"That crazy therapist wants my baby Kasumi to do what?!" Soun was practically smoking, far from his usual crying fit and it hadn't gone unnoticed by anybody in the vicinity.
"But father it's-" Kasumi tried to make her case but for once Soun was anything other than the attentive parent.
"I can't believe it! Three days away from the family? What right does she think she have?" Kasumi hadn't seen her father like this in a long time; it was almost the man he used to be before his wife's death changed his personality, possibly irrevocably.
"She's only doing what-" Once again she was cut off as her father's newfound strength eventually disappeared, leading to the first tears breaking through.
"My little Kasumi, away from home, all alone!" Kasumi's cheeks were starting to tinge with red as her father continued his tirade.
"But Ranma will-" At the mention of the young boy's name Soun turned, still blubbering.
"And you Ranma! How could you allow her to take off like this?" The teen didn't know how to react to such an accusation, he only thought he was doing what was best for Kasumi, or at least what the therapist had told him would be best. However before he could get his own point across his own father decided it was about time he butted into the conversation.
"Now what's all this about a therapist boy? You haven't gone all soft on me have you, talking about your feelings like some kind of girl!" He spat out the last word like it was the worst curse he could think of and it didn't go appreciated by any of the female occupants on the room. At least now Ranma could direct his frustrations onto somebody, his father he could handle.
"Now listen here Pop! I-" This time it was Ranma's turn to be cut off mid-sentence as Soun once again joined the fray, still sobbing like a child.
"Oh Ranma, why would you deceive us like this, and especially hiding it from your fiancée?!" Ranma slowly boiled as his frustrations at the fact neither him nor Kasumi were getting a word in started to take its toll. He had to admit though that the two fathers made an impressive team when it came to keeping the other side from even speaking.
"Father, don't you think-?" Even Kasumi seemed to be slightly ticked off when her various concerns went repeatedly unheard.
"Boy! The least you could do is take your fiancée Akane along with you!" Soun's tears seemed to dry a little as his partner said that."
"Why that's a great idea Saotome, maybe you should go on a vacation with Akane Ranma!" Ranma just growled a noise that finally seemed to make it through the father's thick skulls. It was a frightening, animalistic sound that seemed only possible out of the mouth of some large dog. There was a look in his eyes that matched the sound perfectly, almost reminding Kasumi of the time Ranma had almost exploded from frustration last time.
"Listen! I ain't going on a vacation! It's time away from all of you so I don't go inferno again and possibly hurt someone!" He shot a look across at Kasumi, then back to the fathers. "That includes Akane! Kasumi's only going along because the therapist says it will help her as well." Soun began to blubber once again and Genma only seemed to grow more furious at his son's defiant words.
"My Kasumi, why would-?" It was finally their turn to be cut off as Ranma didn't like being interrupted.
"No Mr Tendo. You should be able to look after yourself for a few days; you're a grown man after all. Maybe this vacation is purely for her health but in any case Kasumi deserves a vacation as much as anybody." Kasumi looked across at the boy who was so vehemently defending her, a hint of pride swelled in her chest. The finality of his words swept through the room, stealing the retort already on Genma's tongue.
Soun looked equally defeated; he could hardly argue anymore, it would only serve to make him look like a weak man, dependant on his daughter. Likewise Genma knew that he really couldn't control what his son did anymore, he sighed resentfully at the gods who had decided to give Ranma such strength of will. Nodoka looked on proudly at her son, metaphorical hearts in her eyes as she swept across to give him a hug, even as he stared frightened at the sword on her back.
"Oh my son is so manly! Sticking up for a young lady like that." She sighed briefly enough that nobody caught it. 'If only it had been for his fiancée but I'll take what I can get'. She let her son go, leaving him with an enormous blush across his face and smiling awkwardly, unsure what to make of the reaction. In all honesty he had been expecting his mother to side with his father, as she usually did on matters concerning Akane. Now that an awkward silence had managed to settle on the room it was Nabiki who decided to send reality crashing down on the pair.
