Chapter 7: Accomplished
Akane cleared her throat, almost completely done with her story.
"After that, the Phoenix people cared for me until I healed, as a way of saying thank you for setting them free from Saffron, I guess. They helped me fix my body by helping me find the source of the Drowned Akane spring so I could even out my body. I then gathered the water of the spring I had created when you fell inside it, to bring it back to cure you. Once I was better, we cleaned up the place, and the Phoenix people rejoined the tribes surrounding Jusendo, as normal human beings. I found Ryouga searching for me, and I asked him not to tell you he had found me until I was able to come back with your cure.
"We visited your cabin, and I had him send you the bag of money you had earned, figured you could use it. Then, I made my way back and spent a week at my house, telling your family and mine what had happened. They told they hadn't seen you since you had left for China the second time, but when you walked inside Dr. Tofu's clinic, he took a moment to call me, and tell me you were there. I took the cure and ran there, and the rest…well, you know that."
Ranma stared at Akane as she finally finished telling him what had occurred after he had disappeared from China, but he did not speak. So many questions clouded his mind, and images of the pain she had gone through hit him like a bucket of ice water. The time had presented itself; the time to fight the fight, and she had made it out. She had made it out, to come back to him. She knew he would be waiting for her, and the hope of his wait had given her the last push she needed to end Saffron's life in a way he could have never pull off himself.
Akane felt more uncomfortable by the second, at his lack of reaction. He just stared and stared, not moving a muscle other than to blink. He looked at her up and down, following every curve of her body, picturing every cut, scrape, bruise, and broken bone she had described. The images of her, wielding magic as if it was second nature to her, and combining it with techniques that they had practiced together made him feel…
Proud?
Jealous?
Afraid of her?
He was not certain himself. He could not really place the overriding emotion he felt right now. This woman in front of him, who had just recently lost a battle to a silly fever, had killed a demigod with her hands. This woman, who had a difficult time using a knife and a cutting board to chop vegetables, had used the Gekkaja and the Kinjakan as if she were using a pair of chopsticks within her skilled hands. This woman had flattened out a mountain and deprived a man of his soul. All of that strength and determination had come from the simple thought of coming back home.
"Coming home, to me."
After all these thoughts put his mind at ease, he leaned closer to her and grabbed her hands in his. She lifted them to his lips and kissed one hand, and then other. He then pulled her hands to his chest, and stared at her with a small smile.
"I just…have one question."
"What is it?"
"Did you really have to kiss the guy?"
Akane graced him with her frown, head tilt and repetitive blinking. She then shook head and a light chuckle escaped her mouth. "From everything I just said, that is the only thing you can ask about?"
Ranma shrugged, joining in the laughter. "Well! What did you expect? That's a good way to go, if you ask me. If, for whatever reason, we have to end the other's lives, let's do it that way, with a kiss, uh?"
Akane pushed him away and stood up, not wanting to partake in the silly conversation, but doing so anyway.
"Do you really want me to kiss you before I kill you? Did you not just hear what happened to the last guy I kissed in battle?"
"Worth taking the chance."
"You're crazy…"
"…About you."
Akane stopped walking away from him and turned around. He stood there, hands on his sides, not flinching, not blushing, not backing way, or taking back what he had just said. He just stared. He took small steps towards her as he opened his arms and pressed her against his chest. He rested his arms around her shoulders, neck and head. She stood there as well, a little shocked at first, but then lifted her arms and placed them around his waist.
"Promise me, Akane."
"What?"
"Promise me, whatever happens, you won't allow yourself to go through something like that, again."
"Ranma, I can't promise something like that."
"Yes, you can."
"Are you asking me not to fight, anymore?"
"No. I'm asking you to leave it to me."
"And, what if you aren't there?"
"I will be there."
"Oh, Ranma. You know that's a promise you most certainly cannot keep," she thought to herself before promising him something she knew she could also not keep herself.
"I would tell you I'm proud of you, but that goes without saying."
"I would tell you to not make me mad, but that goes without saying, too."
He kissed the top of her head, staring at the clock in front of him. "I better go, 'Kane. We have to get up early tomorrow."
