Chapter 8:

Till the End of Time Pt 4

Akane sat quietly against a wall in her family's dojo holding her hand to her chest. She hadn't gone to Ryouga's, and she didn't want to be in her room. She wanted to be alone right now, and this was the last place anyone would look for her. She knew Ryouga was likely to be worried sick about her, but she didn't care. Her chest still ached, a pain in her heart she couldn't explain, and she wanted to cry endlessly, for no reason she knew.

She tried to rationalize things in her mind. She hadn't actually seen the two girls kiss, only the appearence of shadows merging in what could have been a kiss. It could have been a hug as well for all she knew. Why did it matter what it was? She sighed and pulled her knees to her chest. That was the problem though, it did matter.

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Ryouga sighed as he hung his heads and aimlessly walked the streets of Nerima. It had grown cold, far colder then it ever got in Nerima this time of year, but the weather simply didn't phase him. It had been four hours now since Akane should have made it to his place, and yet after two she still hadn't arrived. It was around then he decided to go out looking for her. It's not that he worried for her safety, the girl was more then capable of taking care of herself, but he knew something was wrong.

Only twice before had Akane disappeared. The first was the morning Ranma had left. She had hid herself from friends and family, secluding herself for two full days before Ryouga had found her in a rundown old woodshed near the sea. At that time her eyes were all red and puffy, and her visage quite vacant. Ryouga knew she'd been crying there almost non-stop. He got her home safely, and gradually she recovered.

The second had occured two years earlier, the day of her mother's funeral. No one could really blame her at the time, but she'd worried them all. This time she managed to hide herself in a hole for nearly two weeks before it was Ryouga who found her. Her condition wasn't nearly as bad, it was obvious that she had taken to living a natural life in the cave she had holed up in, there were small animals that had been expertly trapped, cleaned, and cooked, but he could still see the emotional scarring deep inside that boiled near her surface.

He sighed deeply as he slammed his hand into a signpost. He couldn't begin to fathom what was wrong this time, There was nothing major that could affect her, unless something happened he didn't know about. There had been such a small window of time, no more then an hour, for anything to cause such pain to Akane's emotional state, that it seemed almost unreal.

"I can't believe it Ranma. So that's what happened?" Ryouga could hear a familiar voice inside the building to which the sign belonged. More then that, there was that name, that very familiar name. He wanted to burst in, to know what was happening, but discretion urged him to simply eavesdrop.

"I told you not to call me that Ukyo, what if someone we know hears you?" There it was, a second familiar voice. It took Ryouga a moment, and he wasn't quite sure of it, but it was definate that voice was female.

"Okay, I get it, you're Nodoka now." Outside Ryouga froze, he knew he'd heard something he shouldn't have, something impossible to believe.

"I can't say I'm happy with it, but, I've learned to cope. I mean it's not so bad being a girl, but I miss being myself."

"I guess I can kind of understand, but you are still yourself, the only thing that's changed is your body. I mean, even after all these years, you still treasured that ring." Ryouga poked his head towards the door, he could plainly see Nodoka and Ukyo. Ukyo was tenderly holding Nodoka's hands and staring into the eyes of the redhead who had a near sorrowful look on her face.

"Yeah, but that's over with, she's happy with Ryouga." Nodoka sighed and turned away from Ukyo.

"I wouldn't be too sure of that Ranma!" The door to the okonomiyaki shop burst open as a near fuming Ryouga entered and glared at the girls.

Nodoka and Ukyo's gazes both shot to the door, panic nearly filling thier faces. Some implications were obvious, such as the fact that Ryouga at least knew the truth. Others, such as figuring out how he discovered it, were less obvious, but easy to discern. Nodoka was the first to act as she looked to the table and heavily sighed. "What makes you say that Ryouga."

"Akane's missing... Something happened between the time I last saw her at school, and the time she left. I don't know what happened, or where she went, all I know is that she's really depressed, and that somehow Ranma, this is your fault." Ryouga clenched his fist as he looked on Nodoka and sighed.

"Wait a sec." Nodoka looked at Ukyo, realization dawning on her. "You don't think. She must have seen us together before we left campus."

"I don't see what difference that would make." Ukyo shrugged as she blew it off. What did it matter to her.

"It makes all the difference in the world. At least now I know why Akane was so drawn to you 'Nodoka'. Always talking about you, always afraid you hated her... This is your fault Ranma." Ryouga turned back to the door, he had to leave, before he did something he might regret later. He had to find Akane.

"Ryouga wait!" Nodoka stood up slowly and followed after him. "Please, let me help you. I'm the cause of this problem, right? I want to help, maybe I can fix things."

"She doesn't even know it's you, does she Ranma?"

"No, and I'd rather it stay that way." Nodoka gently placed her hand on Ryouga's shoulder and sighed heavily. "I... I still think about her all the time, but from what I've seen, she's happy with you. I couldn't think of anyone I'd rather be by her side Ryouga, afterall, you were my best friend."

Ryouga looked to the ground and sighed. He had to fight to hold back his tears, but he did so. For several seconds he said nothing, then started to move forward. "I don't want your help Ranma, I'll find her myself." He took several more steps, then paused. "I won't tell her, but you should."

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Nodoka sat quietly in her seat, class had been dismissed for the day, but everything was weighing heavily on her mind. Akane had been absent now for 3 days. She wanted to look for her, but she wouldn't, Ryouga wouldn't allow it. Instead she continued to sit there, staring off into space. She'd stay there till the school was closing, unwilling to move, and just wallowing in her own self-pity.

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Ryouga sat at the counter of the okonomiyaki shop staring at Ukyo before he finally sighed and spoke up. "Do you think I did the right thing?"

"That depends. In regards for finding Akane, no. But I know you're more worried about her relationship with you if Nodoka was the one to find her." Ukyo had been talking over her shoulder as she continued to cook for her friend. It was rare that Ryouga came to her for advice, but this was obviously something that only the two of htem were entitled to. "Look, Nodoka's let go of her, she wants to support you and Akane, even if that means watching from the side-lines."

Ryouga looked out the window. Three days had passed, and for some reason, he felt hopeless in his search for Akane. "I couldn't even compete."

"Hmm?" Ukyo turned and set a plate of fresh Yakisoba before Ryouga, before pressing the matter. "What do you mean by that?"

"If Ranma had come back, you know, as himself..." Tears formed in Ryouga's eyes as he lowered his head and clenched his hand tightly, snapping his chopsticks in half. "It's not fair! If he had come back as himself, This wouldn't even be an issue, and I'd be the one suffering alone. It's all his fault for hurting Akane!"

"Stop it Ryouga, there's no use blaming her, she didn't know it'd turn out like this, she wants what's best for you. You don't even know what would happen if she had come back as Ranma, so don't even start with that train of thought." Ukyo let loose a sigh of relief, it had been forever since she'd been able to tell Ryouga off for anything, and it felt good. Once she'd relieved herself of the steam, she sat down across from him and smiled a bit. "Just stop looking and let fate take you, like you used to, you'll find her Ryouga. Akane needs you, so drop the pity act."

"Thanks Ukyo."

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"Three days... I'm so pathetic, being jealous of her..." Akane sighed as she looked at the walls. No one had thought to look for her there, it was just like the other times. At least this wasn't as bad as the caves, there was food and water, and she could even sneak a bath if she felt like it. "Why, Why does it bother me seeing her with Ukyo. Why does it feel like I'm losing everything again?" She placed her head in her hands as the tears began to fall, she couldn't hold them back anymore, she didn't even want to try.