Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Ranma and Co...Any damage sustained during the writing of this piece is purely surface, and can be fixed with the application of a good rinse cycle...
The Clinic
Ranma burst into Dr. Tofu's clinic in panic, nearly slamming the door off its track. He barely paused to acknowledge the presence of the waiting patients before rushing back to the treatment area at the back of the clinic. Ranma skidded to a halt when Dr. Tofu stepped out in front of him and put a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"Where is she?" Ranma demanded wildly, gripping the older man tightly.
"Calm down Ranma, she's fine. She's resting now," Tofu reassured him.
"Where is she?" Ranma snarled, dragging Tofu forward. "I need to see her Doc."
"She's upstairs in the recovery room, but..." the doctor trailed off as Ranma disappeared up the stairs at the back of the clinic.
The young martial artist flew into the room at the end of the hall to find it empty except for the blue-haired girl lying in the bed furthest from the door. He was at his fiancée's side in a flash, dropping to his knees, hands fluttering over her, unsure of where to settle. She looked so frail as she lay in the narrow hospital bed, pale blankets tucked up under her arms. Ranma tentatively grasped her hand and bit his lip as her shadowed eyes fluttered open.
"'Kane?" he rasped, forcing the plea past the lump in his throat.
"Ranma..." Akane's voice was a throaty whisper as her sleepy eyes struggled to focus. "Glad you're here."
The scene held too much familiarity and Ranma found he couldn't answer, dropping his head to lean against her side, pressing his face into the mattress as he tried to shove aside the all-encompassing fear that had consumed him since he'd first heard she'd been hurt. He'd always hated the thought of Akane getting hurt, often going out of his way to ensure she wouldn't, but ever since Jusendo, he'd been terrified at the thought of something happening to her. During that horrific adventure, he'd thought he'd lost her twice then and it had nearly crippled him, leaving him with the realization that experiences like that left scars, ones that were less visible than the usual damage he was used to sustaining. The thought of losing her now, when they were finally together, was even more painful and he wasn't completely sure he could survive it.
Fortunately, Akane was aware of all that and – to his extreme discomfort – they had discussed it at length after his first panic attack.
"Hey now," she soothed, squeezing his hand while her free hand began to stroke through his hair. "It's all right. I'm fine, just a bit sleepy from whatever Doctor Tofu gave me." Ranma raised his head slowly, revealing damp cheeks and red eyes. Akane smiled gently at him and stroked her cool fingers across his cheeks, erasing the evidence of his weakness. "I appreciate that you worry about me though, love."
Ranma's cheeks flamed red, the way they always did when Akane addressed that particular endearment his way and she shook her head. "Honestly Ranma..."
Whatever she had been about to say was lost as Tofu entered the room. He sat on the bed across from Akane and raised an eyebrow at the blushing young man. "Now do you believe she's fine?" he asked, his smile taking away the patronizing edge to his words.
Ranma smiled ruefully at the doctor before frowning down at his pale fiancée. "So what the hell happened?" he asked, sitting back on his heels.
It was Akane's turn to blush as she suddenly avoided Ranma's intense regard. "Ah...well, I was at gymnastics practice after school and Gosunkugi had his camera out, you know, taking pictures for the school paper." Ranma rolled his eyes at Akane's naïveté. That creepy little pervert was definitely not taking pictures for the school newspaper.
"Anyway, Kuno came bursting in, yelling about how he'd heard that his 'fierce tigress had taken up gymnastics to increase her flexibility in preparation for the day she will give herself to me'." Ranma choked on spit upon hearing that, and his battle aura crackled into existence around him. Akane shot him a sympathetic glance. "Needless to say, I vaulted the pommel horse and sent him right back out the doors with a flying roundhouse kick." She frowned. "He didn't get nearly the kind of height I was hoping for, but it had the same end result."
Dr. Tofu choked on a laugh and Ranma found himself torn between anger at Kuno's relentless delusion and amusement at the indignation painted across Akane's face.
"That would have been the end of it, except that when I turned to go back to the practice, I had too much momentum and Gosunkugi was behind me. I tripped over him and tumbled head first into the bleachers. I got a bunch of cuts and bruises, sprained my ankle, wrenched my elbow and may have knocked myself out for a bit." She winced as Ranma's hand squeezed hers convulsively.
