I've nothing much to offer

There's nothing much to take

I'm an absolute beginner

nd I'm absolutely sane

As long as we're together

The rest can go to hell

I absolutely love you

But we're absolute beginners

With eyes completely open

But nervous all the same

-"Absolute Beginners" by David Bowie

Akane stared at the girl across from her, "Your make up's running down your face."

She smiled widely and sniffed, "I knew that, I'm making a statement. Mascara has always been worn on the eyes, but in one swift movement, I have broadened its horizons forever!"

Akane kept the confused expression square on her face, but then smiled back and laughed a little. Kimi chuckled too, staring curiously at the young girl parallel to her.

"Tell me," she instructed, fanning her eyelashes, slowlyturning her head up and to Akane's gaze, "what's your name?"

"I'm Akane," she smiled, thrusting out her hand.

Thewoman accepted her hand and shook it firmly, "Kimi, it's a real pleasure Akane. So tell me, who've they got looking after the big lummox I stupidly married?"

Akane flushed a bit at the thought of Ranma, "Ranma Sa-"

Kimi interrupted her, "Are you two together," she asked, instantly curious, stepping closer. Seeing Akane's face, she explained, "you reacted funny."

Akane's eyes opened wide and she stammered, willing herself to reply, "He's . . . well, he's sort of my fiancé."

Kimi smirked, "By choice," she asked, with anere of experience, "or by family?"

Akane began to answer, but stopped, resting her hands neatly in her lap and staring down at them.

Kimi sat closer across from her, pulling her chin up gently, "Or maybe both?"

She blushed deeply this time, and looked up again, a little furiously, "Why are you so interested?"

"Well," Kimi explained, eyes gleaming, standing up and walking to a tiny fridge in the corner. She opened the door and searched through, poking her arm in and rustling around, "you and your hubby," Akane started to protest and Kimi motioned with her other hand, "sorry, I meant maybe-hubby. Anyway, you and your maybe-hubby remind me," she stepped away, holding bottles of liquor tiny enough to fit in your hand, "of my knight-in-shining-armor and me when we were younger."

Akane jerked her head, paying no attention to the bottles Kimi was bringing in her arms and dropping in front of her, falling into a cross legged position gracefully, which is quite a feat in a dress made for looking pretty in. She handed one to Akane and the girl accepted, not fully knowing what it was.

"What's this stuff," the young Tendo girl asked quizzically,guessing what itcould be, but not understanding why she had been given one, "it looks like a mini bottle."

Kimi grinned at her innocence, "It's liquor, a friend gave them to me for the wedding. You don't have to have any; it's just that you look like you could use one."

Akane nodded, and took it as a challenge, holding the bottle up to eye level and staring into the glass bottle, "Yeah, I'll have one, maybe two."

Kimi smirked, "Don't get ahead of yourself, sweetheart," she warned, swigging the bottle's contents quickly, feeling the bite once she finished it off, and was already starting the next.

Akane watched her down it and focused on the bottle, unscrewing it and holding it to her lips. She shut her eyes tightly and started to down it, emptying the contents in seconds. The bite hit her hard and she felt the compelling urge to throw up, "That," she spat, "was disgusting!"

Kimi nodded knowingly

, resting against the door, "So, tell me what you and your Ranma are doing in this little town?"

Akane shook her head and her hands, "No, we're not here together; I'm here with Shinosuke," Kimi stared at her in confusion and Akane tried to explain the situation, "um, he's very nice."

Kimi put down another bottle and picked up the next, "He's not Ranma though, why isn't he with his fiancée?"

Akane tried to explain, opening another bottle, "He is with his fiancée, well, another one of his fiancées. He's got three you know," Kimi's eyebrows raised and Akane felt some pride in astonishing the older woman, "Yep, Ranma's always gone into things trying to be far ahead of the crowd; obviously three fiancées is quite a bit ahead of the rest of the pack."

Kimi nodded knowingly again, "Yukio had that problem, they weren't fiancées, but they were persistent buggers. I got in fights with them all the time," she recollected, staring off into her memories, "I'd get so jealous when they'd come near him," she laughed, "we used to fight like dogs."

Akane noticed the sparkle in the girl's eyes.

Kimi laughed again, "Who am I kidding, we still fight like dogs."

