** I do not own Ranma 1/2. That masterpiece is the property of Rumiko Takahashi. **
** Hey guys. I have read a lot of reviews, but I work a lot of hours so it's hard to get chapters out while also responding. I appreciate the feedback and welcome all your suggestions. I know in my head how this will all end, I always have, but I am not married to it and will change my mind if I feel like it's the right thing for the story. Please keep all your opinions coming in the reviews section or send me a PM if you'd like. I know it won't be everyone's cup of tea (the reviews are divided) but I appreciate you all for sticking with me. This is my first fanfic in 18 years, so any and all feedback is great. Thanks and hope most of you like where this story ends up. Cheers! **
Akane could have waited for me to go to school. Ranma thought to himself as he ran toward the school ground. As he approached the school, he noticed a commotion inside the school gates. There was a crowd of girls huddled and giggling. Ranma raised an eyebrow and jumped up on the school wall to get a better look. His face fell. Of course. He saw Akane and Kaze standing by the tree, surrounded by the group of girls. All the girls were trying to get close to Kaze, flirting and giggling. Ranma rolled his eyes and jumped back down and walked himself into the school, unnoticed.
Ukyo approached him as he sat in his seat in the classroom. "Hey Ran-chan!" Ukyo beamed.
"Hey, Ukyo," Ranma sighed.
"Hey, how are you today?" Ukyo asked.
"The same, I guess," Ranma told her.
"It's going to be okay. Maybe she will come back. Maybe she just needs some time to figure things out herself. I don't know how exactly tennyo work, but I assume they have the same kinds of feelings as us if they feel things like love?" Ukyo reassured him.
Ranma smiled weakly at Ukyo. "Who knows, Ucchan. Thanks for trying, though. I can't shake how this whole ordeal is making me feel," Ranma told her.
"It's only been a couple days, Ranma. Give yourself some time, too," She put her hand on his shoulder. "Hey, what's that commotion outside?" Ukyo removed her hand and walked over to the window. Her eyes appeared to have hearts popping out of them. "Oh. The dream boat is here. Seriously, Ran-chan, does she have more siblings she can send down to Earth? I could use a date, too, y'know?" Ukyo kind of joked, but was also pretty serious. She looked over at Ranma just as he was rolling his eyes. "Don't worry, Ranma. You're still a hunk, too." Ukyo laughed.
"I don't care about that," Ranma insisted.
"Then what's your issue with him?" Ukyo asked.
"Well, all the girls falling all over him is annoying," Ranma admitted.
Ukyo laughed harder. "Ranma, now you know what it has been like watching you with all your fiances and Miyuki."
Ranma frowned. "Whatever. I don't understand why he's still here. If he can be here taking Akane's attention off of everything, then why can't Miyuki come back?" Ranma looked miserable.
"You're really struggling with her leaving, aren't you?" Ukyo looked concerned.
"All I know is either she did something to me that didn't go away when she left, or I actually.. " Ranma trailed off.
"Actually what?" Ukyo asked.
"Nothing, nevermind. It doesn't matter anyway. I've been an idiot. No one celestial is going to want some human man, even if I am a great martial artist. I'm still a dumb teenaged human guy." Ranma furrowed his eyebrows.
"Don't sell yourself short, Ran-chan. You know lots of girls that would kill to be with you," Ukyo smiled at him.
Daisuke and Hiroshi entered the classroom and approached Ranma. Daisuke smacked him on the back, "Ranma! What's with that guy with Akane right now? Did she special order him? It's not even fair how good looking he is. Good thing you have that new chick, huh?" Daisuke laughed. Ukyo shook her head at Daisuke.
Hiroshi fake laughed, pretending to go along with the joke. Guess one date is all I'll ever get with her. Figures.
Ranma gave the guys a fake smile. "Yeah. Sure is." he lied.
Akane entered the classroom with a big smile on her face and took her seat. Ranma watched her. The teacher entered last and told everyone to sit down. Class started, but Ranma couldn't focus on anything that was going on in class.
At the end of class, all the girls in the classroom gathered around Akane, full of questions about the handsome stranger. Ranma watched. Well, I guess I should be grateful some of the heat is off me. Feels weird.
Ranma got up and left the classroom. Ukyo saw him leaving and ran over to catch up with him. "Hey Ranma. Do you want to come with Ryoga and I to go see Akari? I have been telling him for a while now that I would help him and I figured we better go soon before you all head off to Jusenkyo again." Ukyo invited him.