"So Ranma, how do you expect to pay for this vacation exactly?" Ranma opened his mouth to retort but nothing was sent from his brain to his mouth, giving him the appearance of a fish for a few moments. Nabiki just smirked knowingly. "Come see me later Saotome, we'll work something out." Everybody in the room gulped, nobody wanted to be in that situation with Nabiki and now that the argument appeared to be over everyone left, rather hurriedly.
Later that night Ranma nervously walked up stairs and after a brief hesitation he knocked on Nabiki's door. Ever after defeating men with seemingly unlimited Ki and a being that couldn't actually die, he was still afraid of this one nineteen year old girl. He heard a voice telling him to come in and after a gulp and another hesitation he did so. Nabiki was calmly sitting on a swivel chair, just staring at him. She may as well have been stroking a white cat while laughing manically.
"So Ranma," a shiver went up his spine "you need some money." It wasn't a question and he knew it was true; he was practically broke, only getting money when he worked the odd job at the Nekohanten or Ucchan's. This was getting less and less frequent as he tried to be nicer to Akane, which included spending less time around the other girls. Nabiki leaned across her desk, casually reaching into her drawer, it was innocuous enough but Ranma still felt a sweat drop roll down from his forehead to his chin.
"Here you go." And with that she chucked across a small bundle of notes, much to Ranma's amazement. He stared up at her in disbelief while she just took one glance at the look on his face and burst out laughing.
"B-B-B-B-But..." her smile only grew as he stood there bumbling before she took on somewhat a more dignified expression.
"Really Saotome, don't read too much into it. I'm doing this for Kasumi, you and that therapist are right; she does need a vacation more than anyone." She took a strange look at him; she had been there to witness Ranma's outburst firsthand. "Except maybe you." Ranma had finally managed to close his jaw but he was still staring at the bundle of papers in his hands like they would simply disintegrate if he looked away. Nabiki sighed, used to people acting nervously around her; she had earned the name Ice Queen of Furinkan for a reason after all.
"I assume you also haven't given any thought to where you'll be going either?" Ranma managed to break his gaze from the money in his hands and shook his head slowly. "Well you have a break next week right? So I recommend going then."
Ranma finally managed to break out of his almost hypnotised stupor. "G-Go where?"
Nabiki smirked, glad he finally asked. "I've booked a three day stay at a not too local spa resort, it'll be nice for Kasumi to go and relax there without having the house to worry about." She smiled, as if remembering some fond memory. "And don't worry, I can personally recommend them." Before Ranma knew it he was back outside the room, clutching the small bundle of Yen and walking away from the door, not quite sure what happened.
Time flew by until it was time for the two of them to leave for the train that would take them to the resort. Ranma calmly stood by the open door, actually thankful that the time had gone so quickly. He had felt Akane get more and more frustrated as the time grew near and his only thoughts were 'I don't want to be here when that bomb goes off.´ Kasumi on the other hand wasn't quite so enthusiastic to go. Every time they were ready she would quickly rush off somewhere to check on one thing or another or remind Nabiki about something or once again make sure that her father was going to be alright.
In the end it was only Ranma and Nabiki both pushing the older girl out the door which finally got them moving. Nabiki wasn't about to let her sister waste her time relaxing, especially when she had already paid for everything. Ranma just didn't want to miss the train or the bus that was taking them to the resort. He turned around when he reached the end on the path marking it as Tendo property and waved a hearty goodbye to his parents as well as the remaining Tendo's.
He watched them all individually, judging their reactions. Nodoka happily waved back to him, as did Nabiki surprisingly. Soun looked on the verge of tears watching his eldest leave for longer than he was comfortable with and Ranma was astounded he had kept it in this long. Genma was also nervously waving after his wife had decided to unsheathe her katana, just a little bit. He then noticed that Akane was nowhere in sight, already having gone back into the house.
