In Ranma's opinion it was much too early in the morning for his usual thoughts to swarm his mind. He was barely five minutes into the day and already a blizzard of half-formed thoughts and memories were speeding through his head. Usually he would at least have until after breakfast to worry about these things but it seemed that today his mind was most insistent he think about them. It was of course mostly about his conversation with Shampoo and the result; a part of him wanted to be ecstatic that he had finally made some progress in that area while another warned him to be cautious.

He couldn't help but feel overjoyed; his heart overrode his mind's objections as he practically wanted to scream out the fact that he had a friend. Not a fiancée, not a rival, not even an acquaintance; an actual friend. It got him thinking as he walked through the house, not only had he actually admitted his feelings for Kasumi to somebody else, but he had solved one of his major problems just by talking about it. As he wandered into the kitchen he wondered if he could do the same for his other current fiancée.

Ukyo was already his friend, if he discounted their last confusing conversation, so he felt that it should and could be even easier to talk with her about. However he knew that his life was never that easy, at least not until recently; too recently for him to have let his guard down fully. Even with all of these extra thoughts clouding his morning he managed to get through his usual breakfast routine the same as always. Something did manage to put him off though, the fact that he hadn't seen Kasumi at all yet; she was usually up by now.

When he had a few minutes, when the rice was cooking, he wandered quickly back through the house and crept soundlessly to Kasumi's room where he carefully peered through the crack he made whilst opening it. He was very cautious and ready to quickly avert his gaze if he caught Kasumi doing anything that he shouldn't really see but he could see Kasumi peacefully lying in bed, with all the poise and serenity she maintained in the waking world. He smiled at the sight and decided not to wake the sleeping girl as he felt that everybody, Kasumi especially, deserved the occasional lie in.

His smile was still on his face as he turned back from the door, gently closing it as quietly as he had opened it. That proved to be a mistake as he only turned around to see a certain blue-haired recluse staring at him in a blank slate of an expression; ready to be turned into anger, shock, confusion or an of the other multitude of less-than-friendly possibilities. This time even Ranma could see the cause, he was walking away from Kasumi's room, quietly closing the door with a smile on his face. It didn't paint the best picture and while any of those misconceptions were unfounded he could at least see the girl's thought process this time.

Some would have found it hard to believe that seeing somebody so angry, that they are willing to hit, you could come as a relief. It was true all the same; Ranma was unbelievably happy to see Akane at least back to her old self, even he admitted that this was better than the shy, quiet girl she had somehow become. However something strange happened in Ranma's mind as the mallet descended on him, almost in slow motions from the way his thoughts were racing, not to mention just how fast his reflexes were anyway.

He realised that he still had to finish the cooking. He also realised that, like with Ukyo, he could finally talk to Akane. There was also the fact that, once halfway across Tokyo, doing all three of those things would become considerably more difficult. He stopped the hammer a few inches from his face, so close that it actually took Akane a moment to realise that she hadn't quite hit the part of Ranma she had been aiming for.

"Hey, what are you doing?!"

Ranma sighed deeply and he covered his eyes briefly with his hands. "Akane, I don't have time for this. I need to finish breakfast."

She huffed loudly and defiantly crossed her arms over her chest. "I could finish it easily!"

He opened his mouth to say something quite derogatory but managed to stop himself. He was trying to help after all, not earn himself a free ticket on Air Akane. As he stood there for a few seconds he began realising why his immediate reaction to most things Akane says were insults; it was actually quite difficult to think of things to say to her. He wondered if he had realised that sooner then he could have put more effort in and found a life with her after all. But once again he stopped dwelling on the past, Kasumi's words proving useful yet again.

"Look Akane, before you jump to conclusions I was just checking on Kasumi." Akane's brow furrowed and her eyes flashed between suspicion over Ranma's words and concern for her sister's possible illness or injury. She lowered the hammer, a shy look coming across her face.