"Yeah, sure," Ranma accepted the invitation. "I need to go home first and tell my mother. You may have to come pick me up so that she believes me. I haven't really earned my trust back, although she may be a little more lenient now that Miyuki is gone."
Ukyo nodded. "No problem! I have to go home and get Ryoga first, too. I will see you at your place soon! Bye, Ran-chan!" Ukyo waved as she left the school.
Ranma sighed and started walking home alone. Akane was far too busy with all the girls interrogating her about Kaze.
Ranma walked in the front door of the Tendo residence. He quietly walked toward the stairs, with the intention of going to put his school bag away, before being stopped by his mother sitting at the table drinking tea with.. "Kaze?" Ranma asked.
Kaze smiled at Ranma. "Hello, Ranma."
"Kaze came to have tea with me before taking Akane out for a date," Nodoka smiled happily.
Ranma raised an eyebrow. His mother is happy about Akane going out on a date with someone other than him? Something didn't seem right. "Did he?" he asked. "Isn't that nice of him."
"Would you like to join us, Ranma?" Kaze invited him.
"No, thank you. I'm going to put my bag away and then Ukyo and Ryoga are coming to get me. We are going to bring Ryoga to see Akari." Ranma explained to his mother.
"Yeah, yeah, do whatever you want, Son." Nodoka told him, her eyes never leaving Kaze.
Ranma rolled his eyes. Man. Get a room, Mom. He went upstairs to drop off his bag.
A few moments later, Akane entered through the door and hurried over to where Nodoka and Kaze were enjoying their tea. Akane beamed. "Hi, Kaze! Hello, Auntie Saotome."
Nodoka smiled at Akane, "Hello Dear."
Kaze also smiled at Akane, "Hello Akane. We are just finishing our tea and then I will be ready to go."
Akane nodded. "Take your time. I will just put my bag away!" Akane headed up the stairs.
Ranma came face to face with Akane at the top of the stairs. "Oh, hi." he said.
Akane raised an eyebrow at him. "Hello."
Ranma's head dropped. "I, uh, hope you enjoy your date."
Akane raised her chin with confidence. "I will. Thank you."
Ranma moved out of her way, as Akane walked past him to her room. Ranma sighed. Well, that was incredibly awkward.
Ranma, Ukyo and Ryoga were walking toward Akari's farm. Ryoga was pretty nervous to face the girl he hadn't seen since before their last trip to China and definitely wasn't looking forward to telling her they were heading there again.
Ukyo was chatting away about her latest okonomiyaki creation while Ranma pretended to listen. Ryoga held Ukyo's hand, who refused to let him go in case he wandered off in the wrong direction. His hand was sweating, but he knew better than to argue too much with Ukyo.
After some time, they arrived at Akari's farm. Ryoga approached the front door and lightly knocked. There was no answer. He looked at his friends and shrugged his shoulders, about to walk away. Ukyo stopped him and pointed at the door, implying heavily that he was to try again. Ryoga nodded and knocked a little louder. They could hear movement from within the home. Someone was coming to the door. Moments later, Akari answered.
"Ryoga!" she exclaimed as she threw her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek. Ryoga was speechless.
"Hey there, Akari," Ranma greeted her. Ukyo smiled and gave Akari a peace sign, "Hello, Akari. I'm Ukyo! Nice to meet you."
Akari smiled at Ranma and Ukyo. "Hello. Thank you for bringing Ryoga to see me. Him and I have some things to discuss. Could you come back a little later to get him, so that we may speak in private?" she asked Ranma and Ukyo.
Ranma and Ukyo smiled and nodded their heads. "No problem, we will be back later," Ukyo assured her. Ranma looked at Akari, "See you later, Akari!"
They walked away from the farm, leaving Ryoga to be pulled into Akari's house.
On their way back, they spotted Akane and Kaze sitting at the park eating ice cream, smiling and laughing. Ranma gave them a disgusted glare. Ukyo raised an eyebrow at him. "I thought you said you weren't jealous," she mused.
Ranma looked over at Ukyo. "Maybe I am just a little bit. I'm jealous that he is here and Miyuki is gone. I hate this uncertainty about if I'll ever see her again, while some male version of her is sitting there making Akane laugh," Ranma frowned.
"Oh. I see. I guess I never really thought about it that way before. I'm sorry you're hurting so much," Ukyo put her hand on his arm.
