"Of Loss, Life, & Love"
A Ranma ½ Fanfic by Luna12
Chapter 25: "Examination"

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Eventually Nodoka stopped squirming and resigned herself to being carried like a sack of silk. As long as she kept from looking at that girl, she could maintain a more level headed calm. Besides, being handled this way did show off that her son was quite manly.

They made it to Tofu's clinic right before closing, saving them the embarrassment of other patients in the waiting area staring at the bare-chested youth hauling a grown woman across his shoulders like a caveman. To his credit, Doctor Tofu only raised an eyebrow at the strangely assembled party, seeing as he could detect no obvious injury and Ranma's attitude was more of annoyance than concern.

Ranma cautiously set his mother down, giving her a look more like a wary dog owner afraid his pet would misbehave if not stared down into submission. Ranma quickly tried to explain to Tofu what the problem was, although it proved to hardly be necessary. Once Akane tried to speak up, Nodoka yelled at the girl to leave at once.

Tofu held up a hand to silence the voices in the room. "I think I see what you mean." He turned his attention to the fuming matron and bowed politely. "Saotome-san, your son is concerned for your health. Please, allow me to run a quick physical."

Nodoka's eyes seemed to clear once her attention shifted to the polite and professional doctor. "I suppose, if my son thinks it's best…"

Somewhat exasperated, Ranma replied, "I do, Mother."

Once the door to the examination room closed, Ranma let out a deep breath. Not exactly in relief - he didn't know what Tofu-sensei may find or accomplish - but at least some action was being taken.

He turned his attention to Akane. Normally Akane was a spitfire, dishing it out as well as anyone could throw at her. Now she remained aloof and off to a corner after his mother had snapped at her. Ranma saw the hurt expression in her brown eyes, and knew it had nothing to do with the state of her face. Akane had spent most of her childhood motherless, just like him. They both had rejoiced at getting to know and receive the love and attention from Genma's wife when she came into their lives. Ranma could imagine all too well what his mother's rejection felt like for Akane, even if there was a medical or magical reason behind it.

"Akane?" he asked helplessly. The girl looked small and lost, her hands clenched tightly at her sides into the folds of her traditional yukata.

Akane looked up at him, and realizing Ranma was watching, she put on a brave face. "I'm sure Doctor Tofu will help. He knows all about weird herbal lore as well as traditional medicine."

Ranma studied Akane's injured cheek, taking in the swollen slap mark and berating himself for not stopping it in time. He had detected the violent intent - he was a superb martial artist, after all - but his reaction halted when he saw that it had been coming from his mother. He never thought a real physical threat would come from her. Besides the hand print, Akane sported a small bleeding cut just a few centimeters from her left eye. He frowned. It was most likely nicked from impact with his mother's wedding ring. At once, Ranma found it difficult to swallow. It was bad enough Akane was f'in bleeding, but what if that had been her eye?!

Ranma walked over to a supply cabinet (knowing from plenty of first hand experience where the doc kept most of the basic first aid supplies), and pulled out a few clean cotton balls and antiseptic. He wanted to say something, but the mixings of guilt and concern seemed to render his tongue inoperable. Thankfully, Akane appeared to understand his intent, and she carefully turned her cheek for Ranma to examine it.

"Does it look bad?" she asked, wishing she had a mirror close at hand. Ranma lied and shook his head, then tenderly dabbed at the cut with the soaked cotton ball. Akane winced, but then held still. Ranma's silence was worrying her. Once cleaned, he carefully applied a small bandage. He pulled his hand away from her face, and turned his attention to cleaning up the supplies.

Akane reached out and stopped his hand from its task, desperately trying to gauge his mindset.

"Thanks, Ranma. I -" Whatever Akane was going to say was cut off by Tofu's entrance.

Ranma shot up to his feet. The friendly doctor had a slightly puzzled expression on his face. "I have an idea what may be troubling your mother, but I'd like to run one more test. Akane, please come into the examination room with me and Saotome-san."

Ranma's arms were crossed, blocking the path. "I don't think that's a good idea, Doc."

Akane placed a hand gently on Ranma's arm. "I'll be fine. Doctor Tofu will be there, and this time, I'll make sure to duck."

Akane winked and gave Ranma a reassuring smile, and even though it didn't reach her eyes, he felt comforted by her rallying spirit. "Well, you better," he teased. "We obviously gotta double up your defensive training if my mom can land a hit on you."

