Those Magic Changes
by hikaranko
Summary: Akane drags Ranma with her on a shopping trip and they both get a wicked whiff of some strange perfume. Turns out, it's not a perfume at all, and it has some pretty potent side effects...
Disclaimer: I do not, nor will I ever own the characters of the Ranma 1/2 series. Sometimes I wish I did, but the truth is that I don't. Credit for the idea of this story goes to Paperdoll, the author of the Harry Potter fanfic "Drawn to You". This story is named after a song from the play "Grease", and the chapters are named after various songs. Credits for all of those go to the appropriate people.
Author's Note: Things are starting to get interesting now. Ranma and Akane have made it to school. What shall become of them now?
Ranma being anti-female? How can he be anti-female when he's half! and it's not really "abuse", it's just... a helluva lot of attention from the opposite sex. XD my theory is, the only reason Ranma's not tied down yet is because he's one of those insecure types. probably something that came out of the way his father raised him (stupid silly ol' Genma). :P
anyways... thanks very much to all who have reviewed! sorry for the long wait, things have been pretty crazy on this side of the fence.
Chapter 3
There's A Fine, Fine Line
There's a fine, fine line
Between a lover and a friend...
There's a fine, fine line
Between reality and pretend...
Breakfast the next morning was a nightmare. It mostly consisted of Soun and Genma teasing their children about spending the night together. Even Kasumi, sweet as she was, didn't make things any better. Ranma and Akane were bombarded with remarks about how "sweet" they were being, and how good a couple they made. Nabiki would put in snide comments of her own once in a while, but not for very long since she left for school before the couple. Ranma couldn't be sure whether or not that was a good thing. Knowing Nabiki, she would probably sell the news to Kuno before classes started in order to incite an early morning riot.
They ate their food as quickly as possible and made a mad dash for Furinkan High. Ranma and Akane were almost certain that life wouldn't be any better when they got to school, but they would at least be away from the family. Because of this, they arrived at the school grounds early, and were surprised to find that Nabiki hadn't sold them out. At least, not yet. Not taking any chances, they went straight to their classroom and seated themselves in their usual places next to each other.
"I don't think I'll last a week's worth of that torture," Ranma grumbled as he took his seat.
Akane nodded. "I know what you mean."
Ranma stretched his legs with a yawn before leaning back in his chair. He folded his arms over his chest and stared blankly at the ceiling. "Think we'll get through today?"
"We'll have to."
Turning to look out the hallway windows, Akane watched as students slowly began to filter into the hallways. She sighed, resting her chin in her hand. Ranma also let out a sigh, rocking himself back and forth on the back legs of his chair. He had never been to school so early. He could hardly believe how bored he was. Ranma suddenly wanted to find himself in a fight with Kuno. Even though Kuno was a total pushover, it would at least give him something to do.
Then the urges kicked in. Ranma felt a slight hollowness in his chest. He felt like he had to run over and kiss Akane right at that moment, or else. He fought to ignore it. Ranma focused on the ceiling, staring at the lights and dried paint.
'Don't look at Akane, don't look at Akane,' he chanted to himself.
Suddenly, he felt her eyes on him. His heart began to beat faster in his chest.
"Ranma...?"
Just then, four students walked through the classroom doors. Akane blinked out of her daze as Ranma dropped his chair back into its normal position. The four students that entered were their friends: Hiroshi, Daisuke, Sayuri, and Yuka. Ranma and Akane looked at their respective friends, all of them exchanging surprised looks.
"Ranma? Akane?"
Both of their faces were slightly pink. "Uh... hi!"
The four friends exchanged shocked, confused looks before they approached. "What're you guys doing here so early?"
"You're never early!" Yuka remarked in surprise.
Akane laughed nervously. "Well, we, uh..."
"Yeah," Sayuri said as she sat down. "I mean... You guys usually make a huge scene out front."
Hiroshi grinned as he and Daisuke took their own seats. "Makes for some great early morning entertainment."
Ranma glared at Hiroshi. "Gee, thanks."
