Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters from Ranma ½ or Inuyasha. . .
though I really wish I did. . .
A/N: I decided to post chapter 1 along with the prologue. . . simply because of the prologue's length. Chapter 2 coming soon!!!
Please read and review!!
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Lost Time Chapter 1
Ranma Saotome pounded his fist against Akane's bedroom door. "C'mon, Akane, open up. I said I was sorry, already!"
No answer.
He balled his fists as he glared at the closed door. Could that girl be any more stubborn? Sure, he hadn't said the nicest things after she'd made tonight's dinner, but wasn't his apology worth anything?
"It really wasn't that bad," he said to the door. "Actually, I think you might be improving!"
"Go away, Ranma!"
"Fine!" Ranma screamed. "But don't be calling me when you need me!"
"I won't!"
"GOOD!"
He spun around on his feet and stomped down the hallway to his room. If she would just learn how to cook properly, then there would be a problem. Who else mixed up vinegar and honey? He stuck out his tongue as he thought about the horrible taste.
"This is her fault, not mine," he muttered as he entered the bedroom and slammed the door behind himself.
*****
"I made it!" Ryoga said in awe at himself. He stood at the front of the Tendo house, the glowing jewel clutched in the palm of his hand. He had no idea how he'd gotten there, but he had, and that was all that mattered.
"Akane-san," he said under his breath, "this time you will know the truth!"
*****
Akane Tendo turned the page on her cookbook. Every time she tried to cook something for Ranma, it never turned out. And not once was he ever nice to her about it. Would it be so hard for him to smile and pretend that it was good?
She sighed. Apparently, it was.
"Akane!" her sister's voice called from downstairs. "You have a visitor!"
"Coming, Kasumi!" she called back as she shoved the cookbooks underneath her bed. If Ranma caught sight of them, he'd probably burn them or something.
Just in case Ranma was still outside her door, she opened it slowly, ready to clobber him. What a pervert, sitting outside a girl's bedroom. She wasn't going to stand for it. But when she peered out into the hallway, he was nowhere to be seen, and she sighed.
"Stupid Ranma."
She flew down the stairs and into the living area. Standing at the entry way was none other than Ryoga, and his face was bright red.
*****
"Akane-san," Ryoga said, looking down at his feet. "I. . . I've returned from my trip."
"I see that, Ryoga-kun!"
Ryoga grinned at her as Kasumi gave them both a smile, and then left the room. 'Good,' Ryoga thought. 'We're alone. This is the perfect time to give her the necklace!' He turned and closed the front door behind himself. "Ah. . . Akane-san?"
"What's wrong?" Akane wanted to know.
Ryoga's eyes widened as she stepped closer and closer to him. "I, uh. . . I brought you a present!"
"A present?" she said, clasping her hands together. "For me? What is it?"
"Here!" He thrust out the necklace until it dangled in front of her face. "It's. . . well, it's a necklace. I thought of you when I saw it, and just had to bring it back for you." That wasn't exactly a lie, after all.
"Ryoga-kun!" Akane exclaimed as she took the necklace from him and stared at the pink stone, which now seemed to be glowing more than ever before. "It's so pretty! Thank you, Ryoga-kun."
Ryoga grinned, feeling accomplished. "Why don't you put it on?"
But before Akane had a chance to even think about putting the necklace on, a hand reached out from behind her and swiped it from her grasp.
"What exactly is this?" Ranma wanted to know as he held the stone up before his eyes. "And why is it glowing like that?"
"Ranma, give it back!" Akane demanded. She tried to reach for it, but Ranma held it up high. Akane jumped. "Ryoga-kun gave that to me as a present! It's not yours!"
Ranma apparently wasn't listening to her. "I just wanted to know what it was. It looks kinda weird. Are you sure this thing isn't going to poke you? I mean, it's pretty sharp looking."
Ryoga gazed at the stone, its light reflecting from Ranma's blue eyes. "Give it back to her," he said through clenched teeth. "I didn't bring it all the way back here so you could get your dirty fingerprints all over it!"
Ranma's eyes went from the stone and fell directly on Ryoga. "I'll give it back to her," he said. "When you tell me what it is."
"It's a necklace!" Ryoga growled. "What does it look like?"
Akane was trying to pull herself up on Ranma's arm to reach the necklace. Ranma took the necklace in his other hand, grinning at her. "You moron," he said. "What if there's some kind of love potion in this rock? Do you want to spend the rest of your life wandering after Ryoga?" He didn't wait for her to respond. "I didn't think so."
Akane's face went from pink to red. "You're the moron, Ranma," she said, still trying to reach the pendant. "Why would Ryoga give me a love potion? We're only friends!"