Akane sighed, holding him tighter one last time before he broke apart the hug. "I'll come pick you up."
"Ranma, that's silly," Akane argued, knowing that he would have to come to her house and then walk right by his house again on the way to school. "We should just meet up there."
"Nah! It'll bring back good memories, don't you think?"
Akane nodded, following him to the door. He checked that his cell phone was with him, and opened the front door. She placed a kiss on his cheek as he exited, and closed the door behind him. She turned around and rested her back on the front door, hearing him close the main gate as he left.
Now that he was gone, there was nothing else to occupy her mind, and the results of her initial blood tests came back.
"I'm sorry, Ranma, but you can't know this just, yet," she thought as she placed a hand on her belly, feeling another cramp coming to her. She ran to her room and went straight to bed, hoping the medicine would help her make it through the week.
xxxXXXxxx
The Tendo residence was filled with delicious smells of home-made cooking, laughter, music, and a sense of celebration, above all. There was a full house with Kasumi, Nabiki, Akane, Ranma, Soun, Genma, Nodoka, Ono, Ichiro, and Kazue, who had all gathered to celebrate many recent milestones in the family, the end of the year, and the beginning of the next.
The first three days of the week, Akane and Ranma had crammed every night, and had been tested for 12 different subject matters, by sitting for four tests per day. Ranma had felt the best part of the day had been when he had arrived every day to Furinkan High, holding Akane's hand as they walked by next to Satoshi Nakajima. The handful of suitors that either one of them had accrued in the course of their year attending the accelerated school had their hopes swiftly crushed when they realized that the two students were not just dating, but betrothed.
Their study sessions would be so long, that he had spent the night at the Tendo home on Monday and Tuesday. Akane had not been happy about this, as he had seen her struggling with her symptoms, even though he had not said a word about them.
On Thursday, Akane and Ranma opened the dojo to carry on the tryouts, and were happy to see that their original list of potential students remained intact. After a full day of judging battles, the five students that would represent the School of Anything Goes Martial Arts had been chosen. Ranma and Akane congratulated their team, which consisted of three youngsters and two adults. The day after the tryouts, they have met with them to explain how the arrangements and practice would take place. They informed the students of the more finer details of the tournament, and asked them to show up at the Dojo at 7 a.m. on Monday, to begin training. The team was excited to train with their Master, and ecstatic that they would have the chance to compete against other students in the region.
After a long discussion with their students, Akane and Ranma wrapped up the meeting and headed to Furinkan High to learn the decision on their tests. Both of them had been happy to see that they had aced their tests, and they would be receiving their high school diploma via mail, in six to eight weeks. The next step in their road to college would be to pass the entrance exams in May, and continue sending applications anywhere they could.
Kasumi and the twins had recovered from their illness, and Kasumi had found a full-time job at Nerima Hospital. She still assisted doctor Tofu every now and then, but knowing that their children would soon be needing more financial support, they decided to take advantage of their young ages to save up enough funds to allow Kasumi to work part-time when they attended elementary school.
Nabiki had announced that her application for graduation had been accepted, and that if everything went well, by the end of May she would be receiving her two degrees. Offers from major financial institutions had already started pouring in, and she had shown interest in a handful of them, particularly one that required her to move to the United States.
Ranma had received another anonymous letter, congratulating him for passing his tests, and again warning him to keep his eyes opened at the tournament. He was beginning to suspect Nabiki had some involvement with these letters, cunning as she was, but had decided that with the tournament being so close, he would soon find out who had been spying on him all along. He had also organized a secret camping trip that he and Akane would go on after the tournament, where he would finally pop the question. His parents had been thrilled to know that their boy was all grown-up, and ready for such a commitment, while Soun had cried his eyes out, sad to see his only daughter left move on with her life.
While the party was in full motion, Soun and Genma sung slurred songs as they played shogi, cheating the other any time they could. Nodoka, Kasumi and Nabiki talked about the latest gossip and took turns watching over the twins until Nodoka shared her pearls of motherhood wisdom with Kasumi. Nabiki, knowing she had nothing to contribute to that conversation, opted to discuss financial planning ideas with Ono.