His friend's grin broadened. "Anytime."
More students began to noisily pile into the room, talking amongst themselves. Everyone's attention shifted, but only for a brief moment. Sayuri and Yuka immediately returned to their conversation with Akane while Hiroshi and Daisuke resumed teasing Ranma. The classroom began to erupt with noisy teenage conversation as more students piled in.
Daisuke leaned toward Ranma, dropping his voice so that the others couldn't hear him. "So this early morning thing... Does it have anything to do with Akane?"
Ranma's eyes grew wide and he jumped slightly in his seat. "What?"
"You know... having some alone time together before class starts...?"
His cheeks flushed red. "N-No!"
Hiroshi turned to Daisuke with a grin. "He's hiding something from us!"
"Spill it, Saotome."
Among the last students to enter was Ukyo Kuonji, Ranma's childhood friend and fiancee number three. Upon passing through the doorway, she scanned the room in search of Ranma. She smiled when she spotted him (even though he was at his gloomiest at the time) and immediately walked toward him, flicking some of her long brown hair over her shoulder. She adjusted her uniform, the only girly one that she had, hoping to look especially attractive to her stubborn fiancee.
"Ran-chan!"
Ranma's head snapped around quickly toward Ukyo, his face still slightly red from being teased. "Ucchan!"
Hiroshi and Daisuke exchanged annoyed glances. The martial artist managed to escape from them once again.
"I didn't see you at all yesterday," Ukyo said. "You usually come by in the afternoon for some okonomiyaki... Did something happen?"
"Yeah, well..." Ranma laughed, trying to shake off his nerves. "Uh... It was just kinda busy yesterday, that's all."
Ukyo frowned slightly. The laughter hadn't fooled her. "Are you sure?"
"Uh-huh," Ranma said with a nod, resting his chin in his hands. He gave Ukyo a concerned look. "What about you? Are you okay?"
Ukyo blushed, a faint smile appearing on her face. "Y-Yeah, Ran-chan... I'm fine! Why?"
"You're wearin' a dress today," Ranma said bluntly, pointing at the Furinkan High girl's uniform that Ukyo was wearing. "You're sure you're okay?"
Her face fell ever so slightly. "I'm fine. Really."
Ukyo sighed as she walked toward her seat. As she did so, she happened to see Akane shoot her a mean look.
Hinako-chan-sensei then bounded into the room, a cheerful smile on her face with her books and clipboard in her arms. She giggled as she skipped up to the front of the classroom and placed her books on the teacher's desk. As soon as her arms were free, Hinako spun around to face her students, attempting to put on a stern face.
"Okay, you delinquents!" she called out in a sing-song voice. "Class is about to start, so get to your seats!"
Lunch couldn't possibly have come any sooner. After being bombarded by a series of boring classes taught by plain teachers, Ranma welcomed the break with open arms. As soon as the door slid shutbehind the last teacher as he left the room, Ranma stretched his limbs with a loud yawn and jumped out of his seat.
"It's finally lunch time!" he said excitedly. "Man, I am starved!"
Akane nodded in agreement as she put her notebooks and pens into her desk. She then began to sift through her things in search of the lunch boxes that Kasumi made that morning. Ranma seated himself on top of his desk and began to search his pockets for money.
"Damn, I shoulda brought more money today..."
"Don't worry about it," Akane told him. "Kasumi made us lunches today."
Ranma turned to look at Akane, an excited grin on his face. "Really? What'd she make?"
A confused look passed over Akane's face as she rummaged through her things. She then abandoned her bag and peered into her desk. Her expression slowly dissolved into panic.
"Oh no," she murmured softly.
Ranma tilted his head to one side. "What's wrong?"
"I forgot..." Her voice was barely audible.
"What?"
"We were in such a hurry... I forgot to get our lunches from Kasumi..."
Ranma leaned forward, his eyes wide. "What?"
"I forgot our lunches!" Akane wailed. "What're we gonna do?"