Ryoga felt like something had punctured his lungs, and he tried to take in a deep breath. It stung like hell. Friends? Friends?! He took a courageous step forward and grabbed the collar of Ranma's shirt. "If you don't give her that necklace right now, I'm going to beat the shit out of you, Ranma!"
"Oh, yeah?" Ranma said, his eyes glaring right into Ryoga. "I'd like to see you try."
"I've been training while I was away," Ryoga told him. "I'm about ten times stronger than before."
"Is that supposed to scare me, Ryoga?" Ranma said as he grinned at Ryoga. "I haven't had a good fight in a long time, and you have no idea how excited I am about pounding you into the ground."
Ryoga watched as Ranma chuckled. The overconfident moron thought he would still be stronger.
"This is gonna be fun," Ranma said as he shoved the necklace into Akane's hand and then balled his fists up, prepared to knock one into Ryoga.
"Uh, Ranma. . . maybe you should-"
"Shut up, Ryoga, and fight. Or are you too scared?"
"But, Ranma. . ."
"Are you gonna fight, or what!?"
Behind Ranma, Akane was holding the necklace up like she was going to put it on over her head. The dope had obviously been too distracted by the aspect of a fight to notice that he'd practically handed the necklace to Akane.
"RANMA!" Ryoga yelled.
"What?"
"Turn around, you idiot!"
Ranma spun around. His eyes widened when he realized that Akane had the necklace. "Hey!" he cried, reaching over in her direction. "That wasn't fair!"
Akane pushed him away with one hand, and put the necklace over her head with the other. Once it rested on her skin, the pink stone created an aura of white light that was so blinding that both Ranma and Ryoga had to squeeze their eyes shut until it had dimmed.
When Ryoga opened his eyes, Akane was staring directly at him. . . in admiration. "Akane-san," he mumbled, feeling his cheeks heat up. Could the charm that the old man spoke of actually be working?
"Oh, Ryoga-kun!" she said as she threw her arms around him and gave him a tight hug.
Over Akane's shoulder, Ryoga saw the look on Ranma's face, and it wasn't a pretty sight. His eyes were wide, and his face was so pale that Ryoga thought that maybe someone should check his pulse to make sure he was still alive.
Just then, Akane let go of Ryoga and turned to face Ranma. She stuck out her tongue. "Ha, Ranma! I got you!"
Ranma's pale face turned red in an instant. Ryoga thought his rival might explode. Then, he suddenly felt sick. The charm hadn't worked, and he was back to square one.
"I told you there was no love potion, you idiot," Akane said as she fingered the stone around her neck. "It's just a really pretty necklace. Thank you, Ryoga-kun."
Just as she said those words, her eyes slowly went up from the necklace and landed on Ranma's face. "Ranma. . ." she said, her voice nearly a whisper. "I. . . I. . . I can't believe you didn't like my dinner! Why do you have to be so mean?! I HATE YOU!"
Both Ryoga and Ranma watched as she tore out of the room and flew up the stairs.
"What the hell?" Ranma mumbled, his eyes staring at where she had disappeared. "That was a little random."
Ryoga gulped. Something wasn't right. Could it have anything to do with the necklace?
Suddenly, Ranma took off after her. "Akane!" he yelled as he ran up the stairs. "Akane, wait up!"
*****
In the next district over, Kagome Higurashi sat in a crowded theater watching the first movie that she'd had time to see all year. She was with a group from school, and all of them were stuffing popcorn and candy into their mouths as the movie flickered on from the big screen at the end of the room.
"Ooo!" Yuri, Kagome's friend, exclaimed in a whisper. "The best part is coming up! Wait till you see what the guy does before he goes into her room!"
Kagome sighed. It was no fun going to the movies with someone who had seen the flick before and felt compelled to tell you everything before it happened.
Just as the actor on screen was looking suspiciously down either ends of the hallway in the scene, Kagome sensed a piercing white light, and she stood up so quickly, that her popcorn fell from her lap and spilled all over the floor. The whole theater was looking right at her.
"Kagome!" her friends gasped.
But Kagome barely heard them. She stared straight ahead, thinking of the white light. She knew exactly what the image meant; it was another Shikon shard. . . the last one, as a matter of fact. Naraku had acquired most of the other shattered pieces. . . all except two. One, Kagome kept safe in her pocket while the other's whereabouts remained unknown. Until now, that is.
Silently, she turned toward the exit. Her friends tried to pull her back down to her seat, but she resisted. "I'm sorry, guys, I gotta go. I'll explain later."
As she climbed over their feet, she heard someone mumble, "What do you think is wrong with her this time?" but Kagome didn't even care. All that mattered was finding Inuyasha and getting the shard back before Naraku somehow got his filthy hands on it first.