"Who was there while you were out?" Ranma's growl reached subterranean levels. If any of those guys who normally hung around the girls' gymnastic practice had touched her...
"Yuka was waiting to walk me home, so she got to me first, but Fujiwara-sensei wasn't far behind," she reassured him, patting his hand as it loosened and his expression lightened.
"They called me, and I brought her here," Tofu continued. "And, as I have told you multiple times now, she's fine and a fast healer. The ankle will heal up in a few days, same with the bruises and wrenched joints, and her head is fine. No concussion, no lasting damage, just a lump and some slight dizziness that is pretty much gone. If I didn't believe that it was physically impossible, I'd say her head was as hard as yours Ranma." Tofu grinned at the half-hearted glare Ranma sent his way. "I'll keep her overnight, just to make sure – not that I think anything will happen," he reassured, "but it's better safe than sorry when it comes to knocks on the head."
"Thanks Doc," Ranma said, reaching out his free hand to clasp the older man's. "We owe you one."
"Hello? Is anyone here?" called a sweet voice from downstairs.
Ranma rushed to reclaim his hand as Tofu's glasses fogged over and Akane snickered at the panic on his face. He was just in time as Tofu laughed manically and danced around the beds, clutching the sheets Ranma had shoved into his arms in his panic. The door opened and Kasumi was revealed, smiling gently with her basket tucked securely into the crook of her arm.
"Oh, there you are Ranma. I was worried when you disappeared like that after Yuka called." Kasumi absently patted Tofu on the arm as she passed him, sending him into a paroxysm of giggles as he began to wrap the sheets around his head in a bizarre turban. "Akane, I brought you some things you may need for the night, since Yuka mentioned Dr. Tofu planned on keeping overnight."
"Thanks Kasumi," Akane smiled warmly up from her pillow. "You're so thoughtful."
"I-i-i-it's lovely to see you again Kasumi," Tofu grinned at Ranma, his voice oddly muffled by the yards of fabric swathing his head.
"Man Doc," Ranma muttered, turning the older man to face Kasumi. "One of these days you're gonna have to learn how to pull yourself together when she's around."
Ranma turned back to his fiancée, ignoring the increasingly ridiculous conversation taking place between the two adults. He found Akane struggling to sit up. He frowned down at her as her wrenched elbow refused to hold her weight and she looked up at him with a pleading expression.
"I hate facing people flat on my back," she sighed.
"You're lucky I like you," Ranma grumbled, slipping an arm around her shoulders and shoving a few pillows behind her back before easing her down.
She smiled up at him and patted his cheek in thanks, rolling her eyes when he winked at her. Their attention was pulled back to Kasumi as she laughed – a startlingly loud and joyful sound. Ranma and Akane stared in astonishment as Kasumi clapped her hands over her mouth, eyes sparkling with laughter as Tofu staggered out of the room, walking on his hands with the bizarre turban still wrapped awkwardly around his head.
"Um..." Ranma blinked, looking from his blue-haired fiancée to her brunette sister. "Should I go get him back?"
"Oh, don't worry about dear Doctor Tofu. He'll be back soon," Kasumi reassured her future brother-in-law. She placed her basket on the bed beside Akane and began to empty it onto the bedside table. "Here are your overnight things and a change of clothes for tomorrow. I brought you some cherry blossom mochi for a snack, because I know how much you love it." Kasumi smiled and caressed her baby sister's cheek as she sat on the mattress beside her. Ranma moved to make room for her.
"Thanks Kasumi, you always take such good care of me," Akane murmured, leaning her head back against the pillows.
The two sisters talked quietly together for a while with Ranma leaning against the wall by Akane's head. He watched Akane with narrowed eyes, his fists tightening until his knuckles turned white. He noted the light bruising under her eyes and the fact that her face was only a few shades darker than the pillow. Kuno and Gosunkugi were going to pay for getting Akane hurt like this.
"Hey Ranma. Earth to Ranma..."
"Sorry 'Kane," Ranma apologized, shaking his head to clear it. "What didja say?"
"Kasumi's leaving now. Do you want to head home with her?"