A huge part of him wanted to yell at her for being such a clumsy, thick-waisted idiot. But Akane was already practically in tears, and Ranma couldn't bear to see her in such a state. He hopped down from the top of his desk and knelt on the floor near Akane.
"It's okay!" Ranma assured her. "We'll just have to buy our lunch today. No big deal!"
Akane looked thoughtful. "But I don't think I have enough money right now."
"S'okay. I can pay for yours."
"W-What?"
Ranma smiled slightly. "I'll pay for yours."
Akane was stunned. "R-Really...?"
"Sure!"
"But... you just said that..."
"I don'tgot much, butit'll beenough."
Akane smiled, her cheeks pink. "Ranma..."
"So it's a date, then."
Both Ranma and Akane turned at the voice. They froze in shock when they saw Hiroshi, Daisuke, Sayuri, and Yuka hovering nearby. The two boys had their arms folded over their chests, smirks on their faces, while the girls merely stared. Ranma and Akane blushed.
"I knew something was going on between you two," Daisuke said.
"Wow, Akane! What happened over the weekend?"
"Suddenly you guys are like... a nice couple!"
The look on Akane's face was that of horrified embarrassment. "B-But we... We haven't...!"
Akane was ignored. The friends all turned to each other and spoke amongst themselves as though Ranma and Akane weren't there.
"I guess it was only a matter of time, eh?"
"I'm happy for them, but really. You think they could tell us sooner."
"So how far d'you think they've gone?"
Ranma groaned. He didn't need this. Ranma jumped up, grabbed Akane's arm, and made a break for the school store. He pulled Akane out of that classroom as fast as he possibly could. Hiroshi shouted out in surprise.
"They're escaping!"
"After 'em!"
What happened next was a chase that seemed almost straight out of a movie. Ranma and Akane dashed down the hallways as fast as they could, weaving their way amongst the crowds of students that were standing in the hall. It wasn't long before they could hear Hiroshi and Daisuke's voices calling out their names. Ranma smirked. It was a good thing that he and Akane were a lot faster than them.
The school store was impossibly crowded. Everyone was practically piled on top of one another as they tried to yell out their orders to the only woman who worked there. She did her best to give everyone what they asked for, but there were so many voices to listen to. As Ranma and Akane approached, Ranma cursed under his breath.
"No good," he muttered. "We're gonna have to hide and wait."
They swerved around the crowd of students and hid around the corner, pressing their backs to the wall. Akane shut her eyes and leaned back as she caught her breath. Ranma stayed nearest to the edge, peering out every now and then to see if Hiroshi and Daisuke had caught up yet.
"Looks like we're okay," he murmured.
"Good," Akane breathed.
Ranma sighed with relief and slowly turned back around to face Akane. He was going to tell her to stay quiet, but he hadn't realized that Akane had been trying to peer over his shoulder. Upon turning around, Ranma's nose almost brushed against Akane's. Blushing, he pulled back slightly and was about to apologize to her when he found that his voice had caught in his throat. Their gazes locked and they froze, staring into one another's blushing faces that were only a few inches away.
Suddenly all that either of them could hear was the sound of their own heartbeats. Ranma was painfully aware of the tiny gap between his lips and Akane's. He knew somewhere deep down that he should be fighting the potion off, but the idea just seemed too ridiculous. Why on earth should he fight off the urge to kiss Akane? It suddenly didn't make any sense. Ranma slipped an arm around Akane's waist, pulling her closer, and finally, slowly, closed the gap between them.
"Has anyone seen Ranma and Akane?"
Daisuke's voice pierced through Ranma's senses. A shudder ran up and down his spine and he quickly tore himself away from Akane. They pushed each other away and jumped back so that they were about five feet apart. For a long moment they were silent, still staring at each other's bright red faces. Akane brought one hand up over her mouth and gingerly touched her lips, as though she was testing that they were still hers. Ranma forced himself to look away, to look back down the hallway to see where Hiroshi and Daisuke were.
"Are Ranma and Akane here?"
"Nope, haven't seen 'em."
"Damn... where'd they go?"
