A/N: This is actually one of my older stories that I never got around to posting, but here it is, part of the sudden influx of stories that come in right before Christmas. This goes out to the people I love, because they've given me so much, more than I ever asked for or expected.

Important! Do note that the POVs jump around a lot in this story. Hopefully I left enough hints to point out which character is speaking, but I didn't want to point out the current character because it would disrupt the flow.

That's all. Happy reading, and happy holidays.

Standard disclaimer applies to this story.

Many years ago, I used to live in Tokyo in a large house. Our family wasn't rich, but we managed. I lived with my two older sisters and our father; Mama died a little while after I turned four, so I don't remember her very well, only that she was a beautiful person, and not just in the physical sense. Daddy got a little strange after she passed away, but despite all his crying and moodiness, I still love him.

My oldest sister was named Kasumi. She was the sweetest, nicest and definitely most observant person I know, and still is. She was the one who took care of us, dealt with the household and made sure we could live comfortably ever since Mama died. No one in the family, or any lucid human being for that matter, could ever have the heart to hurt dear patient Kasumi.

My second oldest sister was named Nabiki. Nabiki used to be a rather cunning kid, with a scary obsession for money. She was sharp, witty and more than a little sneaky… but there came a time when she mellowed. Nabiki was the clever one. She took care of the finances, and even though most people found her aloof, I know that Nabiki loves us fiercely.

Me? Well… I used to be a spoiled little thing. I was always seen as the baby of the house, and perhaps that helped to explain it. I never had to shoulder much responsibility, just study hard and make lots of friends. I was a normal popular girl at school; I got along well enough with the girls, and the boys annoyed me.

Looking back, I never knew how much my family gave up to ensure that my life could be considered somewhat 'normal'. Then, I was ignorant and immature at times, jumping to wild conclusions at the slightest provocation, not that it ever mattered to me.

Then one day a boy came to live with us. For a short while, Daddy said. All we had to do was to befriend the boy and treat me like a welcomed guest until he left.

At first I was horrified. My experience with boys in school left me more than a little wary. I didn't want anything to do with them, much less have one living in my own house!

But this boy proved to be the one thing that changed my life, along with the many others he touched.

That was many years ago.

He had so much energy, so much vigor and mischief. He had so much to say, so much to do, so many places to go, so much to tell… but he didn't tell. He couldn't tell.

So we told it for him instead.

This is the tale of Saotome Ranma.

Touched by an Angel
By Andrina

Ranma took us by storm.

It started one morning when Daddy called Kasumi, Akane and I to the living room. He looked a little guilty for a moment, before he turned on us with pleading eyes to tell us about some boy coming to live with us for a while. "Be nice to him," he had all but begged. "Treat him like a guest."

Kasumi had looked concerned at the idea of such a long-staying guest. Guests didn't usually stay that long, so I believed that worried her a little. I didn't really care much, as long as he didn't invade my privacy, but of course it would be a plus if he were good-looking and/or rich, preferably both. But… Akane had violently objected, of course. She was convinced that it was some ploy to marry us off or something like that.

"Well," Daddy had said somewhat sheepishly. "Genma and I had wanted to unite the schools, but the arrangement's off now. He's just coming over to stay a while."

Maybe it was Daddy's expression, the first serious one we had seen in a long time, or just that Akane had a soft spot for our father, but she finally agreed, on the condition that Daddy was to make sure the boy wasn't "some pervert".

So Ranma came, the very next afternoon. He was alone, carrying a large haversack. When Kasumi let him into the house, the very first thing he said when Daddy introduced him to us was "I'm Saotome Ranma. Sorry about this."

He seemed like a normal boy at first. Other than his pigtail and Chinese shirts, he could easily pass off as some average guy on the streets, if not a quite good-looking guy. He was polite and helpful to Kasumi, like all normal boys would be. He was slightly wary of me, as all normal boys would be.

Actually the only strange thing that he did was not to develop some sort of crush on Akane at first sight, like what most guys his age would do. That was a good thing really, because on hindsight it just went to show that Ranma wasn't your everyday guy.

In fact, he and Akane got off to quite a bad start, actually. Our dear paranoid little sister, convinced that every member of the male species had to be some horny sex-deprived maniac, called him a pervert at the first chance. He retaliated, of course, calling her an uncute tomboy. She yelled back that he was a jerk, and he replied that her thighs were as thick as tree trunks.