The train and bus rides actually went by in a rather awkward silence for the two vacationers. Neither knew quite what to say to the other now that they were finally on their way even though both desperately wanted to break the silence that had somehow managed to nest between them. All they could do was watch the city slowly shrink into suburbs before finally giving way to the Japanese countryside as the bus took them further and further from Tokyo.
Both blew an internal sigh of relief when they finally got off the bus at their stop. Those internal sighs quickly turned into very external gasps of amazement as they stool looking up at the impressive building before them. It looked very much to be a five-star hotel, many stories tall built out of gleaming black stone which shone in the daylight. Ranma just tried to figure out how Nabiki managed to pay for all this but didn't have much time as he was quickly ushered in by the waiting staff.
The concierge at the front desk merely looked at him expectantly, wondering why an unkempt youth was standing before his desk. Luckily it was Kasumi who saved Ranma from looking like a fool as she quietly but still with confidence approached the concierge.
"My sister Nabiki made reservations here for Ranma and myself." The man seemed unimpressed and slightly bored, and raised an eyebrow at the two. "Um, Tendo." He tiredly looked down the list on his desk and spotted the name next to a three day reservation. He relayed the information to two off the staff and soon the awaiting guests were stripped of their bags.
"Room 1608" He didn't say anymore as he handed Ranma the key and went back to reading the newspaper. Ranma just stood there holding the key.
"And?"
The man looked up annoyed from his paper. "And what?" Ranma was actually starting to get tired of this man's behaviour.
"And where's the other key? There are two of us."
The man once again looked down the list and languidly pointed out the reservation to the pigtailed youth. "Tendo reservation for two, three days, one room. 1608" He punctuated each individual number before returning to his newspaper, a little disgruntled at the boy. Ranma was about to retort when Kasumi lightly grasped his arm.
"It's alright Ranma, I'm sure this was expensive enough for Nabiki as it is." He hadn't considered that and meekly smiled at the older girl.
"Oh yeah, I hadn't thought of that." The two made their way over to the elevator and punched in floor sixteen before suffering a ride up in agonizingly bad elevator music. When they finally got out Ranma was covering his ears.
"And this is supposed to be relaxing?" Kasumi giggled lightly and he felt better, already forgetting about the irritating concierge. They found their room quickly enough and Ranma used the key card to get in, only to stare in shock at what he found. The room was beautiful, delicately lit by a few lighting features dotted around the room. It was mostly elegantly carved wood and glass that gave them an amazing view of the hot springs outside as well as the surrounding country which stretched on in a vista of serenity and nature.
Except that Ranma wasn't staring at that, instead he was looking straight at the large double bed in the centre of the opposite wall. Kasumi joined him and also looked at the large bed in some wonder before turning to one of the staff who was already leaving.
"I'm sorry but there must be some confusion, there should be at least two beds, we aren't a couple." The man just shrugged, muttering that they were fully booked and this was the only room left for another month. Ranma just placed his hand on her shoulder and shrugged.
"It's alright Kasumi, I'll just sleep on the couch."
She shook her head quickly. "Oh I couldn't ask you to do that."
He just laughed gently, knowing that she would refuse. "It's alright; if I can sleep on a forest floor then I can manage a couch." As if to prove his point he gracefully jumped across the room to land in the middle of the couch. "It's pretty comfy too!" He grinned at her and she couldn't help but smile back at his enthusiasm.
"Well if you're sure it's alright..." He nodded at her, still grinning like crazy, and she kept smiling as she moved slowly around the room. Ranma just jumped up off of the couch and grabbed his bag, already pulling out his clothes in an untidy heap in one corner. Eventually he stood triumphantly holding a pair of swimming trunks before moving toward the bathroom.
"I'll give you some privacy to change Kasumi." She looked up from the small statuette she had been admiring.
"Change for what?" He just smiled cheerfully.
"Come on, I wanna hit the pool as soon as possible!" She blushed embarrassed but before she got a chance to object he was already in the bathroom. She sighed and just decided to go along with it, once again the teen's enthusiasm was just infectious. He finished up quickly but politely waited for her to tell him she was decent, when she did so he emerged and his jaw hit the ground. Kasumi was standing, blushing at his look, wearing a two piece swimsuit.