Ranma leaned back against the wall and let out a sigh of relief. He glanced at Akane out of the corner of his eye. Akane had found her way to the stairwell and was leaning against the rail, her eyes on the floor. For a while Ranma merely watched her, as though there was nothing more fascinating.
"Ranma and Akane? Yeah, they ran past here a little while ago."
The words snapped Ranma back to reality. He panicked slightly as he heard footfalls coming closer to where he and Akane were hiding. He then ran over to Akane, grabbed her arm, and silently led her down the stairs as fast as he could. He felt like he should say something to her, but he couldn't figure out what to say.
They hurried down the stairs to get to the courtyards on the ground floor and ended up crashing into Ukyo, who was headed for the same place. All three of them tumbled to the floor and laid strewn across the hallway, groaning at their new bruises. Ranma glanced over at Akane as he started to get up.
"Akane, you okay?"
"Uh-huh..."
Ukyo pushed herself into a sitting position and stared at Ranma and Akane in surprise. "What are you two doing, running down the stairs like that?"
They both looked up at Ukyo, slightly disoriented.
"You're lucky you bumped into me and not some frail guy like Gosunkugi. He'd probably break if you hit him too hard."
Ranma quickly crawled over and put a hand over Ukyo's mouth. "Shh!"
For a long moment all three of them were frozen, Ranma straining his ears to hear any noise coming from upstairs. Hiroshi and Daisuke's voices seemed to fade away, but itwas hard to tell since there were so many voices coming from the students crowded around the school store. Deciding that they were safe, Ranma slowly removed his hand from Ukyo's mouth and rose to his feet. He extended one hand toward Akane.
"You okay?"
"I'm fine, Ranma," she told him with a smile as he helped her up. "Thanks."
Ukyo blinked. "What's going on?"
"Hiroshi and Daisuke were chasing us down," Akane replied while dusting herself off. "They won't leave us alone! We ran out of the classroom, but..."
Ranma hung his head sadly. "With those guys on our tail, we won't be able to get our lunches from the store... Man, I'm starving..."
She'd been planning on asking why Hiroshi and Daisuke were chasing them, but when Ranma mentioned his own hunger... Ukyo looked from Akane to Ranma, an almost mischievous smile appearing on her face.
"Well then, you really are lucky you bumped into me! I can cook up some okonomiyaki! Right, Ran-chan? I'm sure you've been craving them since you didn't get any yesterday."
Ranma looked up at Ukyo excitedly. "Really? You'd do that for us?"
"Of course!" she said cheerily. "Anything for you, Ran-chan!"
Akane's right eye involuntarily twitched at the sight of Ukyo's excited smile. She clenched one fist when she noticed that Ukyo's cheeks were slightly pink. She growled deep in her throat as Ukyo grabbed onto one of Ranma's arms and began to lead him away, down the stairs.
"C'mon! We'll sit outside and eat under the trees!" Ukyo's blush deepened as she imagined the romantic setting in the shade of the trees.
"All right!" Ranma cheered. He then turned to Akane with a smile, casually freeing himself from Ukyo's grasp. "Let's go, Akane!"
At this, Ukyo was slightly startled. She blinked out of her dream sequence and looked at Akane. The youngest Tendo smiled and nodded her head, stepping up to join them. Ukyo stared at the warm smiles that they exchanged in surprise. Ranma then looked back at Ukyo and was confused at the expression on her face.
"You... okay, Ucchan?"
Ukyo raised one eyebrow quizzically. "Is something goin' on that I should know about?"
Both Ranma and Akane froze. "Wh-What're you talkin' about?"
"You've been acting kinda... funny. Since this morning. Both of you have."
Akane smiled nervously. "Um... how so?"
"I dunno... you guys have sure been awful nice to each other today."
Ranma and Akane flinched. Akane sweat dropped, doing her best to smile. "You're imagining things, Ukyo! Right, Ranma?"
"She must be!" Ranma laughed.
Ukyo looked thoughtful for a moment and then smiled as she resumed walking down the stairs. "I guess so. Ran-chan and Akane being nice to each other... Hah! That's a good one, Ukyo!"