Adorable, isn't it? Oh, you can just see the sparks flying.

Daddy fussed a lot over him, I remembered. "How was your trip?" "You feeling all right, my boy?" "If your room isn't comfortable, just let us know right away."

I remembered feeling slightly incredulous at the mothering Daddy was doing. It should have served as a warning of some sorts.

Anyway, Daddy enrolled him into the local school that Akane and I went to. Remember Akane's phobia of boys? Well, that could be explained, due to the large crowd of testosterone-filled boys that come rushing to her every morning for a date. Yes, yes, the handiwork of the oh-so-intelligent Kuno, which I'm quite sure you are familiar with. So anyway, on the first day, Kuno challenged Akane after she basically massacred the entire male population (I must add that I earned quite some profits from that fight).

Ranma intervened. Akane wasn't the only one around who practiced the Art. Ranma proved to be surprisingly good. He didn't even wait for Kuno's self-introduction; he just kicked him and off went Kuno.

Which I add is a very stupid thing to do, since Akane is fiercely protective of her pride and whatnot. She told him quite angrily that she could take care of herself. For a moment there, Ranma looked like he wanted to yell back, and say something along the lines of her not being able to handle it, which of course would undoubtedly set Akane off rather badly.

But at the last moment, he stopped. Instead he just sighed in frustration and said, "Damn it, I just wanted to help, all right? Sorry for 'butting in', if that's the thanks I get." Then he had turned away and walked up to class.

Akane was quite stunned, to say the least.

Later, I found out that during the walk home, Akane had mumbled a soft 'thank you' to him. He had said nothing, only grinned a little in response.

From that day onwards, they fell into some sort of truce. He teased, she argued, but at the end of the day she would always forgive him and he would bear no grudge. It was the start of a simple friendship, because under all that teasing, Akane seemed to recognize that he wasn't such a bad guy and accepted him. Ranma, on the other hand, had always been willing.

Of all the lives Ranma touched, I believe Akane's was the one he had the biggest impact on.

I knew Ranma was a good person.

From the very first day that he stepped into the house, you could sense that he was a person with a good heart. I was a bit worried about a guest, I must say, but when I saw Ranma, the worry disappeared. He was a good boy; he helped with the chores and errands whenever I asked him too. He was polite, and although he ate at an unbelievably fast rate, I take it that he was a growing boy.

And it showed too. It had only been not more than a week and a half or so, but Akane, normally so adverse to the idea of males, was already warming up to him. It was nice to see them eventually going out to get ice-cream sundaes; Ranma apparently had quite a fetish for chocolate fudge sundaes. Of course, Akane would buy it and bring it to an isolated part of the park so he could eat it in peace, not wanting to spoil his 'manly' image by eating it in public, or so he said.

They do tease and argue all the time still, but even then, I can see Akane growing as it happens, learning to accept and to tolerate.

Ranma fitted in nicely, I think.

It wasn't just Akane that Ranma had an effect on. Perhaps no one noticed, but Ranma even affected Nabiki in some way. It started with Nabiki planning to use Ranma's Martial Art abilities to help her with the betting booth in school.

Yes, yes, I know all about the booth. I know I seem vacuous half the time, but really, I'm not blind. Everyone in the family knows. No one likes to mention it, that's all. It helps with the household bills after all, what can we say?

But Ranma refused. "I ain't helping you cheat people of their money," he had said flatly. Nabiki had chuckled then, and said something along the lines of him not really having a choice.

"I'm very good at finding things for people to be indebted to," she had told him casually.

Ranma had looked at her for a while with an unidentifiable look on his face, almost as though he was seriously wary. But in the end, he broke out in a smirk instead. "Go ahead," he said.

Nabiki must have been shocked, I supposed.

Finally Ranma told her that he really didn't care at the moment. In fact he went on to make a deal with her. If Nabiki would temporarily suspend all her money ventures, including exhorting, money deals that could well pass off as daylight robbery, and betting booths, at least until he left the house, then Ranma would pay her for every day he stayed.

"How much?" Nabiki had asked, eyeing him suspiciously.

He told her. Her eyes had widened, and she agreed immediately. They even made some sort of contract.

Nabiki never did open her betting booth in school anymore.