A/N: I decided to post chapter 1 along with the prologue. . . simply because of the prologue's length. Chapter 2 coming soon!!!
Please read and review!!
**********************************************
Lost Time Chapter 1
Ranma Saotome pounded his fist against Akane's bedroom door. "C'mon, Akane, open up. I said I was sorry, already!"
No answer.
He balled his fists as he glared at the closed door. Could that girl be any more stubborn? Sure, he hadn't said the nicest things after she'd made tonight's dinner, but wasn't his apology worth anything?
"It really wasn't that bad," he said to the door. "Actually, I think you might be improving!"
"Go away, Ranma!"
"Fine!" Ranma screamed. "But don't be calling me when you need me!"
"I won't!"
"GOOD!"
He spun around on his feet and stomped down the hallway to his room. If she would just learn how to cook properly, then there would be a problem. Who else mixed up vinegar and honey? He stuck out his tongue as he thought about the horrible taste.
"This is her fault, not mine," he muttered as he entered the bedroom and slammed the door behind himself.
*****
"I made it!" Ryoga said in awe at himself. He stood at the front of the Tendo house, the glowing jewel clutched in the palm of his hand. He had no idea how he'd gotten there, but he had, and that was all that mattered.
"Akane-san," he said under his breath, "this time you will know the truth!"
*****
Akane Tendo turned the page on her cookbook. Every time she tried to cook something for Ranma, it never turned out. And not once was he ever nice to her about it. Would it be so hard for him to smile and pretend that it was good?
She sighed. Apparently, it was.
"Akane!" her sister's voice called from downstairs. "You have a visitor!"
"Coming, Kasumi!" she called back as she shoved the cookbooks underneath her bed. If Ranma caught sight of them, he'd probably burn them or something.
Just in case Ranma was still outside her door, she opened it slowly, ready to clobber him. What a pervert, sitting outside a girl's bedroom. She wasn't going to stand for it. But when she peered out into the hallway, he was nowhere to be seen, and she sighed.
"Stupid Ranma."
She flew down the stairs and into the living area. Standing at the entry way was none other than Ryoga, and his face was bright red.
*****
"Akane-san," Ryoga said, looking down at his feet. "I. . . I've returned from my trip."
"I see that, Ryoga-kun!"
Ryoga grinned at her as Kasumi gave them both a smile, and then left the room. 'Good,' Ryoga thought. 'We're alone. This is the perfect time to give her the necklace!' He turned and closed the front door behind himself. "Ah. . . Akane-san?"
"What's wrong?" Akane wanted to know.
Ryoga's eyes widened as she stepped closer and closer to him. "I, uh. . . I brought you a present!"
"A present?" she said, clasping her hands together. "For me? What is it?"
"Here!" He thrust out the necklace until it dangled in front of her face. "It's. . . well, it's a necklace. I thought of you when I saw it, and just had to bring it back for you." That wasn't exactly a lie, after all.
"Ryoga-kun!" Akane exclaimed as she took the necklace from him and stared at the pink stone, which now seemed to be glowing more than ever before. "It's so pretty! Thank you, Ryoga-kun."
Ryoga grinned, feeling accomplished. "Why don't you put it on?"
But before Akane had a chance to even think about putting the necklace on, a hand reached out from behind her and swiped it from her grasp.
"What exactly is this?" Ranma wanted to know as he held the stone up before his eyes. "And why is it glowing like that?"
"Ranma, give it back!" Akane demanded. She tried to reach for it, but Ranma held it up high. Akane jumped. "Ryoga-kun gave that to me as a present! It's not yours!"
Ranma apparently wasn't listening to her. "I just wanted to know what it was. It looks kinda weird. Are you sure this thing isn't going to poke you? I mean, it's pretty sharp looking."
Ryoga gazed at the stone, its light reflecting from Ranma's blue eyes. "Give it back to her," he said through clenched teeth. "I didn't bring it all the way back here so you could get your dirty fingerprints all over it!"
Ranma's eyes went from the stone and fell directly on Ryoga. "I'll give it back to her," he said. "When you tell me what it is."
"It's a necklace!" Ryoga growled. "What does it look like?"
Akane was trying to pull herself up on Ranma's arm to reach the necklace. Ranma took the necklace in his other hand, grinning at her. "You moron," he said. "What if there's some kind of love potion in this rock? Do you want to spend the rest of your life wandering after Ryoga?" He didn't wait for her to respond. "I didn't think so."
Akane's face went from pink to red. "You're the moron, Ranma," she said, still trying to reach the pendant. "Why would Ryoga give me a love potion? We're only friends!"