Ranma and Akane had, for the most part, spent their time watching TV and escaping behind the dojo to enjoy some quiet time, every now and then. Akane had eventually excused herself, stating the sake was getting to her, as she went up the stairs. She had spent half an hour locked inside, making Ranma come up a couple of times, asking her if everything was alright.
Seeing his girlfriend was probably out for the count, he walked downstairs and joined his dad and surrogate uncle on their game play.
After reaching an hour of being stuck in the bathroom, Akane walked out of it after throwing up her insides for the third time since the party had started. She figured the sake they had all been drinking, except the twins, was not helping with her symptoms. Very little was left inside her stomach to regurgitate, to the point that she was throwing up blood more than anything else.
"My throat must be irritated by now."
She determined the party was almost over for her, as she headed to her room to retouch her makeup so that her family would not notice that she was not her healthy, normal ol' self. She sat at her desk, staring at her vanity mirror, realizing how unhealthy she looked. Her eyes had begun developing dark circles under them, mostly thanks to the nights of cramming for her tests. Her eyes were red and puffy, but she blamed that on the strain her eyes had gotten from all the coughing, sneezing, vomiting, and all the computer-staring she had done while revising the dojo's business plan.
She also felt exhausted, more than she had in a while, but she was glad tomorrow she would get a chance to sleep, all day if she so wished to. Next week all they had to do was train the martial arts students they would take with them to the tournament, to which they would depart at the end of this incoming week.
"Five more days, Akane. Five more days and you can tell Ranma you feel like shit."
Akane knew that Ranma was going to be pissed off out of his wits. Ranma hated dishonesty, especially when it came to not knowing if something was bothering her. She would deal with the consequences of her actions later, which she knew would include sitting in a chair while Ranma paced back and forth in front of her, waving his arms in the air, and raising his voice as he told her how irresponsible she had been, and that he could not believe she would lie to him like that.
"It's all for the best."
Akane's phone rung to announce she had received a text message. She flipped open the phone and saw Ranma was looking for her.
"Meet me on the roof."
Akane smiled. Even though she was not thrilled about having a permanent GPS marker on her for Ranma to find her wherever she went, she was growing fond of his random text messages he would send to her. Last night, for instance, he had sent her a less-than symbol, followed by the number 3. She had wondered if he was trying to ask her help with a math problem, but when she asked what it was, Ranma had told her it was supposed to be a sideways heart.
"You know Akane, for being so smart, you don't have a lot of imagination," he had told her before admitting he had been looking up what was called text-speak and was learning the codes.
She closed the phone and opened the window in front of her. She went outside and climbed to the roof. Ranma was sitting in the middle of the roof, watching her walk towards him.
"What are you up to," she asked him.
"It was getting kinda loud down there. Your dad and mine have been drinking too much sake."
"We've been drinking, too."
"Not like them! They're drinking it like it was water in the middle of the desert."
Akane nodded, knowing how loud and annoying their parents could get when intoxicated.
"Speaking of water, how is the nature-technique manipulation going?"
Ranma had asked Akane to allow him time to practice the techniques alone, arguing that her showing-off was distracting to him. She had readily complied, knowing that it was just his hurt ego talking.
"Better! I can call on them as easily as you do, now. I'm working on switching back and forth from them without having to take a break in between."
"I'm glad to know my story inspired you, Grasshopper."
Ranma faked a laugh. "You're so funny."
"What did you bring me up here for, anyway?"
Ranma's fake anger face disappeared. "Oh, no reason. Thought you might want to spend some quality time with your boyfriend."
"Quality time? Doing what?"
"I've got some ideas in mind."
"Do you?"
"Yeah," he said as he pulled her down on him and began making out on the roof.
Ranma thought about how busy, again, the upcoming week was going to be for the both of them. He was beginning to get nervous about asking Akane to marry him after the tournament. He was not backing down, but the thought about getting down on one knee and asking her to spend the rest of her life with him had made him weak in the knees a few times during the day.
"But it'd be worth it if I can do this whenever I want," he joked inside, referring to the current session on the roof.