"W-What's wrong with Kasumi?"

He smiled. 'So this is how conversations could have gone' He looked at her comfortingly. "Nothing, she's just sleeping. I was making the breakfast, noticed she wasn't down yet, and came up to check on her."

She looked at him, a hint of anger and suspicion flashing just briefly across her eyes before her head lowered again, returning to the meek, apologetic pose. "That was nice of you Ranma."

He smiled again, a little unsure, after the shock of her words wore off. He looked at her, back to this newer, meek and shy Akane; even after he had hope when she tried to mallet him. He still felt the pangs of guilt, like this was all his fault, and he wanted desperately to make it up to Akane somehow. The problem was he didn't even really know what he was making up for. An idea came to him, it would be risky of course but it might be just what she needed after everything.

"Hey Akane, do you want to come help with the breakfast?" Her eyes lit up with sudden hope but it was quickly suppressed as her usual attitude overcame her.

"Why? So you can just call it 'disgusting' or 'toxic'?" He smiled, glad that she was acting like her old self again.

"Nah, I just like a challenge." He left her with that as he bounded down the stairs but not before quickly shouting back. "So are you coming to help or what?" Initially she wanted to be angry as she puzzled out his words, trying to find the insult in them but her glee of cooking overcame her and she raced after him; the first smile on her face for weeks.

For the next half an hour Ranma watched Akane cook with interest, curiosity, and concern. He wondered how, learning from Kasumi herself, she had managed to become such a terrible cook. It was almost like she was pouring her frustrations and anger into the food, which was in turn turning it sour and rotten. Cooking needed to be filled with patience, care and enjoyment, or at least that's what Kasumi always seemed to imply. More than a few times he found himself telling her to slow down or move slower.

"What do you mean slow down? What difference does it make how fast I go?" He furrowed his brow, trying to find the same answer Kasumi had given him when he had asked the very same question.

"A recipe isn't just about ingredients in an order, it tells you everything you have to do, including time." Akane was about to retort when she realised it was just like something that Kasumi might say and Ranma was just quoting her. Knowing that arguing with him would technically mean arguing with Kasumi she closed her mouth and returned to the work, slower this time. There were more than a few instances of these conversations.

"Um Akane, I know you're trying to speed things up but cooking something for ten minutes at one hundred and sixty degrees isn't the same thing as cooking it for five minutes at three hundred and twenty."

"Um Akane, that's baking soda, not sugar."

"Um Akane, there's no paprika in the oatmeal recipe."

"Um Akane-"

"What?!" The blue haired girl turned furiously to her impromptu tutor, annoyed at all these interruptions for things she didn't think were that important. He just grinned sheepishly and pointed to the oven where a light was flashing.

"You're done" She looked at him a little shocked, she had actually finished cooking an entire meal; albeit one that Ranma had started but nevertheless she still felt proud at her accomplishment. After she took the food out of the oven she beamed happily as he walked over to the food, noting that it did indeed look like food, edible food to boot. He tentatively leaned over to taste some, watching Akane's nervous anticipation with barely held back mirth; he couldn't help but draw parallels between this moment and the first time he had cooked with Kasumi.

With a delighted chuckle he found that the food wasn't too bad, some was burnt just a little or slightly undercooked but it was food, followed to the letter. He smiled at her and nodded, thinking it could be a bad idea to toy around with her at this point. She startled him by giving a happy yelp, jumping into the air a little and rushing forward to pull him into a hug. He was as startled as she was when she realised just what she had done and who with; she immediately leapt back, nervously looking away from him before grabbing some of the food and hurriedly running out of the kitchen to lay the table.

He smiled, not used to such an affectionate interaction with Akane yet not completely disliking the sensation. The ones with Kasumi were better he surmised but still, not too bad; especially from somebody he least expected it from. He wiped the smile from his face as he didn't want Akane to take it the wrong way and walked out to sit in his place at the table. It wouldn't be long before the family came wandering in but until then Akane and Ranma were left in an awkward silence, thankfully before it became too unbearable they heard the sound of bare feet hurriedly running across the landing and down the stairs.