Suddenly, Ranma felt like he had been stabbed in the heart. Was he really such a terrible person toward Akane? Why hadn't he ever noticed before? Ranma glanced at Akane. She was staring sadly at the floor as she walked. Ranma quickly looked away, guilt overwhelming him.
"C'mon you two," Ukyo urged once she stopped laughing. "If we don't hurry, we might not be able to eat lunch at all."
Doing his best to push the guilt aside, Ranma hurried to catch up with Ukyo. Akane did the same. It seemed like Ukyo was buying their story, though Ranma doubted that this would last for long. The three of them walked outside together and scanned the area for a good place to eat. As soon as they found a spot, Ukyo whipped out her grill and began to cook. The lunch was spent in a strange silence, at which Ukyo couldn't help but wonder at.
The chimes rang melodically, notifying the students that the lunch period was over. The students slowly filtered back into the room and headed back to their seats. They still chattered amongst themselves as they did so, since the teacher had yet to enter the room. Hiroshi and Daisuke had long since given up on chasing after Ranma and Akane.
"They're being so defensive," Yuka murmured. "Do you think maybe they want it to be a secret?"
"Screw secrets!" Hiroshi exclaimed. "I say we have a right to know!"
"Well, they have to come back here," Sayuri said. "We can ask then."
"That's true," Yuka said with a sigh.
"But where are they?"
Just then, the classroom door slid open and Ukyo stepped back into the classroom. She adjusted her giant spatula that was now attached to her back as she entered, then flicked some of her hair back. Hiroshi and Daisuke looked over at her and waved.
"Hey, Ukyo! Have you seen Ra-"
Before they could finish speaking, the couple in question walked in after Ukyo. Hiroshi and Daisuke immediately launched themselves at Ranma and Akane, pushing past Ukyo and knocking her to the floor. They stopped right in front of Ranma and Akane's faces, their eyes frighteningly wide.
"So how was your little date?"
"Where'd you guys go?"
"Ya have fun?"
"What'd you do?"
Ranma and Akane stared back at Hiroshi and Daisuke in shock. They opened and closed their mouths as they tried to figure out what to say, glancing at one another out of the corners of their eyes. Sayuri and Yuka approached the scene carefully, which is probably why they were the first to notice. And, being teenage girls, they were quick to bring it to everyone's attention.
"THEY'RE HOLDING HANDS!" they squealed.
"WHAAAAT?"
At this, the entire classroom was thrown into an uproar. Every single student in the room jumped up and clambered toward where Ranma and Akane were standing shock still. They were shouting so loud that nothing they said was understandable. Sayuri and Yuka were pointing at the couple's interlaced fingers, shrieking their excitement at the top of their lungs. Hiroshi and Daisuke were shoving one another back and forth in an I-told-you-so manner. Ukyo had finally recovered from being shoved to the floor and was also pushing through the sea of people to catch a glimpse.
Ranma and Akane's faces turned beet red. They hadn't the faintest idea as to when or how it had happened. Neither of them had even noticed until Sayuri and Yuka pointed it out. They looked at each other, their eyes wide, not knowing what to do. As soon as the screaming began, they released one another and turned away quickly. Ranma stared up at the ceiling and bit down on his tongue, unable to bear the burning sensation in his cheeks.
'This potion is killing me,' he thought, humiliated.
Several boys immediately grabbed onto Ranma and pulled him slightly away. Somebody slinked one arm around his shoulders and seemed to be congratulating him. Another boy was patting him on the back. Then it seemed like somebody jumped onto his back and was saying something right into his ear. Somebody else (who Ranma assumed was Ukyo) grabbed onto his shirt collar and began to shake him violently. Their voices all mingled together and overwhelmed him.
"Man, Saotome! If I had your luck with girls..."
"Ran-chan, how could you?"
"I knew you were a chick magnet, but wow!"
"Oh, Akane Tendo!"
"Ya gotta tell me how ya do it, Saotome."
"How'd you manage to snag Akane?"
"Way to go, man!"