They continued for a few more minutes until Akane pulled herself off him, remaining seated on his stomach. "As much as I'm enjoying this quality time with you, I'm getting tired. Mind if I go to bed?"
Ranma nodded, sad that she had to leave, but he had promised doctor Tofu he would allow her to rest.
"I'll be at home all day tomorrow. Call me if you miss me, K?"
Akane nodded, leaning over and kissing him again, but stopped halfway during the kiss when she felt something stir inside of her. She leaned back and looked around her, wondering where the threat she felt was coming from.
Ranma stared at her in confusion, pushed his body up and looked around himself. "Everything OK, Akane?"
"Yeah. I better go."
Akane lifted herself from him, turned around and headed back to her window. When she neared the edge of the roof, she felt her body paralyze before she lost control over it and began falling down from the roof.
"Akane!" Ranma yelled as he scrambled to his feet and ran to her. He reached the edge of the roof and dove down, catching her halfway down. He surrounded her body with his, turned around on his back, and called on the wind technique to cushion their fall. His body levitated just inches from the ground before he allowed it free-fall on the grass, Akane laying on him.
The party that had been happening around them had suddenly stopped when they saw Akane plummet, and Ranma catching her at the last minute.
"Ranma! Akane! Are you alright?" Kasumi asked, kneeling beside them to check on her sister and future brother-in-law.
Ranma did not respond to Kasumi as he opened his eyes. He carefully twisted his body to his right, laying Akane on the ground next to him. He shook her a little, calling her name and asking if she had been injured in their fall.
Akane opened her eyes, holding on to her head with her hands. "I'm OK. Thanks, Ranma."
Ranma, not looking convinced at all, stood up and helped her stand up as well. The family, seeing Akane was alright, decided to lighten up the mood with some humor.
"Good catch, boy! It seems Akane had just a little bit too much to drink," Genma said.
"I think Uncle Genma is right, Akane. You should go to bed," Kasumi encouraged the girl.
"I think you're right," Akane said as she began walking back inside the house. "Good night, everyone."
Akane left to her room surrounded by the chants of 'good nights,' and 'hope you feel better's.' Ranma waited until Akane had gone into her room before facing Tofu. "I want another test done on her. Tomorrow."
"Ranma, don't you think that's Akane's call to make?"
"No. If you don't give her that test, I'll find some other doctor who will."
The rest of the group felt uncomfortable with the conversation, and decided to end the party for the night.
"Genma, why don't we go back home, uh?" Nodoka urged to her husband.
"Good idea, dear. Let's go," he said as he walked up to his wife and waved at Ranma to join them. When Ranma did not move and still stared at Tofu, Genma turned to Soun and hugged his friend. "It was a great party, Tendo. Great way to end the year, amongst friends and family."
"Quite correct you are, Saotome," Soun said, returning his friend's embrace.
The two men and Nodoka walked to the entryway, saying their goodbyes to each other as they waited for Ranma to join them in their departure. "Hurry up, Ranma! We've bothered the Tendo's too long, already!"
Nabiki waved goodbye to everyone as she made her way up to her room, warning everyone present to not waking her up tomorrow unless the house was on fire. Kasumi remained in the backyard with her husband and Ranma, as the argument between the two men, continued.
"I think you're over exaggerating a little bit of sake in her system, Ranma."
Ranma, by now, had walked to the doctor and stood face-to-face with him. "Am I the only one who is worried something's bad is happening to her?"
Kasumi decided to interject, knowing Ranma's short temper with matters that involved Akane would soon to show its ugly head.
"Ranma, Akane never drinks. She overdid it tonight, that's all."
"Kasumi, you're her sister. Aren't you worried about her? Akane is clumsy, yeah, but she didn't even trip up there. She just, fell."
"Ranma, have you ever been drunk? You've seen your dad drunk, right? Even the best martial artists aren't immune to the effects of alcohol. If Akane is feeling sick tomorrow, which she probably will seeing how much you all drank, I will make her go visit Ono, OK?"
Ranma, feeling better that he had somehow gotten his way, nodded. "Fine. But if the Doc doesn't clear her tomorrow, she won't be coming with me to the tournament."