Ranma could only remember one other time he had seen Kasumi wear anything like this, the whole miss beachside affair. As he remembered Kasumi had actually won that by quite a bit. He had been plenty distracted at the time but now he could clearly see why. It was a simple lilac strapless bikini but it showed of her amazing figure better than anything Ranma could think of. In fact he was so used to her in her usual dress and apron that he couldn't tear his eyes away. She merely blushed as he continued to stare, not saying a word.
"Oh my, I knew it was too much but Nabiki insisted." She shyly looked away and snapped Ranma out of his trance.
"No, no, Kasumi!" She looked at him inquisitively. "You look incredible!" She blushed an even deeper shade of red, unable to look Ranma in the eyes after the compliment. Luckily he had the decency to look away at that point, he wasn't a pervert like Happosai but with Kasumi it was hard not to look. It was her turn to look at him in his bright red swimming trunks, showing of his upper body and legs. She nearly turned the colour of his trunks when she started to note how toned his body was, a small part of her starting to realise just why this teen had so many girls chasing after him.
"Um Ranma, aren't we going to the pool?"
He looked up smiling but a little confused. "Um, yeah?"
She looked away to hide the blush that was only now starting to recede. "Well, won't you just turn into a girl when you swim?"
He looked at her happily, like he was glad she asked and he quickly ran back into the bathroom before emerging with a bar of soap held proudly in his hands. "Nah, I got this!" She looked at it; it simply looked like any other bar of soap she had seen. "It's waterproof soap; it stops the transformations for a little while. It isn't permanent but I figure it's enough for maybe an hour's swim." He looked exceptionally happy; it had been a long time since he could go for a swim as a guy. She smiled, happy that Ranma could be so excited about the simple act of swimming.
They made their way down to the pool with both Ranma and Kasumi getting a few appreciative glances from male and female passersby. Both felt equally uncomfortable under the gaze of their respective opposite genders, although for Ranma it wasn't nearly as bad as getting gawked at as a girl. They were grateful to make it out onto the pool area where there were at least a few other young people in swimwear to draw attention away from them.
Of course now that the attention was off of Ranma he immediately felt the need to return it to him. He gave Kasumi a sly grin before immediately taking off for the diving board. He passed the first, second, then third board, eventually reaching the tallest one. A few people looked up to watch him either do something impressive or fall, either way they got a good show. The pigtailed teen didn't disappoint however and using his advanced skills in mid-air combat he took off from the board with grace and twisted through the air in increasingly complicated manoeuvres before soundlessly sliding into the water with nothing more than a ripple, as if a pebble went into the water rather than a person.
He received quite a bit of clapping when he finally broke the surface, grinning like a madman at the attention as Kasumi quietly looked on, pleasantly smiling at his antics. He quickly looked down to make sure nothing had appeared or disappeared and let out a massive sigh of relief when he found that everything was in its correct place and he was still a guy. He quickly did a few laps of the pool, once again impressing more than a few girls with his speed and endurance, even though he was barely making any effort.
Eventually he grew tired of it and treaded water for a while, looking around at the spacious pool. He noticed that Kasumi hadn't even moved from the position he left her in, she nervously glanced around, frozen in indecision about what to do. He picked himself up out of the pool in an overly dramatic flip before walking over to her. He noticed a few girls start to walk towards him, grinning in a way he recognised from a certain Amazon. However when they noticed just who he was walking towards they hesitated before backing off.
"Hey Kasumi, what ya doing?"
She looked at him, smiling sheepishly. "I'm so used to being out at things like his with my family, it just seems strange to be here without them."
He sighed, afraid that something like this might happen. "Well I'm here, do you want to go swimming?" She looked toward the pool and shook her head a little, but it was enough for Ranma to catch. "Well how about we just sit and talk?" She looked up at him, surprised at the offer.
