Disclaimer: This is a work of fanfiction, I do not claim any rights to any of the characters or

concepts created or owned by Viz Video or Rumiko Takahashi. This is just the work of one fan to the others. The only characters or concepts that I claim are the ones I created or introduced. That said, I bring you:

The Annals of the Heroine Akane, and the Dreaded Demon King. A Tale of the Mirrorverse.

Chapter 25: Picking up the pieces of a broken dream.

Akane blinked slowly as she woke up and looked around. As her mind caught up with events that had happened, she tried to sit up only to be held down by the gentle hand of her eldest sister.

"Ranko?" Akane croaked out before she accepted the water that Kasumi pressed to her lips.

Kasumi smiled a sad smile. "They are gone, all of them. Ran… Ranko cleared out the last of the ones that had surrounded the tower before they…. Flew off."

Akane bit her lip and nodded before she looked at her elder sister. "You knew." She said as she looked down.

Kasumi smiled sadly and nodded before she laid a hand on Akane's hand. "I knew."

Akane looked up and Kasumi flinched at the look of pain and betrayal in her little sister's eyes. "Why? Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because at first all I knew for certain was who Ryouga was, and that he had saved me. It wasn't until later that I figured out just who Ranko probably was, and by then… You two were already getting close. Honestly, it was nice to see you making friends outside of our family. And, you needed someone like her in your life." Kasumi said gently.

"Even if it was all a lie? Even if she, he, whoever! Even if they were really our enemy?" Akane said while hot tears rolled out of her eyes.

Kasumi gently rubbed her little sister's back as she held her until Akane pushed her away. "I need some time. I… I need to think."

"Okay, Akane dear. When you are ready, we can talk. I'd also like to hear what happened in that tower, okay?" Kasumi said as she stood up, then paused and looked back before she walked out of the door. "Whenever you are ready, Akane. We are at one of the outposts, so we are safe for now."

Kasumi gently closed the door behind her and sighed as she leaned against the wall and wiped away the tears that her cheeks. She stiffened as she felt a pair of arms slide around her and then relaxed as Nabiki said softly. "We should go and talk, Kasumi. Let Akane rest for now,.she will talk when she is ready."

Kasumi nodded and let Nabiki lead her away as they held hands. Nabiki cast a worried look at her distraught sister, and opened the door to her room and sat Kasumi on the bed before she sat down next to her. "Talk to me, Kasumi. How are you doing, really? You've been acting differently lately, and I'd like to know what's on your mind, as well." Nabiki said as she leaned against Kasumi's side.

Kasumi hesitated for a minute, then sighed and rested her head against her sister's. "I'm tired, Nabiki. I feel so lost right now. Have… Have you ever doubted everything that you thought that you knew? Have you ever doubted the will of the Goddess?" Kasumi said in a quiet, small voice.

Nabiki jerked a little and pulled away to look Kasumi in the eyes. "You? You are doubting the Goddess? But… But how? Why? You are the most devout person I have ever met, sis."

Kasumi laughed a little, bitter laugh. "They were nothing like I had been taught to believe them to be. There is no way that everything about that sweet, charming woman was a complete lie. If so, at least ONE of the three of us should have caught on at some point. And… And Ryouga is the sweetest, gentlest soul I have ever met."

"Ryouga… The giant boar demon that tried to EAT you, sweet and gentle? Sis, trust me… They are anything but gentle…" Nabiki said with a blush as she groused.

Kasumi eyed Nabiki. "So, when did you figure out that the demoness that had mauled you was the cat that you had gotten so attached to?"

Nabiki turned various shades of red, before she gasped and looked at Kasumi. "You knew! You knew all along, didn't you? About Xian Pu, and… What happened to me…"

Kasumi hesitated and then slowly nodded. "Ryouga told me who Xian Pu was, and I put the rest together when you had me take care of you. Those claw marks were… Rather telling about what happened."

Nabiki sighed and palmed her face. "My sweet, innocent older sister knew. All along, she knew."

Kasumi patted her sister's back comfortingly before Nabiki answered her earlier question. "I found out when the little demonic furball saved me from an orc during the fighting in the tower. I seriously never put it all together."

Nabiki shook her head and smiled a little when Kasumi patted her back again. "You two certainly were close."

Nabiki sighed and nodded as she looked down. "Do… You think we will see them again?"

Kasumi sighed and hugged her sister. "I hope so. I really do."

"So… What happened after you and… Ryouga… got separated from us?" Nabiki asked hesitantly.

Kasumi bit her lip then sighed and hugged Nabiki tightly for a moment. "We were getting attacked in waves… I was able to protect us somewhat with my prayers, but Ryouga took the brunt of the fighting. I… Helped as much as I could, but I'm not exactly the greatest fighter. I leave that up to my two incredible sisters." Kasumi said proudly, then took a sip from the cup of cider that rested on the small table by the bed.

"When the fighting was over… Ryouga.. He was hurt so badly… I… I thought that he was going to die, and that I wouldn't be able to do anything… Just like with our parents." Kasumi took a shaky breath and smiled softly as Nabiki hugged her tightly before she pressed onward. "There was so much blood… I was sure that I was going to lose him… My prayers of healing were not working… But… then I healed him…"

Nabiki smiled and hugged her sister tight. "Of course you did. It's what you do, after all."

Kasumi hadn't really heard Nabiki as she repeated herself again. "I… healed him. I did. I healed Ryouga…"

Nabiki smiled worriedly but continued to hold Kasumi. "You did, sis. The Goddess listened to you, and you healed him." Nabiki thought about it for a minute, then nodded. "We WILL see them again, and when we do… We will get some straight answers from them.". Nabiki looked in the direction of their sister's room. "And we will figure out what to do about those two, as well."