Akane had to ask the question she didn't really want to ask, more like needed to, "Then why stay with him; why stay when all you do is fight?"

Kimi stopped immediately and looked to Akane, "Oh no, it's not all bad fighting; the fighting turned playful, sweet," she smiled secretly, "and we have excellent moments too. It's just, well, I hate this part; the part where we haven't made up yet, and I'm so angry that he's not here to comfort me while I'm mad at him!"

Akane felt something for the sweet woman in front of her and slowly moved to hug her, "Boys make us girls cry far too much."

Kimi shrugged, sniffing and wiping something from her eye, dragging herself lazily to a desk with a box of tissue on it, coming back, smiling, and blowing her nose, "Sometimes it's good to cry."

Ranma sat across the table from the striking man he had just encountered. He was not truly comfortable sitting with someone that had told him they could beat him, but would not fight; Ranma chalked that up to getting into a fight with a girl.

"So what'd you guys fight over?" Ranma asked, acting quite nonchalant, but desperately wanting to know.

Yukio shrugged, "Some girl tried to break us up again, or somethin', and she over-reacted when the girl kissed me! I mean, I didn't ask to be irresistible!"

Ranma nodded reverently, "I totally understand ya buddy, same thing happens to me and Akane all the time."

Yukio raised an eyebrow in surprise, "Is that who's keeping the wench captive?"

Ranma nodded, thinking only that by that he must mean his wife, "Yeah we're kinda engaged, by our parents," he quickly explained. Yukio grinned and Ranma tried to dismiss the whole thing, "Yeah, but I've got two more so it doesn't really make a difference."

Yukio was surprised, "Wow, didn't figure you for such a player!"

Ranma tried to clarify, taping his fingers on the table, "Naw, my Pop arranged all of 'em; he'd sell me for a good bowl of soup in a second."

Yukio stared hard at the young man, "Yeah," he said after a long pause, "I had – I still have – girls comin' after me all the time. It's hard though, I don't wanna make 'em cry, but," he turned away, focusing on the floor sternly, contemplating a memory, "it makes her hurt."

Ranma did not know what to say. Usually, in this sort of situation, he would say something rude and out of context, and make the wrong move. In an effort to better himself he kept quiet, fighting his repellenceof silence.

Yukio snapped out of it, "So, who's your father? I'd love to know the man that would sell his son for some miso soup!"

Ranma rolled his eyes, kicked back, and stuck his feet up on the desk, "His name's Saotome, Genma Saotome."

He noticed the man had been taken aback by this, "The same Genma Saotome of the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts is your father?"

Ranma nodded, worrying his Pop had done something to the guy in the past and he was going to get the bad end if it instead; again.

Yukio was abash, "Your father defeated me a long time ago!"

Ranma's face fell; time for the whole "now I'll seek vengeance on his son" part of this normal occurrence, but Yukio just kept smiling.

The man prodded a bit, laughing jovially, "how's the ol' windbag doin'?"

Ranma glared, trying to decipher the situation, "Ya mean ya don't wanna fight?"

Yukio shook his head.

"But you lost?"

Yukio nodded.

"To my Pop?"

Yukio nodded again, a small smile across his lips, "I lost fair and square, Ranma."

The boy nodded, "Well, it's a real relief knowin' at least one person's got some honor to own up to when it ain't nobody's fault but their own!"

The older man winked, "Honor ain't everythin', bud. Plus, if it wasn't for your Pop, me and Kimi never would've got together."

"Arranged that marriage too, did he?" Ranma scoffed, folding his arms and puffing his chest.

The man smiled ruefully, "Well, he noticed I felt stuff for her, and before I knew it I got jealous, told her she couldn't be with anybody else, and then," he shrugged, "we were married."

"Seems too good to be true," Ranma murmured, staring intently at the ground.

"It almost was," the senior man in the room told the boy, "but I told her I needed her and she decided to stop lookin' for a better man and settle with me," he quipped, "Man," he mused, "sure am lucky, ain't I?"

Ranma nodded, then jumped up, eyes wide when he suddenly realized something, "You mean ya just told her ya needed her? That's not fair! I gotta go all the way; y'know, say . . . those . . . words."

Yukio laughed at his uncomfortable stature and Ranma tried to correct himself, "You don't always have to say those words, y'know."

