calling me a pervert? Never trusting me?"

She tried to form words, but all she could get out was "I…"

"Why can't you ever let me explain?"

She then heard a lot of noise in the distance behind him.

"Ranma Saotome, prepare to die!" She heard Ryoga shout, as he launched some of his bandannas like spinning blades.

"Ranma, watch out!" Akane yelled, but he made no effort to move. The bandannas went past him, shredding part of his clothes and leaving cuts and scratches on his arms and legs. Ranma didn't move.

Ryoga disappeared and upperclassman Kuno appeared behind him. "Begone, you vile sorcerer!" he shouted. He struck Ranma's side with his Boken and then disappeared, leaving a bloody gash in Ranma's side. Still, the pigtailed one didn't budge.

"Ranma, this is the end!" Mousse shouted, and pointed an oversized sleeve at Ranma. Out flew a chain with a steel spike at the end. The spike pierced right though Ranmas chest, through his heart.

"No!" Akane yelled. Even if it was a dream, she was scared. Ranma just looked at her, the color draining out of his blue eyes.

"It doesn't really hurt my heart," he said in a weak voice. "Not after the pain you caused it." He then slumped to the ground.

Akane sat up in bed sweating. After seeing that she was back in her own room, she tried to calm down and think about the dream. She remembered what that Ranma had told her.

Why do you always yell at me? Why are you always hitting me? Always calling me a pervert? Never trusting me? Why can't you ever let me explain?

Since it was a Ranma in her own dream that asked her, she was, in a way, asking herself.

What bothered her is the fact that she was at a loss for answers.

As she calmed down, she heard something. Someone was crying outside. Quietly, she went out on the balcony. She got up on a chair and looked.

It was Ranma. Ranma was…crying? She had seen him cry a few times, like when he thought she was going to become a frog.

She was about to say something to get his attention, but she didn't have the chance to before someone else did.

"Ranma Saotome, prepare to die!"

Ranma looked up at Ryoga, and then back at the moon. "Hey, Ryoga," he said softly.

Ryoga was surprised, but shook it off. "Don't pretend to be my friend! I've been through Hell because of you, and you've dragged countless others into it as well!"

"My life's a living Hell. It only makes sense everyone around me would be dragged into it too," Ranma said calmly.

"Shut up!" Ryoga said, and punched him. Ranma went flying off the roof, onto the ground below. Ryoga jumped after him. Akane ducked down behind the railing to avoid being seen by either.

"You didn't block? That mistake could've cost you," Ryoga said. He then punched Ranma again. He flew into a tree branch. A sickening breaking sound was heard, that made both Akane and Ryoga wince. It turned out to only be a tree branch that broke, because Ranma landed and stood up again.

"Why don't you fight back?" Ryoga yelled.

"I don't want to fight."

"Then die!" Ryoga then kicked and punched Ranma repeatedly. Ranma made no effort to fight back or even dodge. Soon he collapsed on the ground.

Ryoga then picked Ranma up by the front of his shirt. Then, he realized what he did.

Ranma's nose was bleeding. He had a cut above one of his eyes. There was some blood coming from his mouth. He still had tears in his eyes.

Ranma coughed. "Why did you stop?" he asked. "Why don't you kill me?"

Ryoga dropped the other boy. "What?" he asked.

"Just kill me," Ranma said from his spot on the ground, not bothering to get up. "End my miserable existence."

Ryoga couldn't believe what he was hearing. Neither could Akane. Ranma never gave up. It was one of the reasons he was so skilled. He was persistent. Ryoga knew that Ranma almost never lost. If he did, he trained as hard as he could until he could win. He wasn't born with martial arts talent. He worked hard for it.

Ryoga had always blamed his problems on the Saotome youth. He didn't know who blamed Ranma for things more: him or Akane. But there was a difference between the two boys. Ranma trained to better himself and protect his friends and family. He's done that so many times before. He's saved Akane more times than he could count, and even saved him a few times.