Kasumi agreed, eyeing her husband to make everything possible to not give Ranma a reason to stop her sister from attending the ART. Everyone knew how hard both he and Akane had been training, and it was unfair for her little sister not to take part in the reason she had been killing herself the last few months. Especially, when she was certain that Ranma was just being his overprotective self, reading more into what was really happening around him.
Feeling he had nothing else to add to the conversation, he nodded to Kasumi and the doctor before joining his family at the entryway. "Let's go, Pops."
Ranma waved goodbye to Soun and followed his dad and mom out the Tendo home. Soon after, Kasumi and Ono also left the house and headed straight to their own home with a pair of sleeping twin babies in hand.
xxxXXXxxx
Akane walked to Tofu's clinic after receiving over fifty text messages from Ranma, asking her when she was planning on visiting the doctor. After turning off the cell phone, she had walked downstairs to answer the home phone. Ranma had been at the end of the other line, and was fuming that she was not answering her cell phone. She had told him to leave her alone and hung up, promptly unplugging the phone line from the wall jack for the rest of the day.
After her fever had returned, she bundled up and decided to visit the doctor anyway. She had to look better tomorrow so that Ranma would not leave her watching from the sidelines during their training and during the tournament. She arrived at the clinic and walked in, knowing the doctor was expecting her. What she did not expect was to see Nodoka sitting inside the office, apparently waiting for her to arrive.
"Hello, Akane. Hangover any better?"
Akane shrugged, uncomfortably taking a seat next to her across from Ono's chair. The last thing she needed today was her boyfriend's mom making more suggestive comments and telling her she needed to remain untouched until her wedding day. Akane sat and stared at the doctor and Nodoka, waiting for the woman to take her leave. When neither of them moved, Akane realized Nodoka was there to stay.
"Akane, I see you aren't feeling any better than last night."
"No. I swear I will never drink, again."
Nodoka laughed at her comment. "That's what Genma says every time he drinks. Next time there's a party, he is the first one opening the bottles of sake for everyone."
Akane shrugged, not certain what kind of comment to make before focusing on Ono.
"What can I take? I feel really miserable."
The doctor opened his drawer and gave Akane a handful of pills. "Take this for the headache you probably have. Stay inside today, and drink a lot of water. The sake will flush out of your system by tomorrow."
The doctor then proceed to hand Akane the same forms she had filled out before when he had first drawn blood from her, and she proceeded to fill them up as Tofu prepared for another round of sampling her blood. "Did Ranma ask you to test me again?"
"Sure did."
Akane sighed, reaching the end of her patience with his attitude. For a minute, she forgot that Nodoka was sitting next to her, and opened her mouth wide enough to place her foot inside of it.
"Does Ranma suspect what I have? Frankly, I'm getting tired of his bullshit."
The moment her words left her mouth, she wished she could take them back. Her weary body was getting the best of her, and her mouth had lost its natural filter she carried with her all the time.
"What do you have, Akane?" Nodoka asked.
When Akane did not respond, Nodoka glared at Tofu, her eyes demanding an answer. When Tofu shrugged and pointed back at Akane, Nodoka's calm demeanor disappeared.
"Akane Tendo! What kind of games are you playing with my son?"
Akane, feeling her anger amplified by her ailed health, decided that enough was enough. It was tiring enough to have Ranma yapping around her about her health all the time, but to have Nodoka do it, too? What gave them the right to puppeteer her life to their liking? She had had enough.
"I don't know, the same ones you play, too?"
Nodoka, not expecting to be on the receiving end of Akane's wrath, gasped as she took her hand to her chest. "Akane, watch your mouth. You may be dating my son, but that doesn't give you the right to talk to me like this!"
"I could say the same to you. What are you doing here, anyway? Did Ranma send you? Or did you just take it upon yourself to find some dirt on me that you can rub all over his face?"
Nodoka stood up, towering over Akane who had no intention on standing up from her chair. The older woman pointed her finger at her, marking every word she said.
"Now, you listen here, little girl. If you're hiding something important from him, then you're not good enough to be his wife. For some reason, my son thinks you can do no wrong, but clearly he doesn't know you very well. If you have lost your interest in him, why don't you just tell him and let him move on?"