Akane stuck her tongue out at him playfully, the banter helping the both of them regain a sense of normalcy.

Nodoka was sitting serenely on the examination table, a blood pressure cuff strapped to her arm. The moment the woman caught sight of Akane, she jumped to her feet. "Get that wicked girl out of here!" Suddenly, Nodoka clenched her head in her hands and sat back down.

Akane glanced quickly at Doctor Tofu in concern, unsure what his "test" entailed and if she was to leave or stay. Tofu quickly reached over to look at the reading on Nodoka's cuff and frowned before removing it.

Tofu led Akane back out the door and nearly collided with Ranma, who had been eavesdropping. The anxious youth was rocking his weight between his toes and heels. "Well? What's wrong and how soon can you fix her?"

Tofu cleared his throat. There would be no sugar coating the issue. "I found traces of pressure point manipulation and deep bruising along your mother's scalp, hidden under her hair. The last time I saw anything like that was Xi Fa Xiang Gao shiatsu."

Ranma felt his stomach drop at the same time he felt his own blood pressure go through the roof. Someone - no, he wouldn't kid himself, it was likely Shampoo - had attacked his mother with her Amazon witchery.

He didn't want to wait for the rest of Tofu's explanation. It was like listening to the whirring of a train going past. He couldn't hear over the pounding of blood in his ears. His mother. Shampoo had attacked his mother.

That was beyond low.

Tofu gently laid a reassuring hand on Ranma's shoulder and he jumped. "I said, do you understand?"

Ranma shook his head, focusing on the physical present again. "Uh, could you repeat that?"

Tofu gave a weary sigh. "Someone has manipulated your mother's emotional and memory ki lines drastically. Much worse than simply erasing memories. For whatever reason, Akane is the trigger, causing all the sudden symptoms and irrational behavior."

Akane's hands clenched, wanting to rip Shampoo's stupid purple hair out. It was bad enough when the Amazon had performed the remote control acupuncture on her, this was far worse than some temporary violation and memory loss.

Tofu continued. "I'm prescribing some medication to lower your mother's high blood pressure, and a pain reliever to ease her headaches - but it's not a cure. It will only help treat some of the symptoms."

Akane frowned. "Wait, Ranma snapped me out of the Xi Fa Xiang Gao before. Can't we try the same thing?"

Ranma's face brightened. "Yeah. Maybe just have Akane keep talkin' to her, then she'll snap out of it."

Tofu shook his head sadly. "No. That could be very dangerous in this case. Akane is young and strong and didn't suffer the same side effects. Your mother's blood pressure rose dangerously high when Akane entered the room. A 'shock and awe' attempt could lead to a stroke or heart attack."

Both teens paled at that, and Akane bit her bottom lip. It was a habit Ranma noticed she did very rarely, and it usually was when she was close to crying.

Akane's next words came out in a rush. "Excuse me. I won't risk your mother seeing me here."

Ranma opened his mouth, but no words came out.

Akane had reached the door when Ranma grabbed her hand. Their eyes locked and Ranma felt his heart twist at the sight of her honey brown eyes wavering with unshed tears.

Akane felt a lump grow in her throat. She would never put Ranma in a position where he had to choose between herself and Nodoka. It was painful growing up without a mother, and she knew how much Ranma had gone through to reunite with his. She had to be strong right now, and not let Ranma know how much this was tearing at her.

"I'll see you for training later, okay?" Her voice cracked, but then she cleared her throat and resumed more steadily. "We'll find a safe cure for your mom. I know we will."

And then she was gone.

Ranma stood stunned for a moment, but then his mood shifted. Akane was right. He was going to get a cure for his mother if he had to shake down every Joketsuzoku Amazon he could find.

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Nabiki was lounging with a magazine in the living room when she heard Akane slam the entryway door open and close. Uh oh. Bet that date was a disaster, she mused.

Akane entered the living room looking to all the world as if she'd had a good cry. Her eyes were red and puffy, and … Nabiki's jaw dropped open. Who had left that slap mark on her sister's face? It could have been Ukyo, but then Akane wouldn't have been crying, she'd have been fuming mad and have sported more signs of a drawn out martial arts brawl. Her yukata was perfectly in place and there were no other signs of injury.

Nabiki sucked hard on her straw of cola and put on her usual aura of indifference. "Whoa, little sis. Ukyo not appreciate you moving in on Ranma at their date?"

Akane shot Nabiki a sharp glare. She was in no mood for her sister's teasing and innuendo, but at the same time, she might need her help with her plan.