Ryoga felt like something had punctured his lungs, and he tried to take in a deep breath. It stung like hell. Friends? Friends?! He took a courageous step forward and grabbed the collar of Ranma's shirt. "If you don't give her that necklace right now, I'm going to beat the shit out of you, Ranma!"
"Oh, yeah?" Ranma said, his eyes glaring right into Ryoga. "I'd like to see you try."
"I've been training while I was away," Ryoga told him. "I'm about ten times stronger than before."
"Is that supposed to scare me, Ryoga?" Ranma said as he grinned at Ryoga. "I haven't had a good fight in a long time, and you have no idea how excited I am about pounding you into the ground."
Ryoga watched as Ranma chuckled. The overconfident moron thought he would still be stronger.
"This is gonna be fun," Ranma said as he shoved the necklace into Akane's hand and then balled his fists up, prepared to knock one into Ryoga.
"Uh, Ranma. . . maybe you should-"
"Shut up, Ryoga, and fight. Or are you too scared?"
"But, Ranma. . ."
"Are you gonna fight, or what!?"
Behind Ranma, Akane was holding the necklace up like she was going to put it on over her head. The dope had obviously been too distracted by the aspect of a fight to notice that he'd practically handed the necklace to Akane.
"RANMA!" Ryoga yelled.
"What?"
"Turn around, you idiot!"
Ranma spun around. His eyes widened when he realized that Akane had the necklace. "Hey!" he cried, reaching over in her direction. "That wasn't fair!"
Akane pushed him away with one hand, and put the necklace over her head with the other. Once it rested on her skin, the pink stone created an aura of white light that was so blinding that both Ranma and Ryoga had to squeeze their eyes shut until it had dimmed.
When Ryoga opened his eyes, Akane was staring directly at him. . . in admiration. "Akane-san," he mumbled, feeling his cheeks heat up. Could the charm that the old man spoke of actually be working?
"Oh, Ryoga-kun!" she said as she threw her arms around him and gave him a tight hug.
Over Akane's shoulder, Ryoga saw the look on Ranma's face, and it wasn't a pretty sight. His eyes were wide, and his face was so pale that Ryoga thought that maybe someone should check his pulse to make sure he was still alive.
Just then, Akane let go of Ryoga and turned to face Ranma. She stuck out her tongue. "Ha, Ranma! I got you!"
Ranma's pale face turned red in an instant. Ryoga thought his rival might explode. Then, he suddenly felt sick. The charm hadn't worked, and he was back to square one.
"I told you there was no love potion, you idiot," Akane said as she fingered the stone around her neck. "It's just a really pretty necklace. Thank you, Ryoga-kun."
Just as she said those words, her eyes slowly went up from the necklace and landed on Ranma's face. "Ranma. . ." she said, her voice nearly a whisper. "I. . . I. . . I can't believe you didn't like my dinner! Why do you have to be so mean?! I HATE YOU!"
Both Ryoga and Ranma watched as she tore out of the room and flew up the stairs.
"What the hell?" Ranma mumbled, his eyes staring at where she had disappeared. "That was a little random."
Ryoga gulped. Something wasn't right. Could it have anything to do with the necklace?
Suddenly, Ranma took off after her. "Akane!" he yelled as he ran up the stairs. "Akane, wait up!"
*****
In the next district over, Kagome Higurashi sat in a crowded theater watching the first movie that she'd had time to see all year. She was with a group from school, and all of them were stuffing popcorn and candy into their mouths as the movie flickered on from the big screen at the end of the room.
"Ooo!" Yuri, Kagome's friend, exclaimed in a whisper. "The best part is coming up! Wait till you see what the guy does before he goes into her room!"
Kagome sighed. It was no fun going to the movies with someone who had seen the flick before and felt compelled to tell you everything before it happened.
Just as the actor on screen was looking suspiciously down either ends of the hallway in the scene, Kagome sensed a piercing white light, and she stood up so quickly, that her popcorn fell from her lap and spilled all over the floor. The whole theater was looking right at her.
"Kagome!" her friends gasped.
But Kagome barely heard them. She stared straight ahead, thinking of the white light. She knew exactly what the image meant; it was another Shikon shard. . . the last one, as a matter of fact. Naraku had acquired most of the other shattered pieces. . . all except two. One, Kagome kept safe in her pocket while the other's whereabouts remained unknown. Until now, that is.
Silently, she turned toward the exit. Her friends tried to pull her back down to her seat, but she resisted. "I'm sorry, guys, I gotta go. I'll explain later."
As she climbed over their feet, she heard someone mumble, "What do you think is wrong with her this time?" but Kagome didn't even care. All that mattered was finding Inuyasha and getting the shard back before Naraku somehow got his filthy hands on it first.