"Ladies, this is just a misunderstanding," Tofu said, trying to stop the argument developing in front of him.
"Ono, stay out of it. It's been a while since I've been wanting to talk to her about how she treats my poor boy. I can't let him waste his time with a whore."
Akane stood up, hearing the same argument from her again, as before. "A whore? Is that what your mom called you when you dated uncle Genma?"
"How DARE you? I married Genma a pure woman, which is more than what I can say about you."
Akane held her head; Nodoka's screaming was contributing to her worsening headache. She turned around, grabbed the consent papers, and tore them apart. She threw them in the trash before turning around and facing Tofu.
"I'm sorry you had to see this, and for wasting your time, but I'm not getting any more tests done. It is what it is, and if anyone has a problem with it, they can just go home and cry about it."
She turned around, heading towards the door before stopping at the entrance, asking the doctor one last question before she left.
"This thing…is it going to get worse?"
"I can't tell without further testing. But I don't recommend you attending that competition, at all."
Akane dug her fingers in the wall. She knew Tofu was going to take Nodoka's side. Why did not anyone understand how important this was to her? To them? If the dojo was able to be certified, her father would be able to have something to live off the rest of his life. Why did everyone think that it was just about her and Ranma's engagement duty?
"I appreciate your medical opinion, Ono, but Ranma and I have worked really hard to get this certification. He needs me and I will not let him down."
"Very well."
Nodoka walked to stand in between the doctor and Akane, waving her hands in the air. "Very well? That's it? You must be kidding!" she said, urging Tofu to support her, and shed some light on Akane's hidden illness.
"I guess Ranma takes his paranoia from you, uh?" Akane mumbled.
Nodoka had had enough, as well. She walked up to Akane and pulled her to face her by grabbing her arm. "You know Ranma would always choose you over anything. He would understand if you can't participate," she began.
"You're everything to my son; think about that the next time you want to do something reckless," Nodoka finished her silent threat before walking out of the clinic, feeling she had accomplished her mission of showing Akane how wrong she was. Akane waited until after Nodoka had slammed the door before heading out herself, not bothering to say goodbye to the doctor.
Once she arrived home, she found it to be empty, once again. She walked to the kitchen and grabbed a bottle to take the pills the doctor had given her. She walked to the living room and lay on the couch. She closed her eyes and relaxed, relishing the peace and quiet surrounding her.
"Konnichiwa!"
"Spoke too soon."
Kasumi walked inside the home, locking the door behind her. She saw Akane lying on the couch, and greeted her again. "Anyone home?"
"No. Just me."
"Oh, even better."
"Great," thought Akane. "First Ranma, then Tofu and Nodoka, and now Kasumi is gonna yell at me."
"Ono said you weren't feeling well. I brought some tea to help with the hangover. Want to give it a try?"
Akane nodded, prompting Kasumi to go to the kitchen and prepare the tea. When she returned, she had two cups in her hands. She gave one to Akane and she kept one herself. When Akane finally got up from her position, she saw that Kasumi was holding a folder in her hands.
Akane rolled her eyes as Kasumi took another sip of the tea, and dropped the folder on the table between them. "Do you want to explain to me what the meaning of this is?"
Akane did not have to open the folder to know it was her medical record. Kasumi had found out while filing away the doctor's work.
"It's a folder that is meant to be confidential between the doctor and the patient."
Kasumi, not at all fazed by the implication of her response, continued to talk.
"How long do you plan on hiding this from Ranma?"
Akane growled. Why was everyone asking the same question? She and Ranma were not married yet; she had no obligation to share everything with him. Akane felt like a portal to the past had been opened, and she was back to being a teenager, having silly arguments with her family about her choices and it affected their pact.
"As long as I can," Akane finally answered.
"You know he's going to find out, eventually. One way or the other."
Akane stared at her sister, wondering if she would dare to tell Ranma the truth. When Kasumi did not show any signs of an ulterior motive, she spoke again. "I will tell him after the tournament, I promise"
Kasumi shook her head. Did her sister really think Ranma would feel better about the whole thing if he found out about it after everything was said and done? Ranma being Ranma, she was surprised it had taken him this long to think Akane had been hiding something from him all along.