"Did you ever save a copy of that Joketsuzoku Monthly newsletter?"

Nabiki's eyebrows rose in puzzlement, but at the opportunity to make a quick profit she smiled. She was a bit of a pack rat by nature, especially since she could never tell when she could sell an item later for some extra cash. "Why yes. Just 3000¥ and it's yours!"

"Nabiki!" Akane screeched, at the end of her patience after the grueling emotional day. "This is important!" Briefly, she recounted the encounter with Nodoka and Tofu's diagnosis.

"So I was thinking..." Akane resumed, "..that there might be a mail order product for that Xi Fa Xiang Gao stuff. Shampoo was always ordering crazy things from China."

Akane waited patiently for Nabiki to give her the newsletter, but her sister didn't move from her comfortable spot on the couch. She simply stuck out her hand and said "If it's that important to you, 4000¥. I know you can afford it."

Akane's jaw dropped, but at Nabiki's firm stance she caved, pulling out the funds from her worn wallet. "You realize you're a horrible sister and a cruel extortionist?"

Nabiki simply counted the acquired money gleefully and led Akane to her room to pull out the article. "Here you go!"

Akane groaned at the sight. She had forgotten one tiny detail. It was entirely in Chinese. She could only make out bits and pieces, and had to rely mainly on the pictures to figure out the meaning. Even if the cure was there ready for ordering, Akane had no way to tell. There weren't any pictures featuring bottled potions or lotions, and nothing that had the numbers "911" or "411".

"Damn," Akane cursed and barely kept her frustration from crumpling the paper in a heap.

Nabiki eyed her sister's reaction and smirked. "Forgot you can't read Chinese?"

Akane stuck her tongue out. "Oh shut up. I'm running out of ideas. Mousse is the only Joketsuzoku Amazon we know who might be able and willing to help, but it's not like I can call him up when he's living in the backwaters of China!"

Nabiki's Cheshire cat grin grew longer. "Funny you should mention that..."

Akane's eyes went wide.

Nabiki continued. "3000¥ and I'll give you Mousse's cell number."

Akane's face alit with hope. "You really have Mousse's number?"

Nabiki's eyes twinkled devilishly. "There's a chance he might still have the prepaid cell phone I gave him."

Akane squinted in disbelief. "Why would you have -?"

Nabiki cut her off. "Never mind the details. Do you want the number or not?" Nabiki held out her hand expectantly.

Akane grumbled. Even in the midst of a crisis, her sister was determined to make a profit. Akane placed half the demanded amount in her sister's palm.

Nabiki gave Akane the stink eye. "That's not what I asked for."

Akane scowled. "Well, that's all you get! You can't even guarantee the number will work, or if Mousse will help me. Take it or leave it."

Nabiki pocketed the money. "After all this time, you're learning, little sister. Oh well. Here's the number. Not sure if there's any minutes left, though."

Akane ran for the phone and dialed. Each ring seemed to stretch for an eternity. Akane gripped the receiver tighter. Just when she was about to give up, there was an answer.

"What now, Nabiki?" the accented voice was definitely that of Mousse, tinged with annoyance and a touch of curiosity.

"Actually, it's Akane."

Mousse's voice sounded surprised but also wary. "Oh. Uh, hello."

Akane idly wondered if Shampoo was nearby and the duck-boy had to play it cool. Still, it was no time for basic pleasantries. "Mousse, I need your help for Ranma's mother. She was attacked by Shampoo-"

Mousse's voice was filled with indignant outrage. "You accuse my beautiful Shampoo of attacking a helpless woman after all she went through with that damn blood pledge?!"

Akane wished the Amazon was here in person so she could smack sense into him. Instead, she had to settle for diplomacy on the phone. She couldn't afford to have Mousse hang up or refuse to help. Akane swallowed her pride and tried to calm the man down. "I'm sorry. That was rude of me, since we don't have proof of who exactly did it. We just know someone used various Xi Fa Xiang Gao techniques and messed her up pretty badly."

In a rush, Akane spilled out Tofu's finding and diagnosis. There was silence on the other end and Akane worried they had been disconnected. "Mousse? Are you there?"

"Yes," Mousse's voice on the other end was solemn and serious. "I can't believe..." his voice trailed off into a long sigh.

Akane was eyeing the clock and remembered Nabiki's indirect warning of remaining minutes. Who knew how many she'd already burned through with this international call? "Look, I don't care about assigning blame, Mousse. Is there a cure? Some different lotion to apply, those 911 or 411 stuff, a pressure point chart, something?!"