Curiously, Nabiki developed a sort of comradeship with Ranma. I suppose it was because he might very well be the first and only person to challenge her into finding some way to exhort him with, and she must have found it very puzzling. Nabiki never did become very chummy with Ranma, but whenever he got into trouble in school, she would silently pull a few strings here and there to help out.

Eventually her generosity extended to Akane as well, as Nabiki gradually became more open. She wasn't so fixated on money anymore. In fact, she seemed to have directed her energy to studying and fending for the ones she cared most about. She was still aloof, but she became kinder, warmer even.

It was the most wonderful thing I had ever seen, this effect on Nabiki. And perhaps the best thing was that it was permanent.

When Ranma came to our school, I thought he was the best thing to happen that year.

That boy drew people to him. He was brave, and it showed. He was sweet, and it was obvious even though he did nothing to show it. He was captivating. And, he was a kind-hearted person. Maybe a bit insensitive at times, and he did have a tendency to stick his foot into his mouth quite often… but Ranma simply drew people in.

And I'm afraid I wasn't immune.

I was Akane's best friend back then. She and I used to go everywhere together, and I liked Akane's kindness, which I guess was what drew me to her in the first place. You see, I came to Nerima looking for a fat old man named Genma for me to exact my revenge upon over a very unfortunate childhood incident. Don't even ask me about it.

Actually, Genma turned out to be Ranma's father, as I found out later, but by then, I didn't have the heart or the energy to chase after him and Ranma anymore.

Anyway, I met Akane on the street a few days after I came to Nerima, and I guessed I was looking particularly down and tired that day. She invited me home, and for that day onwards, we became friends. She got me to give up my grudge on Genma and to do something more meaningful with my time. So I enrolled in Furinkan, and opened up my own okonomiyaki shop as a means of earning income to support myself while I studied in Akane's school.

Despite Akane's moodiness at times, and her short temper, she was one of the kindest persons I know, and she had a soft spot for just about anything and everything that looked like it needed help. I liked that.

Then Ranma came along.

They said there was nothing between them, that they hated each other… but after about three weeks, it was obvious that whatever it was between them, it wasn't 'hate'. Friendship, at the very least. I was a bit jealous, I admit. I did have quite a big crush on him. So I ran around making okonomiyaki for him during lunch. I could cook, Akane couldn't, and somehow that made me… pleased, I guess. I even played on his comments that Akane was a tomboy, so I came to school in ribbons and makeup, hoping to beautify myself.

Ranma told me he liked me better as I was.

It was a mean and childish thing to do, and I was sorry for it after that. I didn't know why I did it. Maybe I was blinded I guess.

After I found out that Ranma was living with Akane and her family, I took every chance I could to go over. The original intention was to spend more time with Ranma, I guess, but on hindsight, somehow I grew closer to Akane as well. The girl was oblivious to my growing feelings; she told me everything about her confusion and anger. And somehow, in the process, I got to know her more and eventually we became much closer.

I supposed I have Ranma to thank for that.

But during the time in Akane's house, I saw how Ranma really touched people. You already know how Akane slowly learnt to grow up after he came about. Maybe you already know how Nabiki, of all people, started to mellow, though not many people guessed it might be because of Ranma.

Even me. I may not have realized it at that time, but ever since I met Ranma, I'd been doing a bit of growing up myself. How to give up what was never mine in the first place, and to ultimately pay attention to what really mattered most to me. How to take pride in who and how I really am.

But what you didn't know was how Ranma touched Kasumi.

Yes, Kasumi, the placid vacant sweet Tendo sister.

Kasumi was always sweet. Even though having a guest in the house meant more work for her (Ranma had a tendency to break stuff and tear his numerous shirts often), she took it in stride. The only thing she asked for in return was for Ranma to be a good and polite person, and to help out if he could, just like everyone else in the house. This, Ranma did easily.

Then there came a day, three and a half weeks after he had come to live with the Tendos, that Ranma began a simple conversation with Kasumi. It was a warm Saturday afternoon, I think, and Akane was out practicing volleyball in preparation for a match the following week. Mr. Tendo was out at a town council meeting, and Nabiki was off for a girls-only shopping trip. Only Kasumi was home, in the kitchen making meat pies.

Ranma had a surprisingly strong attraction to food, so it wasn't long before he appeared. Kasumi had smiled, and offered to let him be her tester once she finished. But having nothing else to do, Ranma hung around all the same, staring at the meat pies.

Finally Kasumi paused and asked, "Would you like to help, Ranma?"

