Your Touch
By
Jeremy Harper
Note – Ranma ½ is the creation of Rumiko Takahashi and is used without permission.
Chapter 2 – Embraceable You
The sounds of combat echoed from the Tendo Dojo: loud, feminine shouts; the crack and snap of hard thrown punches and kicks; the occasional smack of flesh striking flesh; the rhythmic stamp of bare feet. Within the dojo Akane grinned as she pressed her attack on Ranma. For once, her fiancé was taking a spar with her somewhat seriously. Admittedly he was not going all out, and dodged more often than he blocked, but he was not playing his usual game of keep-away with her. Instead he was trying to out-maneuver her, forcing her off-balance, and upon doing so rap her lightly with his knuckles on the areas where she left herself open. This happened with frustrating frequency at the beginning of the spar, but Akane quickly perceived the flaws in her defenses Ranma was so effectively pointing out and adjusted her forms accordingly. She noticed Ranma's eyes gleam approvingly as she became harder to tag, and his smile, while smug, also seemed proud.
Akane threw a three-punch sequence aimed at Ranma's chest and face in an attempt to open his guard. He parried with ease and countered with a deceptively languid strike at her cheek. She ducked, her dodge flowing into a sweep. Ranma back-flipped over her leg, and Akane somersaulted back with a squeak of surprise, just avoiding the bicycle kick Ranma incorporated into his flip. She pushed herself up, setting to charge Ranma, who was all ready on guard, waiting for her next attack, when the timer they set buzzed, calling an end to the match. The two teens slipped out of guard, relaxing. Ranma shrugged his shoulders, cricked his neck, and ambled over to Akane. "Not bad, Akane," he said. "Not bad at all." Akane tensed involuntarily, waiting for the snide comment that would make the compliment back-handed. It never came. Ranma's smile was warm, the admiration in his eyes honest. Akane bowed her head shyly. "Thank you, Ranma."
Ranma nodded. "C'mon, let's cool down." He started a basic kata, Akane following suit, mirroring his motions. For five minutes they performed silently, in slow unison, soothing the strains from their bodies with simple exercise. They ended by turning to face each other and mutually bowing. Akane smiled at Ranma, and he returned it briefly, then his mouth quirked, his expression becoming thoughtful, almost wistful. Akane canted her head. "Are you all right?" she asked. He looked away, the flush suddenly coloring his face in no way caused by exertion.
"Yeah," he answered, running a hand through his hair. "I'm fine. Just thinking about something, that's all."
"Oh? What about?"
Ranma started to fidget. "Just was remembering when I came back from fighting Herb… How you welcomed me home."
"Oh." Now Akane blushed, ducking her head to stare at the floor.
"Yeah. I…" Ranma hesitated. His voice dropped to less than a whisper, but Akane heard him distinctly. "I really liked that." Both teens were blushing deeply now, looking everywhere around the dojo save for at each other. Suddenly Ranma shook his head. "I'm an idiot," he muttered as he made to leave. He stopped when he felt Akane grab the cuff of his shirtsleeve. The look she gave him was tender, her eyes bright with a kind of longing he never seen from her before. She stepped close, her arms slipping around him. She laid her head against his broad chest, smiling as she listened to the jackrabbit thrum of his heart.
Ranma stood frozen in Akane's embrace, not yet believing what his eyes and body reported. Holding hands had been one thing, but this… again, he had expected to get walloped for being a pervert, and again he found he had misjudged his fiancée. A wash of guilt made him feel unworthy; he started to pull out of her hug, but she pressed closer to him, her hold tightening, whispering out a sigh of contentment. Ranma tilted his head back slightly, his eyes falling closed, Akane's freely given affection dispersing his guilt and trepidation. The feel of her body, soft and shapely and strong, cleaving so close to him… nothing he felt before compared to this. His arms lifted, encircling her shoulders, returning her hug. She sighed again, shifting pleasantly against him, stroking a hand slowly up and down his back.
An eternity all too short passed, and after squeezing each other one last time they mutually parted their embrace. To Ranma, it seemed as if Akane was glowing, her smile solar in radiance. "I'll see you inside, Ranma," she whispered. As she walked past him she caressed his cheek with the back of her hand. When she left the dojo, Ranma collapsed to the floor in a sitting position, reveling in the warmth of his euphoria.
Author's Comments
M. Zephyr – I'll try my best to maintain the innocent feeling of Ranma and Akane's growing closeness. It will definitely remain affectionate, caring, and loving, and in no way raunchy and tasteless.
Thanks to everyone who had kind words for this story and The Memory of Silver and Sapphire. I currently plan on writing at least one more vignette in this series for the immediate future, and then will try my hand at an adventure story.
For whatever it is worth,
Jeremy Harper