Ranma raised an eye brow and laughed, "Obviously, ya never met Akane Tendo."

Kimi stared at the gold plated clock on the wall and turned back to Akane, who was currently lying on the floor giggling, "Akane dear, I think it's time we sobered up."

Kimi struggled over to the little fridge again and brought out a small bottle with green liquid inside. She crawled back and handed it to Akane, "Here, drink this."

Akane grabbed the little bottle and grinned lopsidedly, "Kimi, it's bright green like grass, but we're not outside!"

Akane fell to the floor laughing and Kimi thanked the cap for staying on.

"Drink it, Light-weight, you really need it," Kimi told her, smiling sedately.

Akane nodded and obeyed her new friend, popping off the cap and chugging the bright green liquid, stopping only once to tell her it tasted of strawberries.

When she was finished, she felt herself become horribly dizzy and, looking up at Kimi's smiling face, Akane blacked out.

When her eyes opened a few seconds later; she was herself again, completely sane and sober, "How in the heck did you do that?"

Kimi shrugged, downed a bottle she had subsequently brought out for herself, and shook her head thoroughly, instead of Akane's short faint, "Made it myself, actually," she smiled, and put all the bottles in a blue bin at the side of the room, "Yukio always said I was inventive."

Akane smirked, "You sure do like him."

Kimi nodded calmly and shrugged, "He's worth the headaches."

Akane stared at the door and Kimi followed her gaze tentatively, "I suppose you want me to go make up with him , then?"

Akane looked back at the girl speechlessly, nodded and blushed.

Kimi laughed, "Don't worry, I'm fine going back and pleasing the folk of the town. I haven't forgiven him yet, but he hasn't forgiven me either. We'll fake it for the town's people though, we always do."

Kimi got up and Akane stopped her, "Wait," she beseeched, "I need to know something about you two."

Kimi nodded quickly and waited for the young girl's response, "Well?"

Akane bowed in thanks and continued, "When," she asked, finding it a bit hard, "did Yukio say he loved you?"

"Not for a year," Kimi said simply, without added drama or emphasis.

Akane bobbed her head, "A year of dating, that's not bad I suppose."

"No," Kimi replied, sweetly smiling and getting ready for the door, brushing her dress off, "after a year of marriage."

Akane's mouth dropped open, "What?"

At Akane's surprise Kimi snorted, "He wasn't an outward person about his feelings, but I knew."

"How?" Akane asked, a little put off by her own situation.

"Well, he did ask me to marry him, and that's not usually an everyday thing. You don't go into the supermarket, go up to the crazy fruit and vegetable lady and ask, "Darling, you mean the world to me, grant me but one wish; marry me."

Akane laughed, "Yeah I guess."

"Then again," Kimi smirked, "Yukio's proposal was not that elegant."

Akane waited for the rest of the story eagerly.

Kimi continued, "Well, we had just been attacked by a huge crayon, it's a thing that happens here," she tried to explain, "and we were hiding under a table, waiting for it to leave, and he looked at me and my charred clothes, and my dirty hair, matching my greasy face, he was just as bad as me, mind you, and he said "Let's do this again tomorrow" and I laughed and nodded in agreement, iron to melt the blasted thing ready in my hand, but he kept on, saying "And the day after that, and next week, and the year after that, and maybe eternity" and I laughed and I nodded, and I fell for it," she smirked, "just like every other girl."

Akane eyed her enviously, "I'm jealous."

Kimi grinned again cheekily, "And that was when I knew he loved me. He only said it a year later because the crayon came back to seek revenge, almost killing me."

Akane ran out of words due to the absurdity, but kept her mouth shut, "Right, well if Ranma said anything to me, I'd never know if he meant it or if he was just doing for our parents, or any other dumb reason," Akane remembered, and hurriedly said, "Not that I like him or anything."

Kimi nodded graciously, "Of course not," she opened the door, walked out, motioning for Akane, and they walked down the hall together, "he's simply atrocious."

Yukio stared at Ranma for a second, "Y'know, you're a bit jumpy to be Genma's son, somethin' on your mind?"

Ranma jerked his head around; amazed someone interrupted the silence that had overtaken them. Not used to thinking of such heavy things with such strangers, "uh, well, y'know, I just kinda wanted . . . to . . . well . . ."