"I knew you two were actin' funny!"
"Does this mean I can have Shampoo?"
"Share!"
The weight of his classmates and the pushing and shoving in all directions must have done it. Before Ranma was fully aware of what was happening, he realized that he was passing through the doorway once again. His eyes went wide as the wooziness overtook him. He staggered backward until his back (or rather, the back of whoever was on him) pressed against the far wall. Ranma tried to move forward again, his vision blurring as he looked frantically around him for Akane.
"A-Akane...!"
He wasn't sure exactly how loud he had shouted it, but to his muted senses it didn't seem like it had been heard by anyone. The sea of excited screams suddenly dulled, and it was as though Ranma's head had been submerged underwater. He thought maybe he heard Akane's voice, but it was hard to tell. It wasn't long before Ranma's knees bucked and darkness encompassed him once again. He was vaguely aware of his own fall to the linoleum floor.
'Dammit...'
Ranma woke up with a start. He shot straight up into a sitting position, his eyes wide. He looked about him wildly, trying to gain his bearings. He found himself in a very clean, tidy, well lit room. There were several long beds in white sheets lining one side of the room. A white screen separated the room into two; one side with the beds, and the other side with what appeared to be some sort of office. Ranma could sense someone's presence in the office area. He sighed, running a hand through his hair.
'Looks like I'm in the school clinic,' he thought. 'Hard to tell since I hardly ever need to come in here.'
"Finally awake, huh?"
Surprised, Ranma turned around. Akane was sitting on one of the beds next to Ranma, her arms wrapped around her knees as she looked at him. She smiled at him slightly, tucking some of her hair behind her ear. Ranma stared wide-eyed at Akane, partially mesmerized by the way she looked under such bright, white light.
"About time you did. Classes are almost done for today."
Finally snapping out of his daze, Ranma smirked. "'Almost'? Then I'm just gonna stay knocked out in here 'til they are."
Akane gave Ranma a scolding look. "Ranma."
He grinned mischievously. "What?"
She continued to glare at him for a little while longer before finally giving up. Akane smiled. "Honestly. You're so bad."
Ranma laid back down, propping his head up with his arms. "And proud of it."
They were silent for a while, Ranma lying down on the bed with his eyes shut and Akane still sitting on the edge of her bed. Ranma's heart was racing.
'We're... all alone in here...'
Suddenly all he could hear was the pounding of his own heart. He could feel all the blood rush into his cheeks. He wasn't sure, but he thought he could feel Akane's eyes watching him.
"So... we've been found out."
Annoyed with the fact that the sound of Akane's voice seemed so pleasant, Ranma turned onto his side so that Akane couldn't see his face. "Yeah."
"What do we do?"
"Not much we can do. Just wait this stupid potion out."
"But everyone in our class-"
"I don't care."
Another silence. Ranma had done his best to sound as disconnected as possible. It was obvious from the sudden tension in the air that he succeeded.
"Fine."
Akane sounded offended. Then Ranma heard the rustling of the sheets as Akane got off of the bed and stood up. He listened to the sound of her footsteps as she walked to the other side of the clinic. He loved that his martial artist's senses could interpret everything that Akane did. Ranma loved everything she did.
'Wait... I what
Akane's footfalls stopped. "Doctor, we can go back to class now. Ranma's finally awake."
The pigtailed boy shot straight out of the bed.
"HEY!"
Author's Note: This chapter was... challenging to write. Which is why it took so long. But aren't they cute? Aw, they're so adorable. :D That last part took a nice turn. I had been planning on doing something else, but that worked out perfectly.
About the "Ran-chan" and "Ucchan"... I'm allowing Ranma and Ukyo to keep their "pet names" for each other (in Japanese, since in English Ranma doesn't have one for Ukyo. and i use the term "pet names" very lightly) for a reason, so if it bothers you, don't worry about it. And"Hinako-chan-sensei" is how the students call Ms. Hinako Minomiya in Japanese. I like it a lot better than just plain ol' "Ms. Hinako". It's cute and endearing. :P