"I don't even know what to do with myself, Ukyo. I feel so lost right now. She brought me out of a dark place that I felt stuck in. She made me feel alive again. I didn't even get to spend that much time with her before she left. You know I never had a panic attack when she was around? I've had less panic attacks overall and they've been getting better since I've known her. I don't know if I'm giving her too much credit with that, but it's the truth." Ranma sighed and looked up at the sky. "I wish I knew how to contact her or where exactly she was. I know she's up there somewhere."
Ukyo looked at her friend with concern. "You really fell hard, didn't you?" she asked, cocking her head to the side.
"I don't know. Is it fair to say that when it's been less than 2 weeks? I just know that I had a really deep connection and all of a sudden it was just gone. No warning. I've never had a deep connection with someone like that before. I mean, I care about you and Akane, but this was someone no one was forcing me to be with. She wasn't trying to trap me in a marriage. We just connected all on our own," Ranma looked over at Ukyo. "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that. I would be really upset if I lost you, too, Ukyo."
Ukyo nodded. "It's okay, Ranma. I get it. At least I get my childhood best friend back, even if it's not the way I imagined it."
"Anyway, let's get out of here. I really don't want to be around Miyuki's brother and Akane right now. Can we go eat?" Ranma asked.
"There he is. Yes, Ranma. Let's go eat." Ukyo smiled then started leading the way.
The following couple days looked pretty much the same. Kaze was still hanging around, which Ranma found very frustrating. School was filled with girls mesmerized by the tennin, even though they didn't realize that's what he was. His mother was still acting ridiculous when he was around, too. His father noticed, but actually seemed pretty happy that her attention wasn't on him and his antics. Ranma just felt like he was simply existing and going through the daily motions of life. He actually looked forward to the next therapy appointment so he could get some help working through some of what was going on with him.
"Ranma?" Kaze approached him on the back porch, looking over the koi pond.
"What's up, Kaze?" Ranma asked.
"Ranma, I haven't really had a chance to talk to you, yet. My sister cares a great deal about you and would be quite upset with me if I didn't check in with you before I returned." Kaze explained.
"When are you planning on returning?" Ranma asked, hopeful the answer was soon.
"Well, your mother has invited me to your party, so I guess after that." Kaze smiled.
Great. "Okay. What do you want to know?" Ranma asked.
Kaze sat down with Ranma. "I'd like to know if your gloomy demeanor has to do with my sister, for starters."
Ranma looked at Kaze. "Of course it does. She left me so suddenly. Can I ask you something Kaze?" Kaze nodded. "Can she.. like.. enchant me?" Ranma asked.
Kaze raised an eyebrow. "Pardon me?"
Ranma looked away and toward the koi pond. "Well, I've thought about it a lot. She said I was more drawn to her because she's a tennyo and that it would be amplified because she liked me, too- her words. Is there more to it? Because I haven't stopped having any of those feelings since she left. Did she do something else? Are these feelings supposed to linger and then they will go away after a while?" Ranma asked.
Kaze smiled at Ranma. "They won't go away if they are real. She can't make you have these feelings, Ranma. Look at all the girls flirting with me while I'm down here. I'm not making them do that, but they are drawn to me. I can tell them to take a hike or that I would like them to leave me alone, and they would be fine. Maybe a little offended, but fine. Tennin and tennyo are known to be beautiful beings, so I haven't been surprised by the reaction I've received here. When I leave, they will all be okay. Even Akane. They will remember me, but they won't grieve me. Being drawn to someone isn't the same as having real romantic feelings. Those don't just go away." Kaze explained.
Ranma dropped his head and closed his eyes. "Oh. I was kind of hoping you would tell me they would."
Kaze smiled. "Does knowing she still cares help?" he asked.
"Not really," Ranma chuckled as he opened his eyes and looked back at Kaze. "Ah, I'm just acting like an idiot. I need to man up." he said.
Kaze put his hand on Ranma's shoulder. "There is nothing wrong with having feelings, Ranma. Men are allowed to have feelings, too."
Ranma smiled at Kaze. "Thanks, man."
Kaze nodded. "It's my pleasure. If you're important to my sister, then you are important to all tennyo and tennin. Now, if you'll excuse me, your mother has asked me to help with your party preparations." he said.
Ranma rolled his eyes. "You know she just wants to look at you. I have honestly never seen my mother act so ridiculous around a guy before. She's married."
Kaze laughed. "She will also be fine when I leave." He got up and went inside, leaving Ranma to continue his thoughts.
"So, Ranma," Dr. Sato sat down across from his patient, "what has been going on in your life during the last week since I've seen you?"