Yukio smiled knowingly as Ranma trailed off, "Girl trouble, eh?"

Ranma said nothing.

Yukio took a step closer to him, "Listen," he put his arm on the boy's shoulder, "girls don't have to hear those words. Now, I know this might scare ya like hell, but maybe start to be a little nicer. Well, not nicer, just different. Ya can't imagine how much girls notice change. Man," he looked Ranma in the yes, "it's all in the tone. Fifty percent words, fifty percent actions; that's the way it is."

Ranma kept quiet, but took this in.

The men stayed like that for a second before something coughed near the opening, a silk screen dividing them from anyone else.

The woman Ranma saw was thin, framed well, pretty, and with the face of a vixen, "C'mon Babe, it's time," she said, challenging Yukio with her words.

He started grinning widely, eyes glistening now and looking more relaxed and anxious than ever, "Right," he said quickly, letting the words shoot through his lips, "we'll be out in a sec'."

She nodded, looked to Ranma for a second and scanned him quickly. She turned back to his face and winked , moving then to the gentleman beside him who just stood there, frozen in her company. He had the presence of someone on the edge of their seat, about to pounce forward, leaning a bit, waiting for her to move, and watching her carefully.

Ranma turned to the older man as the girl left, the energy the man had gained was amazing, "Wow man, you look like you're gonna pounce."

He turned to the younger boy, "Sorry, but I mean, she does this to me, and I don't know how. It's like I'm only half alive without her."

The man was already heading out the doors, he motioned for Ranma to follow but the younger boy hung back, "I think I'll wait in here for a couple minutes. Y'know, clear my head and junk."

Yukio, half through the silk door, smirked, "Ah yes, reflection is but half the answer to all inquiries."

He winked as he walked away, "Problem is, once you sleep on something for too long, it might be gone by the time ya wake up."

Ranma waved half heartedly as the man left and walked back to sit down on the floor near him hugging his knee to his chest while the other lay slack on the ground, "I've always been a light sleeper though . . ."

He heard the music begin after a few seconds and he decided everything had obviously gone back to normal. He chose this time to reappear; trying to make this as modest as possible, but failing miserably. Having positioned him self in the very front and middle of everything had not been the smartest idea. As he walked down the aisle, now full of dancers, someone grabbed him forcefully and put their hands into dancing position. Ranma smirked lightly, closing his eyes to relax his nerves, turning to his partner.

"Won't your boyfriend be jealous?" He quipped, turning up to her face only to notice two very Ukyo-like eyes staring back.

"What are you talking about Ranma honey, are you okay? Who do you mean," she questioned, almost laughing, "Ryoga; he's not my boyfriend. Are you crazy?"

She looked around, making sure someone didn't hear what she had said; who that someone was, she did not know.

Ranma nodded, half heartedly staring at the couple a bit farther away than the punch table.

Ukyo turned them so she could see what he was looking at; Akane was slowing gliding with Shinosuke across the floor. She was smiling kindly and nodding, and Shinosuke was adamantly retelling a story.

Ukyo looked at Ranma's lax manner and back to the pair.

Ukyo Kuonji had never been overly heroic. She had tried a few times, to do what was right was her way, but she always made sure she would not get burned in the process. She was a simple girl, most of the time, and just wanted someone to love her, someone to hold her. A lot of men would say Ranma Saotome was lucky to have her biding for his affections, but he did not choose for her. Ukyo had, at many moments, come to terms with this, or at least committed herself to thinking it. Sadly, it was not the case. No matter how much she said it, she still felt the heart tug of watching him sad over another girl, and not happy over her. She still felt the lift in her when he held her, carried her around the floor.

And at that moment, Ukyo Kuonji did a very uncharacteristic thing; she took his hand, breaking apart their secret circle, took him in one direction, him barely holding up his head, and she pulled him towards the punch bowls, but that was not her destination. She stepped up to this other girl, this enemy she had to fight, and took her partner by the arms, "Mind if I have this dance?"

Her lips murmured without her noticing, "Mind if I have this dance?"

It was all such a fluid motion, seeming the only thing to do in the situation. Ukyo did not know what had come over her.

In one swift movement, Ukyo Kuonji left the security of her fiancé and strayed away with her opponents hurdle in her arms, dancing quite awkwardly.

Ranma looked as he faced Akane, not knowing what to do.