He seemed a bit surprised, and was almost declined before he suddenly changed his mind. "Sure," he had said. "Why not? I might as well learn how to cook something."

He had smiled, but it was a grim smile. It should have warned us, but no one thought much of it at that time. Kasumi seemed a little perturbed, but she let him help anyway. So they started talking. First it was about Akane. Ranma snorted and threw out some insult; Kasumi chided him gently. "You didn't mean that, did you, Ranma?" she had asked absently, carefully molding the pastry.

"Yeah sure I did!" he had answered heatedly. Then abruptly he quieted. "Nah, maybe not," he had said again after a long pause.

Kasumi shook her head, but she smiled anyway.

The conversation was long but light. Eventually the pies were done, and Kasumi was putting the first batch into the oven when Ranma cleaned his hands of flour and meat filling. "I'm gonna catch a nap," he told her with a slight grin. "See ya later."

Kasumi nodded simply, and returned to the task of baking her pies.

"Eh, Kasumi?"

She paused, looking towards the doorway. "Yes, Ranma?"

He seemed a little hesitant, as though he weren't used to doing it, but said it anyway. "Thanks for keeping me company today. I was thinking, maybe you should get out more, ya know? Everyone's out today, there was no need to make the pies anyway. You could have spent some time out to enjoy yourself."

Kasumi looked taken aback, but she smiled sweetly at him. "I'll keep that in mind, Ranma," she replied.

He nodded and left.

When the pies were done, Kasumi tried them herself, since she didn't want to awake Ranma. They were delicious. When her family came home, they found the pies delicious too. Kasumi even brought some over to the neighbors next door.

But it would be a long time before they could eat her pies again, because after that Kasumi only made them when it was a special occasion. She preferred to spend her spare time with a simple trip out to town with her old friends, or a visit to the library, or even just to help out at Dr. Tofu's clinic.

At that time, I thought Ranma was a bastard.

Back then; I had always had a big crush on Akane. It got a bit annoying, watching the stupid prick laugh and argue with Akane. I came to Nerima when I was thirteen, and enrolled in Furinkan subsequently. I have this little problem with directions, you see, and it isn't my fault!

Anyway my Ma and Pa were too busy to keep me from wandering around Japan inadvertently, so they got me to live with an aunt of mine in Nerima for a while, hoping my sense of direction might improve.

In the end, Nerima became more of a home to me. I stayed on for many years. My aunt, a small-sized old woman who liked to sprinkle water on the pavement every morning, taught me to handle directions better, so at least I didn't end up in China or nothing.

It was also in Nerima that I met Tendo Akane.

The first thing you might notice about Tendo Akane was that she had a fantastic smile. When she smiled, her whole face lit up and she was simply beautiful. It helped too that she was pretty much a warm and friendly girl who had a knack for talking to people. All the boys in the school liked her, and all the girls wanted to be her friend. I liked her too… but it was because her popularity at Furinkan that she didn't like boys that much.

But I didn't give up. I continued to try to know her. Then Saotome Ranma came.

All these years I had been trying so hard to get close to her, with limited success, but he came, and within a week, it seemed as though they had known each other forever.

It made me jealous, I admit. Insanely jealous.

I was stupid. I shouldn't have been jealous.

Five weeks after he moved in, Ranma began to change.

He was still friendly, still polite. He still took very single opportunity to tease and insult me, of which I would retaliate fiercely, of course. He still fought Ryoga, still goofed off on his homework. He was still mildly wary of Nabiki and as kind as ever to Kasumi. But he started going up to the roof every night. It wasn't as though he had never gone up to the roof before. He used to visit the place once in a while, but it was only during the fifth week that he started going up every single night.

How did I know? Well, the spot he sat in happened to be exactly over my room.

I don't usually climb up to the roof, but eventually my curiosity was piqued. At first he would stay for an hour or two, and after that, when I left the room I would usually meet him along the hallway and we would exchange a few insults or something. But then he started staying longer and longer, until there came a point when I would get ready to turn in for the night but he would still be up there.

I don't know what ever possessed me, so one night, after Kasumi, Nabiki and Daddy had retired for bed; I went to fetch a short ladder and climbed out the window.

He didn't seem to notice me at first, or if he did he made no sign. That surprised me, because Ranma was very good at sensing another presence. Still, I climbed up and settled down beside him, quite sure that he knew I was there by that time.