"Naw, I'll stay with you for a while." Ranma flashed a quick smile at his fiancée and her sister before it collapsed into a frown. "Don't tell Pops though, okay? Tell him I'm out training or something."
Kasumi giggled and shook her head. "Don't worry Ranma. As usual, your secret is safe with me."
Akane and Ranma gave the sweet natured eldest Tendo sister a grateful look. She was the only member of their families who knew what was really going on between the two of them over the last six months.
Kasumi kissed Akane's cheek, patted Ranma's arm and headed for the door. They followed her progress out of the clinic by the strange sounds and thumps that heralded Tofu following her out the door.
Now that no one else was around, the two teens rearranged themselves so that Ranma sat propped against the pillows with Akane's head in his lap. He idly stroked his fingers through her dark hair, smoothing out the tangles as he listened to her breathe – a pastime that had become utterly consuming since Jusendo.
"You're worrying again," Akane commented, reaching up to run a finger over the furrowed skin between his brows.
"I don't like it when you get hurt. Especially when it's because of bastards like Gosunkugi and Kuno," he growled.
"Now that's being a bit harsh on poor Gosunkugi, lumping him in with Kuno. He's just an awkward boy who happens to have a healthy interest in the supernatural. Who can blame him, really, with all the weird stuff that happens in Nerima," Akane admonished.
Ranma snorted. "Sure Tomboy, it's a 'healthy' interest." He formed sarcastic air quotes just above her face. "You just keep on believing that."
"Jerk! Are you implying I'm missing something obvious?" she demanded.
"Never mind, it ain't worth arguing about," he answered, miming zipping his lips closed.
Akane failed to get any further words out of him, not even when she weakly went after his ticklish spots. Ranma flopped around, laughing helplessly, carefully shielding Akane from further harm despite his flailing. Eventually Akane gave up and settled huffily back into Ranma's lap as he chuckled softly over his victory.
"What if it's Shampoo next time?" he asked after about ten minutes of silence.
"What if it's Shampoo what? Taking pictures of me? Tripping me? Or excited over the thought of my flexibility and our supposed upcoming consummation?" Akane scoffed.
The martial artist growled and thumped the wall in frustration. "No Akane, I am not secretly worried that Shampoo wants you – which is kinda hot in a kinky way." He winced as Akane dug her nails into his leg and grabbed her hand. "I was trying to be serious here woman. What if it's her fault you wind up in a hospital next time? D'you know what that would do to me?"
Akane sighed "What are we supposed to do, hide how we feel about each other for the rest of our lives? I don't want to live like that Ranma. My training is coming along as fast as you and Uncle Saotome can manage, so what else are we going to do? Run away? She'd find us, and neither one of us is a coward, so we'd come back and be in an even worse position." She smiled up at her fiancé ruefully.
"I know that, you think I don't? It just...the thought of it freaks me out, okay." Ranma scrubbed a hand over his face. "I keep trying to think of a way out and they all end with you getting hurt, and I ain't gonna let that happen. I'll think of something, we just gotta keep this quiet a bit longer, until we figure things out."
"I do understand Ranma," Akane murmured. "I'm just tired of hiding, but I'll keep this up for your peace of mind for now. What's a year or so of hiding compared to spending the rest of my life with you."
Ranma snorted, but was unable to wipe the slightly goofy grin off his face. "That was sickeningly romantic Tomboy, even for you."
"Baka," she drawled fondly.
Neither noticed the shadow outside the window that seemed to glow with an ominous light as Ranma leaned down to kiss Akane teasingly. By the time they surfaced from the kiss, the shadow was gone and they could hear Dr. Tofu greeting a client downstairs, clearly having recovered from his overdose of Kasumi.
They sat together, Akane dozing and Ranma running through the mechanics of a ki technique he'd been trying to perfect in his head, trying to work out how it would work with the different ki paths of his girl side. When Dr. Tofu brought Akane her dinner, Ranma reluctantly headed home to eat in order to keep up appearances, but promised he'd be back as soon as he could get away safely.
Akane dozed fitfully after finishing her food and Dr. Tofu had gone back to his own apartment over the clinic. She was still tired, but felt strangely vulnerable with Ranma gone. As darkness began falling over Nerima, Akane heard the window open and the faint scuff of soft soled shoe on the floor.