Akane stared at Ukyo, "She getting too good at that," Akane said quietly, "she's very good at dancing, isn't she?"

Ranma just nodded, not stopping to actually look at Ukyo float softly away.

Akane turned to Ranma, "I'm sorry I was mean."

Ranma raised an eyebrow, "when?"

Akane shrugged, "I don't know, just in general."

Ranma nodded and coughed, "Right," he nodded, staring behind him, catching Kimi and Yukio embracing each other in a very interesting dance, and something inside had the courage to thrust out his hand and wait for her to reject him. Once he set his mind to something, he had to stand by it; so he waited, watching the offer become a little sour as Akane just stood there.

Finally, she noticed his hand was reaching out for hers and, by instinct purely, took it. He lunged at the fact that it actually worked and started to dance with her. It was weird, feeling someone else against you, not too close, but still a far cry from normal proximity. Ranma gulped as Akane wrapped her arms around his neck and the song suddenly turned slow. Akane gulped as well, and Ranma smirked.

"So are you going to keep stalking me, Ranma?" Akane asked, quite dignified.

Ranma paused for a second and then rolled his eyes, "I guess. I ain't goin' home empty handed."

Akane nodded inside her head, 'Right, see; he's only here because he has to be, stop thinking about other things you silly girl!'

Ranma, noticing his mistake, remembered what Yukio had said.

"Now, I know this might scare ya like hell, but maybe start to be a little nicer. Well, not nicer, just different. Ya can't imagine how much girls notice change."

He breathed in and out slowly. And pulled her closer, locking his hands tightly around her waist, staring over her angelic shoulder, "I like your dress."

And he said it completely honestly, without any other motive, without any other variations of it afterwards; this was something that he truly felt. And Akane noticed.

She didn't say anything; she just pulled him a bit closer and bit her lip unintentionally.

The night was over soon after that and everyone went back to their rooms. Akane, went home to a sleeping puppy, Shinosuke went to a brightly lit room, which turned out not to be his own, but Ukyo's and she guided his to the one corresponding with the key in his pocket. Ryoga sat with Ranma, telling him of the girl that danced with him that night. And as he did this Ranma nodded, rolled his eyes, and stared at the popcorn ceiling, mulling over information he did not quite understand yet.

As the next morning came they all rose around the same time and went down periodically to grabbed some food before rushing back upstairs to pack. No one bumped into anyone else, and it was about two hours later when they were outside and ready to go.

Ranma had said he still had business to do in town, but the others could go ahead if they liked. Ryoga was lost at the moment so they would have to wait until he returned as well. Akane and Shinosuke decided to go ahead, no one really knew why, but it felt like the right thing to do.

As they were about to leave, Ukyo already seeing them off and looking for Ryoga, Ranma stood there, awkwardly standing back from the other two. Akane looked at Shinosuke for a second and he nodded, "Let me just go check the path Akane, I'll be waiting up the road."

She nodded graciously and looked to Ranma, "Well," she said, facing him totally now, "this has been a weird pit stop, huh?"

He nodded, "Yep, if ya call it that. This is probably the normal-est thing we've had to deal with so far."

"Right," Akane corrected, "um, listen, since you'll be stalking us still; you might want this."

She thrust a piece of paper in his hands. It was a map, he found out as he opened it. He smiled half-heartily, reached into his pocket and took out the thrown away one, "Thanks Akane, but I've got one already."

She reached for it in disbelief, "but I threw this away!"

"Yeah," he stared down, "I found your garbage."

Her face went red at remembrance of what else she had left behind.

And something in him jumped. It may have been the fact that she was leaving him again, or the fact that he wanted to be the way Yukio was when Kimi stepped into his atmosphere again; whatever it was, he felt it bad.

He reached into his pocket again, scrunched his eyes and thrust out the tatter piece of paper he had been holding onto, "I dunno if ya want this back."

Akane stared at it for a second, and took it from his hands out of curiosity. Ranma peaked to see the reaction as she saw what it was.

She held the picture, smiling meekly and turned on her heels, running to the forest, to Shinosuke, and he didn't care.

"Thanks Ranma," she waved behind her and never looked back.

He smiled and set out to finish up with some business.

A/N: So? I know, kind of boring, but I tried character development a bit. Too much? Not enough? What do you think?