"He may notice before that, you know. He will be upset for not telling him."
"I've been able to hide it this long. I can hide it a little longer."
Akane left the unfinished tea on the table, exiting the room without another word. She had enough conversations with people today, and while she hated being rude to Kasumi, she did not want to go off on her as she had on Nodoka. She locked herself in her room for the rest of the day, and Ranma did not attempt to sneak into her room that night.
xxxXXXxxx
The train station of Nerima had been the meeting point for the students and owners of the Tendo dojo. That morning, Ranma and Akane had taken turns polishing up the students' forms and katas, knowing it was their last chance to do so before the tournament. After their last day of training ended, the students received their train tickets, and were told to meet their sensei at 5:30 in the afternoon at the entrance of the station. Akane had feared that any of the students would succumb to anxiety and not show up, but was glad to see all of them had arrived on time.
Ranma handed them their confirmation of the hotel room they would be staying in, which was the same hotel where the tournament would take place. Akane had stocked up on medicinal herbs and first aid kits, as she had promised the parents of the younger students she would watch over their youngsters while they were away. The rest of the Tendo family, supporters of the dojo, and relatives of the students attending, would meet them tomorrow at the inauguration ceremony, and planned to remain there throughout the course of the event.
After all the students had arrived, Ranma and Akane led them to their stop, and half an hour later, they boarded the train that would take them to Shinjuku. The students sat together, near the back of the train car they were in. Ranma and Akane chose to sit close enough to them to keep an eye on the, but not so close that they could not have a private conversation between them.
The ride would be a couple of hours long, as it had many stops, but they did not concern themselves about since the last stop was at their final destination. Akane closed her yes, feeling the stress of the week dawn on her. Ranma stared out the window, watching the quickly changing view. He had been distant with Akane for the past week, mostly due to the conversation he and his mother had had last Sunday.
"Ranma! Why are you so blind? That woman is clearly seeing someone else behind your back!"
"Mom, don't be ridiculous. We spent most of the days together. When the hell would she find the time to cheat on me? Not that she would, anyway."
"Ranma, listen to your mother. She has been hiding something from you. I don't know what it is, but she has been acting all mysterious around all of us. Haven't you noticed?"
"Do you mean afraid that her every action and word is going to be blown out of proportion, by you? I thought I told you to leave her alone."
"Oh! My boy! What has she done to you? It obvious she has just been using you to get her dojo certified. She needs your help to get it done. Once that place is certified, she's going to dump you on the spot."
Ranma shook his head, wondering where his mother was coming up with these stories. After he had learned how Akane had defeated Saffron, he knew that she did not need his help with fighting her own battles. If they were working together on this it was because they both wanted to.
"Mom, when did you start hating Akane? I thought you liked her?"
"I did, but when she came back from China, saying she was going to fix all of our problems and being over-confident…it was odd. I preferred her when she was just a normal girl, waiting to follow her fiancées' every command, like a good wife-in-training should be."
Ranma rolled his eyes, finally understanding why his mom was so upset. She probably thought Akane's newfound independence and confidence would somehow overshadow her son's manliness, or something close to that effect, in that crazy mind of hers. He would need to have a talk with his parents before he proposed to Akane, even though he had already told them about it. He did not want Akane's big day ruined by the bunch of maniacs he lived with.
"Times have changed, mom. Girls don't sit around and do house work anymore."
"I should've engaged you to Kasumi."
Ranma scoffed. "As if."
"Look, Ranma. I know you don't see it my way now…"
"Or ever," he added.
"But, this engagement is no longer meaningful to her. I can tell she's been fooling around with someone other than you. You may not believe it, but in nine months you will see with your own eyes."
"What did you say?"
Nodoka covered her face, feeling she had said more than she should have. Ranma walked up to her and pulled her hands from her face. "Mom, do you know something I don't, or are just making up shit as you go?"
"Why don't you ask her, Ranma? I'm not the one to tell you the truth."
Ranma's jaw clenched, letting go of his mom's hands. He got up and left the house, knowing he was no longer interested in hearing his mother's foolish ideas.