"Ranma?" she whispered, searching the darkness of the room when the swelling in her elbow restricted her movement enough that she couldn't reach the lamp beside her bed.
"Harlot," hissed a harsh voice. "You think to steal my Ranma-sama away from me with spells and trickery? I shall free him from your conniving clutches and finally claim him as my own."
"Kodachi? Is that you? What are you talking about?" Akane questioned wildly, wondering what the crazy Kuno sister had seen or heard to send her so far off the deep end.
"I saw you today," she screeched, pulling her preferred extra-large mallet out from under her cloak. "I saw you with your dirty lips all over him. He belongs to me, his lips are mine alone."
Akane gulped as the other girl swooped across the room, gritting her teeth at the pain that crashed over her when she threw herself off the bed and landed in a defensive crouch. Kodachi always did have the worst timing, Akane thought as she observed the rather significant dent the mallet made in the space she'd so recently occupied.
Kodachi yanked the mallet up and leapt at her rival again. Akane rolled over the bed to her right, coming up on her feet and painfully raising her arms in a guard position. She quickly assessed her body's current capacity and was slightly apprehensive at the report she got back. Her jaw firmed in determination after a heartbeat; she'd never let Kodachi beat her yet, and she wasn't about to start now.
The young heir to the Tendo school of Anything Goes shifted into motion as the other girl flew over the bed at her. Akane caught the descending mallet and swept her leg out, taking Kodachi's feet out from under her. The insane gymnast hit the floor with a shriek and Akane avoided the wildly swung mallet blow to her knees by jumping over the oversized blunt object. Unfortunately, Akane missed seeing the ribbon wielded in Kodachi's other hand until it wrapped around her injured knee. The second she landed, Kodachi yanked and Akane's damaged joint gave out, her leg crumpling. She went down hard, stifling a whimper of pain.
Kodachi kipped lithely to her feet with a maniacal cackle, raising her mallet in preparation for hammering Akane into the floor she was struggling to raise herself off of. "At last Akane Tendo, you will no longer hold sway over my Ranma-sama with your evil spells."
The mallet was arcing toward Akane's unprotected head as she fought the screaming weakness of her body to twist out of the way, when a tanned, lightly scarred hand abruptly halted its downward momentum.
"What the hell is going on here?" Ranma demanded, his fiery blue gaze flicking between his crumpled fiancée, panting on the floor, and the delusional girl standing over her.
"Ranma-sama, you came back for me," Kodachi cried, dropping the mallet with a clatter and throwing herself at him. "I knew I could break this foul sorceress' spell."
"What is it with you and your brother and friggin' obsessions with sorcery? Get offa me," he growled, unwinding Kodachi's arms from around his neck and dropping to Akane's side. "Are you alright 'Kane?" His hands slid lightly over the old bruises and injured joints in his search for new damage and Akane stifled a moan at the pain.
Akane pressed her lips together and leaned into his heat, allowing herself this moment of weakness as a reward for not fainting. Ranma frowned at the pasty white colour she'd turned, all except her cheeks, which burned with hectic colour.
"Damn it Kodachi, what the hell were you thinking?" He lifted Akane into his arms gently, wincing at her faint gasp of pain, and settled her carefully into the nearest bed left untouched by Kodachi's frenzy before turning to face the deranged girl.
"She had you under a spell and I came to save you," Kodachi explained with a hurt expression. "Does that harlot still have you under her power? Stand aside then, and I shall dispose of her so you will be free to join with me." She moved toward the pale sweating girl who had struggled upright to face her assailant and Ranma shifted so he remained between them.
"Don't you dare go near her." Ranma's fists were clenched so tightly that his knuckles had turned white and his voice was rough and low.
"Don't worry Ranma-sama, it will be quick, though it is more than she deserves." Kodachi leapt up to balance on the railing at the foot of Akane's bed.
Ranma moved faster than could be tracked by the human eye, slamming Kodachi against the wall, trapping her wrists by her head. "Go near Akane again and I will end you. I ain't under any spell, so you can just fuck off." His voice rumbled deep in his chest, emphasizing his anger.