Mousse cleared his throat. Despite the weak phone connection, the pain and desperation in Akane's voice was clear.

"If it really was Xi Fa Xiang Gao, I'll send you some 911. But I don't know enough about memory manipulation points to be of any help. And the 911 might not work if there really were multiple techniques used. It's forbidden to mix them like that. There's no telling what any unforeseen side effects might be."

Akane fingered the curly telephone cord and wished she could use it to strangle Shampoo. That she had done this to sweet Auntie, knowing it was forbidden and dangerous, made Akane's gut churn with nausea and fury.

Mousse continued. "Until then, the formula is -" There was an abrupt silence and then a piercing series of beeps before an automated recording droned about "No more minutes. Please add more to your account."

Akane slammed the phone in frustration. She took a deep breath to calm herself down. All in all, that could have gone worse. Mousse was under no direct obligation to help her family, as far as she knew. His only incentive to help her in the past was to encourage a romance between Ranma in order to "free" Shampoo.

Akane picked up the receiver again. Even though they had to wait for a special delivery from China, there was hope. She couldn't wait to tell Ranma.

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Ranma paced in the small space of his family's apartment. He had managed to escort his mother back home and convince her to take a nap to quiet the killer headache she'd gotten. Despite multiple attempts to explain to her that she was under a sort of brainwashing, just mentioning Akane's name would set her off again.

Ranma wanted to take action and do something. A good fight would be ideal, especially against Cologne. He had no way of knowing which scheming Amazon had attacked his mother, and the old ghoul was just as responsible in his mind. Should he try to make his way to China? He didn't speak the language and he doubted he could convince Shampoo to undo the damage she'd done - she was spiteful and probably seething with resentment after the sperm donor failure. Even if he did track her down and challenge her to a match, there was no telling if she'd actually help his mother.

Desperately, Ranma wanted to see Akane. She was always there for him when he had a huge problem to face. More so, he was worried about how she left the clinic. He vividly remembered her face, a brave smile on her lips while tears glistened in her eyes. Didn't she understand that he wasn't about to let some dumb Chinese mojo stop him from seeing her?

Ranma shook his head. It was just like Akane to not understand his intentions towards her. Which meant he had to see her and straighten things out. The promise his mother had forced on him, keeping him from entering the Tendo residence gnawed at him.

Just because he couldn't go knocking on her door or popping in through her window didn't mean there wasn't a different way to get Akane's attention.

The outline of a plan was forming in his mind. He had pretty good aim. From outside the Tendo gates, he could throw stones lightly and carefully at Akane's window - just enough to get her attention without breaking anything. Before long, Akane would come out to investigate. She'd see him standing outside on the street, and he'd wave her over.

He could picture the scene perfectly. Akane rushing out to meet him at the Tendo gate, the same place they had parted at the end of their first real date. This time, he'd find his words, and tell her how none of this mess changed what mattered; he would see her, he would be with her, and damn any Amazons that stood in his way. She may not believe him, but with no one watching he would wrap his arms around her waist and lean his forehead onto hers. In his imaginings, he could feel her fingers gently moving through his hair before he bent down, his lips finding hers, taking her breath away with a searing kiss.

The phone rang and Ranma's head snapped to attention. He felt his face flush in a mixture of embarrassment and unfulfilled desire from his active imagination. He ran over and picked up the receiver. "Hello?"

He heard a huge breath of relief before Akane's voice responded in an eager rush. "Ranma! I was hoping it would be you. If it had been Auntie, I'd have hung up."

Ranma found himself smiling, the remnants of his daydreaming playing back in his mind. It felt so good to hear her voice, and it wasn't maudlin or depressed. In fact, she sounded rather excited about something.

Quickly Akane recounted the promising news.

"Ranma?" Nodoka's voice called out from the bedroom.

"I gotta go. See you tomorrow," he whispered back before hanging up. He returned to his mother's side with a newfound quick in his step. They just had to be patient. A potential cure was already on the way.

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Author's Note:

While uncommon, there are medical doctors who are also practicing chiropractors. I choose to believe Tofu is among them. Further notes on my profile page. SkyStrider's stories follow this idea intently (a fun read, I suggest you check them out).

Angela Jewell continues to rock on as my beta reader, and PurseMonger helped out, too. If you like my stuff, read theirs!

Original Publication Date: Oct. 17, 2014