An out of breath and panting Kasumi rushed through the door into the dining area where she stared red-cheeked and incredulously at the two teenagers patiently waiting for everybody to arrive. She immediately noticed the change for the better in her sister and was glad the worst of her mood was over; she also saw Ranma acting confusedly but still no less happy and realised he had something to do with it. She wondered what he could have done before she noticed the state the food was in; it was rather poor for something Ranma might cook but given Akane's beaming face she quickly realised what had happened.

"Akane the food looks very nice." Both teens were mildly shocked at how quickly Kasumi had worked it out, but Ranma less so. He already knew that the older girl had amazing insights into such things and was only pleased when she proved it yet again. She happily sat down in her own spot, looking in thought over something but quickly snapped out of it when she saw Ranma stare curiously. She smiled at him to show it was nothing serious and before he had a chance to find out any more the father's and Nabiki walked in.

Ranma realised he would have to act quickly before anybody tried the food and told him it was below his usual standard. Akane would quickly take offense and everything he had managed to achieve with her this morning would have been for nothing. He noticed the two fathers, especially his own, about to dig into the food and acted on impulse. It was something he thought he wouldn't be doing any more but considering the situation and the result, he forgave himself.

"Hey everyone, aren't you going to thank Akane for the food?" That definitely got everybody to stop, even Genma who was halfway to bringing some rice to his mouth. Soun looked worriedly between Kasumi and Ranma, trying to find who was to blame for his ruined breakfast but before his daughter noticed the pause he looked wearily over to Akane.

"Thank you Akane dear" Well at least now everybody knew it was Akane's so Ranma happily dug into his own food. It certainly wasn't gourmet but Ranma wasn't all that a fussy eater; especially after having to put up with the food his father occasionally cooked. Before that everybody had been looking at the possible environmental hazard as if they were going to be ill from even picking it up. After watching Ranma of all people start to eat it, with no side effects of any kind, they lost their reservations and tentatively began to eat.

Breakfast actually moved along fairly smoothly due to Akane being in an indomitable good mood over seeing her family genuinely enjoy her cooking. It had been one of her dreams ever since her mother passed away to be more like Kasumi and had finally achieved that in some small part. With a blush she realised it had been only because of Ranma's help; she gave him a sparing glance only to see him also happily eating. For some reason his, as well as Kasumi's, acceptance of her food made her happier than the rest of the family's reactions and it confused her a little.

She was saddened when it was over and everybody had eaten their plate's clean but happy at the same time. It was rare for someone to take more than one bite of her food, never mind finishing it and she practically glowed from the unspoken praise. She retired back to her room happy and smiling, she picked up the phone and called Sayuri; the girl seemed shocked but pleasantly cheerful to hear from her friend and soon they were making plans. Akane wanted her good day to continue and after cooking she somehow knew that the only way that was going to happen was if she made it that way.

The streets of Nerima were a hive of activity, even relatively early in the morning as it was a Sunday. There were all varieties of people running to and fro or just milling about. He grew tired of the endless weaving through crowds and finally just jumped up onto the rooftops; surprising a few birds as well as a few onlookers. He sighted happily as he was allowed to move unrestricted, even if it was just at a leisurely stroll. It was far from his usual fast paced flight across the skyline but today he was neither running from something of after someone.

However that didn't mean he wasn't heading to a destination and his feet took him to Ucchan's quicker than he would have thought at the pace he had set. He gulped nervously looking at the sign; he remembered Ukyo's reaction to his presence and still didn't even know what that was all about. All he could do was hope she had either calmed down, forgiven him or was in a slightly better mood to talk in. He steeled his nerves and walked through the door frame, glancing around even though he had immediately spotted the young waitress in her customary position behind the grill.