Kasumi wiped her eyes and nodded as she hugged her sister tightly while her mind worked over the implications of what had happened.

She had healed Ryouga. In spite of the Goddess.

SHE had healed him.

Akane laid in her bed as she faced the wall and clutched her blanket tightly as her mind worried at the thoughts that ran through her head like a starving dog gnawing on a bone.

When she thought about Ranko, the sadness and loneliness welled up in her mind and heart like dark, brackish water. There was a tinge of anger, of divine fury. When she let her mind drift to Ranma, what washed over her was hot and toxic. Intoxicating and overwhelming. Like when she used to lose her temper as a child, before she was declared to be the Heroine.

And just like those rages from her childhood, she had somehow managed to curb it, to push it down even for a brief time. It gave her hope that if and when she saw Ranko again… That they could talk without trying to kill each other.

Or at least without her trying to kill them.

Akane laughed a bitter laugh as she sat up and tried to settle her mind and find the peace that Kasumi had helped her discover when she had been a young, angry and lonely girl.

Not that she seemed to have changed nearly as much as she had thought she had. Still, being honest with yourself, about your strengths and weaknesses was a cornerstone of everything she had learned over the years. It would help her find a starting point, so she could take that first step.

After all, Akane Tendo didn't lose.

A while later the three sisters gathered in Akane's room for their meal as they filled each other in on what all had happened in the last day or two.

"So, the patrol that found us had seen a shadow dragon flying off, so they moved in to see what it had been up to. They found the ruins of the manor and the tower, with a section of the forest surrounding it burned to ashes. So, it seems like… our companion… cleared out the last of them before they left. I told the knights a much edited version of what had happened, and they brought us all here. Akane's status as the Heroine hsd earned us some much needed privacy so we can figure out happened, and where we go from here." Nabiki said as she drained her cup and rubbed absently at one of the fading set of claw marks that marked her body here and there.

Kasumi nodded as she glanced over at Akane and sighed. "We need to re-evaluate a lot of what we thought we knew about the demons and their society. It is not nearly as unified as we had been led to believe, and that could change things a great deal. What do we do about the ones that are not hostile to us, and about the ones that are a threat to everyone, demon and human alike? And… How much of what we have been told is lies? Who and what do we trust?"

Akane nodded and looked into her cup. "I need to try to understand what the Hero's power is better, and figure out just… How much control over it I really have. I don't know why I never noticed before just… How little control I have over it." Akane said the last in a small, quiet voice then looked up as she felt a hand on each shoulder and looked into the eyes of her sisters on each side of her.

"Well, you never had a reason to resist the power before. You always had to fight to your utmost to not just survive, but to protect those around you." Kasumi said with a soft smile as Nabiki nodded.

"It's also on us, since we never questioned anything. We always just depended on the power of the Hero to handle situations that we couldn't." Nabiki said, then looked directly at her little sister. "So, can you explain to us what happened, and how it felt? We might be able to help you if we have enough information."

Akane thought about it for a minute then nodded as she started to speak. "The power filled me, like it always has before. But this time… I didn't really want to have it happen. It.. honestly felt like when I used to lose my temper when I was younger. Like I wasn't really in control anymore. I mean… Maybe that was how it always felt, but it was more like a distance before. Like there were two of me, one that watched the battle unfold and was .the entire battlefield, and one that was completely focused on my part in the fight. I'd never felt like it was something bad before. Not until I didn't want to fight."

Akane took a breath, let it out and added one more thing. "It was like something grabbed me and pulled me from out of my body before it placed something else inside."

Nabiki nodded a grim nod while tears started to run down Kasumi's face before she drew Akane in for a long and protective hug.

"We will do our best to not let that happen to you again, Akane." Kasumi said fervently.

"But… There are times we really do need that power of mine…" Akane said as she bit her lip before she let herself give in to the embrace.

"Maybe not as much anymore." Nabiki said with a thoughtful tone to her voice. When the other two looked at her for an explanation she shrugged. "Well, the only being that can trigger that power is someone we are no longer sure that we want to defeat, right?"

Akane and Kasumi shared a look before Akane answered. "That… Might be the case, but what about the war? We can't afford to lose…"

"Well, how it looks to me that there are at least two factions in the Goddess of Night's armies. And at least one of them seems to be after the King's head. If we take what we heard and saw at face value, that is, " Nabiki said.

"I trust Ryouga at his word. " Kasumi said without a trace of hesitation.

"Well, you are biased sis. It's obvious that you are more than a little.. Interested.. in him." Nabiki said with a smile.

"Can any of us be considered to not be biased at this point?" Kasumi replied with an arched brow and a little nod when Nabiki blushed and looked down. "So, we need to talk to those three to get answers. And we need to find a way to keep the Hero's power in check so that those two can talk. It's possible it's only the Demon King and not Ranko that will trigger it. Since when Ranko was the one that Akane saw, she didn't try to kill her."

"That… Might have been true then.. But what about now? Now that I know the truth?" Akane said dejectedly.

"Well, then we find out the answer to that by tracking that troublesome trio down." Nabiki said resolutely.

"And how do you propose we do that, Nabiki?" Kasumi asked.

Nabiki shrugged. "The same way we always have before. By seeking out the main areas of conflict. They will surely be drawn to them just as we will be."

Akane nodded as she bit her lip, then relaxed as she felt Kasumi's gentle hand on her back again. "Then… We chase them down and get the answers we need."

Nabiki nodded as she rested her hand on one of the many places she still bore marks from Xian Pu. She would most definitely be getting answers.

The three sisters shared a look before they stood together and started to get ready to leave. They had a journey ahead of them, and would surely face many trials along the way but they would handle it like they always had. Together, drawing on each other's strengths while covering for the others weaknesses.