"Ranma?" I asked.

He started slightly, as though he hadn't expected me to speak. "Yeah?" he answered. His voice was rough. I blinked in confusion.

"Ranma… is something wrong?"

He shook his head stubbornly. "Hell no," he insisted. "What are you doing up here?" he asked, apparently eager to change the subject. "You're so clumsy; you might just fall off or something."

I scowled. "Jerk," I muttered, but it was out of reflex. "Answer me truthfully, won't you?"

Ranma made no reply. I fell silent, and turned my attention to the night sky instead.

It was a dark night, I remember. There were no stars, and the sky looked somewhat stormy. It would rain sometime in the night, I noted. The wind picked up; I wished I had worn something thicker against the biting cold.

I had no idea what possessed me to do something like that. At that time I was still kind of bicker-ish with Ranma and I wouldn't have usually done it with anyone, much less a male… but that night, something felt wrong.

Ranma looked lonely up on the roof and staring out at the sky, and even though he made me so mad sometimes… I wanted to cheer him up. I really wanted to cheer him up.

So I touched his hand.

He didn't say anything. But he did close his hand around mine.

We sat for a long time on the roof. It was near one in the morning that I left. Ranma was still there. He said he would go to bed soon, but even after I turned in, he was still up there.

We didn't talk about it the next day.

—

A week later, we were at home studying for a test that was coming up soon when Ranma suddenly turned to me. "Let's go for a sundae," he said, grinning mischievously. "Unless you think it's gonna add to your ballooning weight."

I stuck out my tongue at him. "Let's go," I answered.

I thought he would go to the park and wait while I ran down to buy the sundaes. Instead, he went along with me, and he even paid for it. We went off to the park to eat; people would think we were dating if we ate the sundaes together in public. That was something both of us could do without.

The afternoon was windy, and we took a seat on a park bench under one of the larger shadier trees. I was almost finishing the double-chocolate fudge sundae when I looked up at Ranma. I wasn't sure what made me look up, but when I did, I was glad.

Ranma was smiling.

That image of Ranma smiling at nothing in particular, with the wind slightly mussing up his hair and the sun shining down behind him, is something that remains with me all the time, even up to today. It is the Ranma that I like to remember, the image that I inevitably think of at night.

Then, he suddenly turned to me and said, "Thanks a lot." And he smiled.

I didn't know what he had meant at that time, but I remember smiling back anyway.

In the sixth week of Ranma's stay, I was in my room calculating the family's bills for the month when there was a knock on the door. I thought it might be Kasumi or Akane, so I just told the person to come in. But no one entered, or even answered me. When I finally got up to open the door, there was no one there, only a note on the floor.

It was a simple slip of white paper, and on it were the words: "Thank you."

I had thought it was a bit strange, but I left it on my desk and returned to the bills. It was only two days later that it registered to me that Ranma had been the writer.

I remember in the sixth week after Ranma came, I was getting ready to open up Ucchan's after school one day. For some reason, my bag was on the counter, and I decided to finish up the bit of Math we had been assigned that day. So while I set up ingredients for the okonomiyaki and got the grill ready, I took out the Math workbook.

Something fell out.

It was a simple slip of white paper, and on it were the words: "Thank you."

Picking it up, I remembered thinking it must have been a note misplaced by someone. The handwriting was oddly familiar but I didn't think much about it. Instead, I tucked it into the pocket of my apron and got ready for business.

"Getting lost again?"

I turned and glared at the speaker. "Get lost, Ranma," I had snapped. "I can find my way home."

The pigtailed boy grinned and hopped down from the fence. "Jeez, come on, I'll show you the way," he said in a placating tone, all the while smirking.

I remembered wanting to punch the smirk right off his face. But heck, I accepted his offer grudgingly. It would save me a good one hour and I did need to get started on the Math assignment. So I followed him. It wasn't long before I recognized my house. Muttering a quick 'thanks', I hurried towards it.

"Ryoga, wait."

I turned. "What?" I answered.

Ranma looked… well, he looked almost wistful. "You like Akane, don't you?" he asked.

I could feel the heat rising in my face. What was he asking that for! "What's it to you?" I yelled, hoping to change the subject.

Ranma stared at me strangely for a while, before he gave a friendly grin. "Don't make her sad, you idiot," he said in an almost playful tone, but his expression was dead serious. Giving a little wave, he stuck his hands into his pockets and turned, sauntering down the street.