"But I thought you wanted to swim, what about the waterproof soap?"
He just shrugged, grinning. "Eh, I got our whole time here to go swimming whenever I like, plus I got enough soap to last me a week." She still seemed unsure so he took her time, trying to smile in a reassuring way before leading her over to the loungers on the other side of the pool. It took a while but eventually Kasumi came out of her shell enough for Ranma to start talking to her. They talked for a long time, about nothing in particular, fond memories of Nerima, some childhood experiences. As she talked she found that Ranma seemed just as enraptured with her words as she was with his incredible stories.
She couldn't know that Ranma was so interested because to him, a normal life sounded far more fantastical than anything from his own. To him fighting and magic and rescuing the damsel in distress wasn't just a story, it was his life and it was far more interesting to hear the funny anecdotes of Kasumi's childhood. For him, the mundane was fantasy, in his mind the fantasy of a normal life where the weight of the world didn't have to sit on his shoulders. Before long, or at least long to them, they realised it was getting dark outside and the pool was slowly emptying of people.
They talked a bit longer, watching idly as the last of the people trickled out of the spacious pool, leaving them all alone. Ranma suddenly smirked out of the corner of his mouth in a way that spoke of confidence and mischief. Immediately Kasumi was interested, what girl could have resisted such a smile? She knew she should have been better than that, been more mature but even so she found even her tremendous willpower wilting under that smile.
"Hey Kasumi, do you mind if I tried something with you?" Kasumi immediately blushed, all sorts of inappropriate images flashing through her mind that had no place being there.
"What Ranma?" He smiled again and took her hand, leading her over to the edge of the pool. "Oh, like I said Ranma I don't really want to go swimming." Her concern was only met with the same grin.
"Don't worry, you won't get wet. I've been wanting to try this ever since we got down here but I didn't want to draw attention to myself." Kasumi was really starting to wonder what Ranma was up to now; normally he couldn't care less what other people saw him doing. He let go of her hand and started to walk towards the water as Kasumi watched, for some reason entranced with such a mundane action.
He walked at a steady rate towards the water and when the boundary of the pool approached he just kept going. He took one step on the surface of the water, then another, until he turned, staring at a now very shocked Kasumi.
"Ranma! You're walking on water!" He smirked again, doing a few experimental jumps to test his control of this new power.
"Yeah, pretty cool right?" Kasumi could only nod in stunned agreement, cool indeed. "I realised that if I can direct Ki out of my hands in a blast, then why not out of my feet in a controlled burst, I think it's sort of the same principle that Herb uses to fly." Kasumi didn't quite get the reference, never having seen Herb or his incredible ability to defy gravity. However she was too shocked at his next action to even comprehend that. He raised a hand and beckoned her over.
"Come on, your turn!" She just stared at him dumbly, a look that didn't quite suit her features.
"But Ranma, I can't do what you can do."
He smiled at her, this time the cockiness and mischievous look was gone, replace by a warm comforting smile. "Trust me."
And with those two words she did trust him, after seeing all the incredible things this young man could do, as well as the strain he was under daily, and now this, she simply gave herself up to that trust. She raised an arm and he took her hand, suddenly there was a spark of what felt like electricity running through her body and spreading warmth from the point of contact with Ranma down to her feet. "Don't let go of me." And with that he pulled her forward suddenly.
She squeaked with surprise, covering her eyes for the splash but when it never came she cracked her eyes open a bit and looked around. There was Ranma, his beam even greater as he looked at something by her feet. She too looked down, only to see nothing but crystal clear water below her. She tried to jump back, fearing she was just going to fall through that deceiving transparent floor but a strong grip held her in place.
She took a tentative step forward, watching her feet make ripples in the water as she looked down but never going through its surface. She looked up at Ranma in utter shock.
"I'm walking on water." The tone of disbelief in her voice made Ranma laugh but he didn't let go of her hand.