"Hey sugar, welcome to Okonomiyaki Ucch-" She froze mid-sentence as she saw him and they both stared at each other for a while. Ranma didn't want to be the first to speak as he didn't know what mood she was in and he thought, like Akane, she might take his words wrong. She was wrestling with her various emotions; namely guilt, anger, frustration, sadness and confusion. Looking at the boy in front of her she felt all of these rush to the surface at once and fight it out for dominance in her thoughts.

She seemed to come to some kind of conclusion as she almost visibly deflated before him, actually worrying the young martial artist. He walked over, feeling a little more confident now that she hadn't immediately tried to throw him out. He sat in the stool in front of her but she still averted her gaze from his. He couldn't know but it was the guilt over her actions, not just last night but in general, that had won out and now it was hitting her full force. She wouldn't cry, not in front of Ranma, but the overwhelming emotion was taking its toll, removing her ability to speak for the moment.

"Uh hey Ukyo, how ya feeling?" Again he couldn't know but by dropping the affectionate suffix she felt like a knife, that she could almost physically feel, was sliding slowly into her heart. He had only done so because he wasn't sure in what way she would take any hint of affection right now. When she didn't answer he only grew more worried, even if he did breathe a silent breath of relief as he had at least figured out that whatever this was, it wasn't anger.

"Uh Ukyo, I just wanted to say that about a few days ago, well... I'm sor-"

"NO!" She cut him off by nearly screaming it out, frightening Ranma as well as a few customers who, until now, had been enjoying the quiet morning with a delicious okonomiyaki. "Please Ranma don't say you're sorry!" She practically vaulted over the counter, nearly landing on him as she wrapped him into a hug even as tears leaked from her eyes. "I should be apologizing!" And she did, softly whispering that she was sorry into her chest as the tears continued to flow in a steady stream.

Ranma could only stand there in moderate shock, in none of the mental scenarios he had run through his mind had this come up. Even if it had he still didn't think he would have expected it; as it was he could barely believe it was happening. He looked down at the weeping girl, lightly stroking her hair and wondering how he had yet again come into this situation. He was far from his comfort zone, even if he had done nearly the same thing last night, and he could only stand, stare and stroke until finally Ukyo dried her tears.

She parted from him, realising she had held the hug too long. She was also wondering just why he had actually let her, Ranma would normally never allow one of his fiancées be this close to him. With an involuntary sigh she realised it was because he knew he wasn't betraying Kasumi and that just made her want the tears to flow anew. Ranma preempted her, sensing the turn for the worse and quickly pulled her head up to look at his own.

"Ucchan what's going on?" She sobbed and he feared he was too late but she sobered slightly with his strong gaze for strength.

"I saw you on your date with Kasumi" Ranma winced inside 'Who hasn't heard?' "I was going to help Shampoo but I couldn't do it, I'm so sorry." He looked back at her from his own internal monologue and furrowed his brow.

"What do you mean help Shampoo?" Ukyo froze, being caught like a deer in headlights; although to her it was more like an ant in front of a bulldozer. She went slightly limp and only managed to keep her gaze with the pigtailed teen because his gaze held her transfixed.

"Me and Shampoo..." She tried to look away guiltily but her body was frozen in place, unable to move "...we were going to sabotage your date." She finally broke the contact as Ranma looked away from her, seemingly in thought and Ukyo was allowed to drop her head in shame at last. She heard him mumble something about water and a cat and she looked back up, only to be once again staring into his cobalt blue eyes. He stared at her with a mixture of concern and slight betrayal, a look worse than anything he could have possibly said.

"But I didn't do it! I walked away once I realised..." She trailed off, unable to continue her rant as if she said it out loud there would be no going back, she would once and for all confirm her feelings. However this inner turmoil over her next words went unnoticed by Ranma. Or if he did he wasn't showing it as he continued the same look, only with expectance now mixed in. She wilted under that gaze he said nothing but it was evident he wanted her to continue and she sighed, loudly.