As much as he had tried to ignore his mother's words, the seed of doubt had been planted, anyway. He had not stayed with Akane after the students had left every day, and neither of them had tried to sneak into each other's rooms. Last weekend they were on the roof, making out. Today, five days later, they were sitting next to each other, but were as apart from each other as they had been when she was in China battling Saffron, and he was in Japan cursing his luck.
How could the trust built over of years of being together dissipate over night? He had not touched her, let alone kissed her since last weekend, and she had not questioned why. He looked away from the window and to her face. She had her eyes closed, and her earphones on. He did not know if she was sleep, but he was not going to bother finding out. He looked down at her belly and asked himself the same question he had asked every time he saw her for the last week.
"Is she pregnant?"
He knew, for a fact, that he was not the father if she was. He recalled the only occasion they had gotten close to sleeping together, and how the chance had slipped through the cracks. It had been the first night she had snuck into his room. He had a nightmare about when she died in Jusenkyo. When he woke up, he had been so scared and confused that when he saw her, his only thought was to show her what he had not been able to tell her at the bottom of Jusendo that night.
Akane pushed him down onto the bed, cradling on him as she did. He let out of soft moan, which she cut short when her lips locked on his. She was returning the favor to him by taking her time exploring his exposed torso and neck, and using her hands to pull the string of his pants, allowing her to lower them just enough to graze on his manhood without making him go over the edge.
Ranma's senses heightened at his, pulling her closer to him and stopping her one last time before there was no turning back. "Are you sure you want to do this?"
She stared at him, breathing as hard as he was, her cheeks flushed, and sweat beginning to form on her skin. She nodded to him, allowing him to let go of any amount of self-restraint he had left in him. He laid her down on her back before he removed any trace of clothes from him. He lay on top of her and continued exploring her body with his lips and hands. Akane arched her neck as she felt the waves of anticipation course through her body. He began his way down her body, finally reaching the last vestige of clothes she had on. Staring at her face, he slowly slid down her pants and undergarments before staring at her nude body, without shame, for the first time.
She observed him stare at her body as if it was the first time he had seen it. She waited as he rolled his hands on her legs and hips, kissing his way up to her stomach. When he did not make any move to continue his ministrations, she took the initiative and flipped them around, sitting on him but not allowing him to enter just yet. She began rubbing herself against him, randomly bending down and kissing him.
Ranma closed his eyes. His hands found her behind and he dug his nails in her flesh. When he could not take it anymore, he lifted himself and her, and pinned her against the wall. He placed her legs around him, allowing the space he needed to finish their dance. He searched for the entrance and readied himself to begin sliding in. Akane closed her eyes, only to feel someone had just sucked the air out of her, causing her to gasp and push Ranma off her.
Ranma, who had not been expecting that response, fell on the floor of his room, only to quickly recover and join her on the bed. Akane's eyes were closed and no amount of shaking woke her up. He thought she had backed down at the last minute, and was too ashamed to let him know.
Ranma sighed, letting his frustration go. He covered them both with their blanket, and hugged her as they went to bed. The next day, he woke up to find Akane gone. He had tried to talk about it with her, but she avoided the subject, and he eventually let it go.
Ranma looked back at the window again. She could not possibly be pregnant! She had not allowed him to take her that night, and they had never tried again. Surely, she would not be able to go through with it with someone else, correct? And, if she had, who would she seeing on the side?
"Satoshi?" Ranma thought with a frown.
"Of course! That son of a bitch likes her! He probably talked shit about me to her every day they saw each other at school. But, Akane wouldn't just do that to me. Would she?"
Ranma rubbed his forehead with his hands. Days ago, he would have been thrilled about this tournament, and what its ending signified to him. Now, he was not very sure that camping trip was ever going to see the day of light.
Ranma closed his eyes, waiting for the end of this trip and event so that he and Akane could have a long talk.
A/N: As you can see, I'm trying to get this story done ASAP. Why? Because I'm going back to work soon, and I won't have much time for writing anymore. Let me know if you want the story to continue. What do you think the silent threat is? Thanks for reading!