"Yeah, you are" She looked down again, still not quite believing what was going on, perhaps she would wake up in a few moments back in her normal room in the Tendo house and this would all be some wonderful dream. Ranma started moving, taking her with him as he walked further out from the edge, toward the centre of the pool. She had no choice but to follow if she didn't want to end up drenched but with each step she grew more confident, much to the delight of Ranma as he looked back. They reached the middle of the pool and Ranma looked around satisfied while Kasumi also looked around, marvelling at everything.
"What now?" The question caught the pigtailed boy off guard and he scratched the back of his head in embarrassment.
"Um, I dunno. Didn't really think that far ahead, I just thought it would be cool." Suddenly the lights in the pool switched off, their automatic timer plunging the whole room into a twilight state created by the light of the moon filtering into the pool. Kasumi looked around a little nervously at the eerie darkness but a comforting squeeze from Ranma's hand scattered her various doubts. The teen emitted a very protective aura that one couldn't help but feel safe while enveloped in.
Now that the room as dark and quiet they could both her the faint sound of music floating in from the vents, if Ranma remembered right there was also a ballroom on this floor, although what a ballroom was doing in a spa he had-
"Oh that music is beautiful" Kasumi surprised him with the small outburst as she looked towards the source of the music, her eyes large as she took it in. Even Ranma had to admit the strange music had a sort of calming effect on him, setting a tranquil atmosphere as it echoed throughout the room. Kasumi suddenly turned to him, looking at him as if she had a question to ask him but couldn't find the strength to do so.
"Ranma, would you mind dancing with me?" it was said quietly, barely a whisper but Ranma nearly let go of her hand when she said it.
"D-dance?" She nodded meekly, already fearing that he would immediately say no. He saw this trepidation and realised that she had built up a lot of courage to ask him that. "But why?" She looked at him and smiled just as meekly as her nod.
"I just haven't danced in so long and everything just seems so perfect for it right now, it just feels like a waste to miss a moment like this." He nodded, already agreeing with her; it was that meek look and smile that just made him want to do anything for her. Maybe it was because he knew he could do so while trusting her completely, she would never take advantage of his trust, never try and deceive him, she simply wanted to dance.
He cautiously put his hand on her hip, like how he had seen men do in some of the films he had watched. She looked up, mildly surprised and he thought he had made a wrong move. However she smiled timidly and guided his other hand up to her shoulder, making sure never to break contact with him. When that was done she slowly started to move in circles, for once the guiding force of the pair as she moved against him, drawing him round in simple motions.
Ranma, ever the quick learner, soon picked up what he had to do and soon the two of them were lazily drifting around, dancing to the lulling music, standing atop the water of the pool. Kasumi rested her head on his shoulder, enjoying this wonderful moment. It didn't even fully register with her the effect all of this was having on Ranma. For once in his life the pigtailed teen was in close contact with a girl, doing something others would call romantic, yet he had no desire to run, to flee from the comforting embrace. Instead he leaned into it, unconsciously taking in the scent of Kasumi's hair.
They both danced with each other, simply enjoying the perfect moment for what it was. Soon the music stopped and the two parted, smiling. Ranma led them both off of the water and neither realised when they didn't let go of each other's hands. They went back up to the room and Ranma lay down on the sofa, ready to get some sleep and make the most out of the next day. He laughed when he saw that Kasumi had begun tidying up the small pile of clothes he had made earlier.
"Kasumi, you don't have to do that here." She looked up, red-faced, not even realising she had been doing it, acting purely on impulse. "I think the whole idea was for you to get away from that for a few days." She smiled, looking like a child caught with their hand in the cookie jar, but nodded, putting down the shirt she had been holding with a small sigh, but not one of disappointment, of relief.
She slid under her covers that night with the strangest feelings; all of this was just so alien to her it was definitely going to take some getting used to. She looked across the room at Ranma, already fast asleep on the couch, sleeping comfortably like he said he would. All the same she felt wrong for being the one who made him have to take the couch instead of the bed; after all she noted with a small smile it was very comfortable. A small voice in her head just as she was drifting off quickly added in 'and it was built for two.'