Ranma took a deep breath. "A lot. Basically, Akane is pretty mad at me for a few reasons. The biggest reason is that I kept a secret from her the last couple years that was pretty big. I feel really bad about it, but it wasn't my secret to tell. Anyway, it's been hard not having her to talk to these days. We used to be a lot closer." Ranma explained.
Dr. Sato nodded. "Anything else? What about the other girl?"
Ranma looked away. "How do I put this.. I guess she and Akane got into it a little bit a few days ago. Miyuki felt really badly about how Akane was feeling about everything, blamed herself and then left."
Dr. Sato raised an eyebrow, "Left? Where did she go?"
Ranma sighed. "She went home. Far away. I can't even contact her."
Dr. Sato nodded. "I see. How are you feeling about that?" he asked.
"Not great, to be honest. I've been having a really hard time trying to figure it out. I really miss her." he told the doctor.
"Have you experienced any more panic attacks?" Dr. Sato asked.
Ranma looked back up at the doctor. "I don't think so. The anxiety is feeling worse since Miyuki left, but I haven't actually had any of those attacks again, so far," he explained.
Dr. Sato wrote in his notes. "No more side effects? Are you still feeling tired? Still no suicidal thoughts?"
Ranma shook his head. "I am still a bit tired, but it's getting better. No suicidal thoughts."
Dr. Sato wrote more in his notepad. "Have you had anyone else to talk to about what's going on?"
Ranma nodded. "Yeah, I've told a couple friends and my mother what's going on. They have been trying to be supportive, but there's not much anyone can say to make me feel better right now. Also, Miyuki's brother showed up, and that hasn't helped much."
Dr. Sato raised an eyebrow. "Her brother?"
"Yeah, he looks just like her, only he's a guy, obviously. He reminds me of her every time I see him, which really hurts, to be honest. He's been hanging out with Akane a lot, too." he told the doctor.
"Does it bother you that he's spending time with Akane?" Dr. Sato asked.
"A little. She is supposed to be dating other people right now, but it doesn't seem like he's going to be sticking around for all that long." Ranma explained.
"I see. Why do you think he's not going to be around very long?" Dr. Sato asked.
"Oh, he told me. He isn't from around here. He came to take care of some things for his sister." Ranma elaborated.
"You seem pretty affected by her departure. Can you tell me more about that?" Dr. Sato asked.
"Well, we had this deep connection, I thought. She didn't even stick around to try and figure out how to make it work, she just left. Akane was upset, I get it. Was that really enough to leave me with no contact? I guess I just don't understand why she left me." Ranma took a deep breath.
"That does sound very difficult. Sounds like you didn't get any closure to this relationship and have been left to your own devices to figure out how to handle it. That can be very hard. You are grieving the loss of this relationship right now. A lot of these upsetting feelings are normal. Is there a reason you aren't able to contact her?" Dr. Sato asked.
"She.. can't be reached. No one, except maybe her brother, can reach her right now. It's complicated." Ranma explained.
Dr. Sato nodded. "Your mother mentioned you were going to be going back to Jusenkyo. She wanted to make sure we talked about it, since that is where a lot of the anxiety began and it could be very triggering to go back. How are you feeling about that?" he asked.
Ranma sighed. "I'm not actually sure. I am excited to deal with our curses. We have a much better chance of dealing with them this time since the threats don't seem to be around for the moment. Miyuki was supposed to come with us.." Ranma looked at the doctor and realized the curses hadn't yet been discussed.
Dr. Sato looked at him, confused. "Curses?"
Ranma took a deep breath. "Myself and a few others fell into the cursed springs of Jusenkyo. Each spring has a tragic story of a person or creature who drowned there. If someone falls in then they are cursed to transform into whatever drowned there when they are splashed with cold water and then they change back with warm water."
Dr. Sato's eyes widened. "What do you change into?" he asked.
"I fell into the Spring of the Drowned Girl. I transform into a girl version of myself whenever someone splashes me with cold water.," Ranma explained. "The idea of going back to Jusenkyo is that the guys can jump into the Spring of Drowned Man and the girls.. Well, girl, can jump into the Spring of Drowned Girl to counteract the curses. Last time we went, the springs were destroyed. They have apparently been restored so we are heading back to find our cures." Ranma explained.
Dr. Sato nodded. "Well, that is a lot to absorb, Ranma. You do sound like you are feeling a bit stronger mentally. I would like to see you right away when you return. Please let my office know when you are back."