On the other hand, Ryoga trained for revenge. Sure, he has saved people before, but when he learned any new attacks, or went on training missions by himself, it was always with the intent of finally beating Ranma. He wondered what he would of done if he would have succeeded. After beating Ranma, what else is there? Before, he thought he'd win Akane, but he knew how much she cared for Ranma. As P-Chan, she would tell him how thankful she was every time Ranma rescued her from evil. Too bad she seldom told Ranma that to his face.

Now this very person was in front of the lost boy. But instead of being so lively; so full of energy and fight, he looked like he was already dead inside.

Ryoga sighed. Even Ranma didn't deserve this. He sat down next to him. "What's wrong, Ranma?"

Ranma closed his eyes. "Everything. I've got all these girls who want to marry me, all these guys who want to hurt me, and even some guys who want to date me! Did I ask for any of this? No!"

Tears started falling from his closed eyes. "Shampoo originally came here to kill me. Sometimes I wish she would have. The same exact thing with Ukyo: wanted to kill me, now wants to marry me. Kodachi…I don't know how the hell she got into the fiancée mix."

He then turned to the Ryoga. "You know what hurts the most? Nobody ever asked me if I wanted to be a martial artist. All the other kids can say that they want to be computer programmers, or pilots, or astronauts. I wanted to be an astronaut. To fly to the moon, see the stars, and see the earth from a distance." He then looked at the moon again, the moonlight reflecting off his tears. "However, pops wouldn't hear of it. He insisted that I be a great martial artist. There was no other choice for me." He then let out a light chuckle, which turned into sobbing.

Akane and Ryoga couldn't believe what they heard. This didn't seem like the confident fighting master they were accustomed to.

Ryoga sighed again. "Come on, let's get you inside. I'll get you fixed up using the first aid kit." He then helped Ranma get into the house.

Akane went back into her room. She got back in bed. So he doesn't want to be with any of the other girls, but what about her? She didn't think the chances that he loved her were very good. The way she always got angry with him and hit him. The way they argued. They didn't seem like a very good couple. He did say he loved her when he thought she was dead, but it may have been a heat of the moment thing.

One of the problems was that they were forced into this engagement by their dads. Akane hated being forced into things, and she knew Ranma did also. Ranma actually seemed to be against whatever his father wanted. With all the other fiancées, and the other trouble that Genma caused, it wasn't hard to see why Ranma thought this way. Who could trust his father after abandoning a childhood friend, trading him for a quick meal when he was very young, and even risking his hair to get some for Genma's bald head?

Akane sighed. Maybe Ranma's had enough. Maybe he'd run away, never to be seen again. As much as she tried to deny it to herself, Akane didn't want to lose him. She decided that maybe she'd try to patch things up in the morning. She then fell asleep again.

"There," Ryoga said, applying a bandage to Ranma (making sure it wasn't one of Happosai's special bandages). Ranma stayed quiet and still throughout this. The silence made Ryoga a little nervous.

"You mentioned the other fiancées. What about Akane?" he said, thinking of the first thing that popped into his head.

"Akane? I love her. I thought everyone would see that. I mean, how many times have I saved her? I even took out a god."

Ryoga was surprised that Ranma admitted he loved her. He must really be out of it, he thought. He resisted the urge to say anything as Ranma continued.

"Does Akane love me? I really doubt it. She hates me. And the sad part is, I can't blame her. She engaged to a gender-changing freak." Ranma then started crying again.

Ryoga put the first aid kit back, then checked on Ranma. He was sleeping. The poor fool cried himself to sleep.

Ryoga then quietly left. He had to clear his head, and get sleep too.

Just a few notes:

Happosai drank the Nannichuan water (spring of drowned man) during the wedding in the Manga, thinking it was Sake. That's where all the water and that bathroom joke came from.

The first part of dialogue (up to Ranma's first sentence) are from the Manga. I'd like to thank the team that translated it (it was a fan translation I read). That also is why the writing style is different than my normal type