"Ranma!" I remembered yelling. "Where are you going?"

It seemed like such an important thing to ask at that time.

He stopped, but he didn't turn around. "Home," he pronounced carefully, and even then I could sense some sort of quiet pride in his voice. "I'm going home to take a nap."

I watched him go. That was the last time I ever saw Saotome Ranma.

In the sixth week that Ranma came to our house to live, I found a note on the kitchen counter. It was a Friday evening, and I had just come back from the library. The house was oddly quiet; I thought Akane and Ranma were out, and Nabiki had said she would be late that day. Daddy was in his room taking a short nap, I knew, so I decided to start on dinner first before I began reading the few books I had borrowed.

I was just taking out the chopping board when I saw the note.

To Mr. Tendo:

Thank you for letting me stay in your house. There is a letter in my bag for my mother, please pass it to her. Please ask Kasumi to check her library books, and tell Nabiki that I will keep my end of the deal. There is a diary in my bag, please give that to Akane. Thank you for everything.

Yours truly,
Ranma

I remembered having the coldest sensation. I ran up to my room, gripping that note in my hand, to pull out the stack of library books. There, in between two of the thickest books, was a simple slip of white paper.

"Thank you", it read.

There seemed to be a drop in temperature even as I hurried out of my room. Pausing in the hallway, I saw that the door of the guestroom that Ranma slept in was slightly ajar. I was half-hopeful, half-anxious, so without even thinking about it, I went over and pushed the door open. I had no idea what to expect.

To this day, this very day… the sight of Ranma lying motionless with his head in Akane's lap haunts me. I saw my youngest sister look up at me blankly from where she was sitting on the floor, tears dripping down her face, as she tenderly smoothed Ranma's bangs out of his face.

"He's dead, Kasumi," she said softly, and I had the distinct impression that I was drowning.

Saotome Ranma lived with us for a total of six weeks. In his sixth week, he passed away quietly, having lost the battle to a rare genetic condition.

I remember that day. I was on my way downstairs, when he called me. Something in his voice stopped me, and it must have frightened me, because instead of calling back a reply, I made my way back up and entered his room. He told me then; he told me all about the disease that was eating away at him and yet could not be cured, how eventually his muscles might all freeze up and he simply wouldn't be able to breathe anymore.

He told me all this and more in that calm voice of his, and then he told me that he was going soon.

I remember being so stunned and disbelieving and afraid. I remember not being able to reply coherently, but he seemed to know exactly how muddled I was feeling, and instead he shrugged and asked if I could put him into a more comfortable position; the floor was feeling a bit hard.

I dropped to my knees and moved his head onto my lap without a word. It surprised him, because he knew I was afraid of being all touchy-feely with males. But he didn't say a word. He just looked up at me for a long moment, searching, looking, and eventually he must have found what he was looking for, because he smiled and let his eyes close.

"I ain't scared, Akane. Saotoma Ranma ain't ever afraid. You shouldn't be scared either," he had said softly, and I remember his breath wafting up against my fingers slowly.

"Don't go," I said, not thinking. "Don't go, please."

It was when he didn't reply me, when it registered that I couldn't feel his breath against my icy fingers any longer, when I felt wetness dripping down my cheeks, that I finally dared to touch my fingers to his face, and smooth those unruly bangs of his.

He died peacefully in my lap, and it was Kasumi who found us both.

—

He had known that he wouldn't live past seventeen, and there was no way to sustain his life. So he had asked for a change in lifestyle, away from his family, and his father had asked my father to take him in for a while. Daddy agreed, because he had thought it was the least he could do. So Ranma came, and he made an impact on us all.

After his funeral, his mother gave me a small black notebook. The woman was impossibly pale, I remembered, but she told me that she would not grieve any more. "Ranma lives on in us all," she had said strongly, and for a second, her eyes grew unusually bright.

I had agreed, but that didn't stop my tears from falling. Nodoka held me tightly for a while before she left.

The book was Ranma's diary. It was from it that I found out how he had left for a training trip with his father since young, how he had collapsed abruptly when he was fourteen. Doctors detected his condition, and he returned to Japan. How we would have been engaged if he had been healthy, how the engagement was called off. How he wanted to see 'something different', so he moved in with us. How he tried so hard to be a better person in his last six weeks, how he tried to study harder and learn new skills.