Kodachi tittered and wriggled sensuously against his hold. "Oh, Ranma-sama, I didn't know you liked it rough too. This is sudden, but I always imagine our first time would be against a wall."
"Gah!" Ranma cried, dropping Kodachi's arms like they were firebrands and leaping backward. He heard Akane's faint "ew" echo his disgust at the whole situation. "Just...just get outta here Kodachi, and don't come back until I invite you back."
"Ohohohoho, Ranma-sama, it is true that absence makes the heart grow fonder, but don't make me wait for long, I am in my physical and sexual prime after all," Kodachi cackled, whipping out her ribbon and swirling it around herself in a cloud of black rose petals before leaping out the window. She left Ranma and Akane staring after her in revulsion and bemusement.
Finally, Ranma shook off his shock and rushed to Akane's side. "Are you okay Akane?" he asked, brushing her hair back from her sweat streaked face. He wondered just how long he was going to be able to hold off the other girls by sending them away or dodging them. This stalemate couldn't last forever.
"Ow." She leaned into his hand.
"I'll get the Doc, just hold on." Ranma was out of the room and down the stairs in the blink of an eye.
When he returned with Dr. Tofu, there was a flurry of activity as they got Akane resettled and her injuries re-treated. Finally Dr. Tofu left to return to his bed and Ranma sat on the side of Akane's bed, watching her worriedly as she relaxed slowly back into the pillow.
"I'm okay Ranma. For real, I promise. I just seem to have lost the ability to move for now...I'm sure it'll pass though," Akane said faintly, pain and exhaustion lacing her tone.
Ranma shook his head in exasperation and just a bit of admiration. "Stubborn Tomboy. Just sleep, okay? The Doc says you need to sleep lots so you heal right. I'll make sure nothing happens while you do, promise."
"No, you should go home and get some rest," Akane slurred as the painkillers Tofu had given her began to kick in "Everyone will wonder where you are and get suspicious."
"Relax, it's taken care of. Kasumi sent Pops and your dad out to find the old pervert," Ranma snorted. "If they stay true to form, they'll be gone all night, pretending they can find him in every bar in Nerima, so I'm staying here tonight with Kasumi and the Doc's blessing. We're just lucky Nabiki is off on that university tour this week."
"'Kay," Akane sighed as her eyes drifted closed. She clumsily patted the mattress at her side. "Plenty of room. Don't forget you need sleep too."
Ranma chuckled as her breath relaxed into the deep rhythms of sleep. He brushed hair out of her face before getting up and making sure that all the windows were locked and the curtains were drawn. Finally, after a thorough circuit of the room, he returned to Akane's bed, slipped off his shoes and crawled in beside her.
He was careful not to jostle her and left a cushion of air between their bodies to ensure he didn't accidentally hurt her in the middle of the night. Ranma knew that this was the last place he should be – not even taking the temptation factor into account - Akane had not been in her right mind when she'd suggested he sleep beside her. She'd probably freak when she discovered him beside her in the morning, but he needed this tonight. Everything that had happened today had him remembering what had happened in Jusendo, and he wanted her close.
"Sleep tight 'Kane," he whispered, pressing a gentle kiss to her cheek. She murmured in her sleep and shifted closer to him, her head lolling to rest on his shoulder.
As he tried to relax enough to sleep, Ranma found he was kept wakeful by two thoughts that chased each other round and round his brain. How was he going to keep Akane safe from the other girls who wanted to marry him without hurting them too badly? And what was he going to do if Kodachi told someone what she'd seen?
The merits of a quiet life were beginning to show themselves more and more clearly. Suddenly Ranma snorted, causing Akane to twitch closer to him. "Nah," he whispered, nuzzling into his fiancée's hair. "What would be the fun in that?" He gave up on keeping his distance and curled around Akane as he resolutely closed his eyes and fell quickly asleep.
AN: Jeez. I would like to extend my sincerest apologies to all the people who have been loyally following this story. My life since August has been beyond insane and I've had a really hard time finishing this chapter. Hopefully it was worth the wait...
This chapter is dedicated to my grandfather - you may not have had the chance to read this Pops, but I know you're proud.