"...Once I realised that you were happy with Kasumi." He took a step back from the surprise, he hadn't been expecting that answer and as he looked at the girl in front of him, now looking at the ground, feelings threw his mind into chaos. He realised that her words must have been difficult to say, especially as a rival for his affections. He also still felt anger and disappointment over her involvement in the attempted sabotage, something he was going to have to talk to Shampoo about now.

However if he could forgive Shampoo for all her past 'crimes' then in his heart he knew he could forgive Ukyo for this. In fact he should have been proud of her for walking away like that, it was the biggest change he had seen in her in two years and it made him... happy. He couldn't explain the feeling but just seeing Ukyo finally take his feelings into consideration before acting lightened him inside, pushing out anything negative he felt. He was about to tell her of his forgiveness when she cut him off as she grew anxious during his silence.

"Please Ranma, I know I don't deserve it but I don't want to lose you, even as a friend." She dropped to her knees in front of him, now openly weeping again. "Please?" it was barely a whisper but Ranma still heard it. The crying girl then felt something she expected the least. Two strong and powerful but gentle arms wrapped around her shoulders, drawing her closer into the teen who had initiated the contact. He slowly stood up; bringing her with him, still locked in the hug and he broke it only when her crying stopped.

"Ranchan?" She looked up into his face; he was smiling a small but comforting smile that immediately told her everything was going to be alright.

"Ukyo I forgive you, for everything. Please don't cry" While it was his usual line when presented with a crying girl, this time it was far from in his normal tone. Instead of the frantic, nervous, and overwhelmed boy he was speaking as a calm but gentle young adult. His words were like a cure for Ukyo's ail and her tears stopped immediately, brightening his smile a little. She tried her own, weaker smile but wasn't ready yet, only managing to brighten her eyes ever so slightly which was enough for Ranma's worries to lessen.

"Thank you Ranma, I don't know how to repay-" He stopped her with a raised hand and a warm smile.

"There's nothing you need to do. You're my friend and I don't want to lose you either." Finally she managed the smile and Ranma relaxed.

"I'm happy for you and Kasumi. I want you to know that." She was completely sincere. While her love for Ranma was near undying, the happiness he felt only made her feel better; even if that happiness was coming from somebody other than her. It disappointed her that she couldn't do the same but she was nonetheless appreciative, if not completely thankful of Kasumi.

"I know." He smiled again and her own grew, if only slightly. He was about to go, to give her time to collect herself and clean up; she might not have worn much make-up but what was there was streaked down her face in small rivulets. She stopped him on impulse by grabbing his wrist and he turned curiously.

"Ranma, would you kiss me?" He looked ready to protest and speak but she quickly rushed ahead. "Please? I just want to know what it feels like, just once." His words caught in his throat as he looked down at the dejected girl who merely hung her head in defeat, knowing that her one request would be denied. She couldn't help it; she wouldn't have been able to live with herself if she hadn't asked just onc-

Suddenly she felt herself tugged forward by those same strong arms and her lips were caught in an embrace they wouldn't soon forget. It was like fire from the point of contact and the young woman melted into the embrace, even if it only lasted for a second before Ranma pulled away. He looked highly unsure of himself as he pondered whether or not that was the right thing to do but the look on Ukyo's face had given his heart no choice. He looked at her; there was no goofy or love-struck grin which was good, instead she seemed to think about the kiss as deeply as he just had.

"Thank you Ranma." Her voice was quiet and small but he felt some of her old resolve return to the word and he nodded solemnly. She turned away from him and walked back around the grill in silence, still in deep thought and he took that as his cue to leave. At least one good thing had come about from that kiss, Ranma knew that he never again wanted to do it with anybody but Kasumi. The last few days were really starting to take their toll on his body and mind so he looked forward to going home and seeing the older girl. 'Oh... and spending the rest of my life with her'