It was like looking into Ranma's very soul. He never said much in his diary entries; there were no long pages of rambling and reasoning, just simple sentences in his carefree scrawl. But it seemed to embody the very essence of Ranma itself.

I like it here. It's quite nice. Mr. Tendo is creeping me out a bit. He needs to stop hovering over me. I hate people hovering over me. I hope this doesn't keep up.

Akane's such a sensitive tomboy. Doesn't she know that life is too short to waste on being angry? Stupid, stupid tomboy. Nah, on second thought I shouldn't have said that. She ain't that bad….

Damn it! I have homework. I hate homework. Homework should burn in hell. Bah. …Which stupid moron invented homework anyway?

Nabiki scares me. What's up with the money thing? Creepy. Wonder what she does with all that money?

Whoa, the food here is good. Really good. Really, really good!

Kasumi's really nice. Hell, she's got the patience of Buddha! She needs to go out more. Who wants to be stuck home all day?

Thank goodness I don't have to wear a uniform to Furinkan, since I'm a temporary student and all. The uniforms are ugly, man.

Ukyo's a nice girl. Her okonomiyaki is really good. She looks better when she's being herself. Too many ribbons are just wrong, man.

…I wouldn't mind being a permanent student here. School's good.

Ryouga sucks. Heh, okay maybe he can be really nice if he wants to. But he still sucks, I think. Aw, who am I kidding? He could be a good friend if he weren't trying to kill me half the time.

…Damn, I like ice cream. Wish I'd discovered them sooner.

I feel weaker lately … I don't like it. I fell down the stairs last night. I've never fallen before.

The roof is a nice place. It's a bit lonely, but it's a good place to think.

I wish. I wish I had more time. It's coming. I know it.

I left notes. Feh, I'm turning into a sentimental idiot. But they've been good to me… I thought I oughta thank them, at least. Not that I can ever do that after I'm gone. Might as well do it now.

I'm waiting. I know I am waiting for it. I'm not scared. I'm never scared.

—

And on the last page, there was a message. This one was neater than the rest, and the page was creased slightly, as though it had been fingered once too many times by a distracted young man.

Akane, if you're reading this… thank you for being my friend. I know I tease ya a lot. Sorry, tomboy. But you won't stay too angry at me, right? It would have been better if we had more time to talk, don't you think? I wish we had more time together. Don't go into pervert-mode on me now, I ain't having none of that.

…You're a beautiful person, you know. And I don't mean that in a pervert way. Have a happy life, Akane. Thanks for everything.

Yours,
Ranma.

I cried so hard that day; it seemed as though I wouldn't ever be able to stop.

—

On nights when I cannot sleep, I take out the diary to read it. The book is more torn now, and the cover is peeling, but it is one of my most treasured belongings.

He left me something else too. He gave me one of his red Chinese shirts.

He kept his end of the deal with Nabiki. He made arrangements to get his mother to pass her the money. But Nabiki couldn't. She took one look and pushed it back into the hands of Nodoka. "Keep it," she had said. "I'm not that heartless." It had been meant as a joke… but I saw Nabiki tearing up.

Everyone grieved for Ranma. Everyone, from Kasumi to Hiroshi and Daisuke to me.

Ranma may not have realized it, but he touched a lot of lives, including mine. He was the person who made us laugh, who made us mad, who taught us how to grow. He was the one who had woven his way into our lives so effortlessly with his charm and good heart, so well that we only realized it after he was gone and we were left with the gaping hole.

On nights when I cannot sleep, I like to curl up in my armchair in the living room of the apartment I now live in, wearing the old red Chinese shirt. I take out the old diary and I read it while eating chocolate ice cream.

I may have loved him. I may have not. I think I did, and still do. Not that it matters anymore. But to this day, Ranma remains a very special part of my life.

And when I close my eyes, I can almost see Ranma smiling at nothing in particular, with the wind mussing up his hair and the sun shining down behind him.

It is then I understand how I have truly, seriously, been touched by an angel.

Thank you for reading. Regardless of whether you celebrate Christmas or not, I hope you spend the next few days thinking about those around you and how much they have affected us. Because sometimes… you only miss the things you had when you don't have them anymore.

And for those who care, Kismet will be updated within the next few days, so keep an eye out. Have a Merry Christmas, everyone.

Love,
Andrina
23/12/2005