A dim light was entering through the lowered blinds, barely illuminating the room. 'It's starting to dawn.' Ranma thought, eyes fixed on the window. He heard an audible snort from somewhere in the room. Then turned his eyes to the source of the snorting, and could see a big panda shaped silhouette drawn in the scarcely lit room. The snorting increased its intensity, just to decrease a moment later. His father was sleeping deeply, ignorant of what was happening in his son's life, but, for how long? Ranma sighed.
'How I'm gonna tell them?' The question was repeating itself over and over again in Ranma's head for the last hour, since he woke up and couldn't sleep anymore. 'If I have to choose between them and Ryoga, I'm choosing Ryoga, but I don't wanna lose my family, if I can avoid it.'
Ranma lay back down on the bed, hands behind his head and face towards the ceiling. He sighed deeply. Did his life get simpler or more complicated, now that he was with Ryoga? In one hand, all the engagements were over. No more crazy fiancées chasing him, no more doing what his parents and Soun Tendo had planned for him. To hell with the seppuku contract as well. He had no intention to honour it (actually he never had), and his father can commit suicide by himself if he wants. His mother couldn't force her own son to do such a stupid thing. Maybe she never had in mind to force him anyway, but he couldn't be sure. The fact that she agreed to such a horrible and stupid thing involving a little kid, and her own son, and the fear his father had of her made him doubtful. In any case he'll never honour it, and his mother will have to fight him if she tries otherwise.
On the other hand, he won't inherit the dojo, and his father will disown him. He will be on his own. Well, not on his own entirely, Ryoga would be with him. With him, and with her. He smiled to that thought. They were together now. It still looked unreal, that above all the pretty and powerful girls that went after him during the last year and a half, Ryoga was the one who beat them all and won him. But they would be on their own nonetheless. That could mean to be on the road again. It was a hard way to live, he knew too well, and Ryoga too. No, they won't go back to that life again. They'll fetch some work, anything, to be able to live with dignity, under a roof. If he had to work as a waitress in his girl form, he will do it. Anything except to live on the road again.
'What would be the best way to tell them?' He asked himself. Should he talk with Akane first? That seemed to be the most reasonable thing to do. She should know first. And she deserved the truth. He still loved her, just not the way she wanted him to love her. Then he could face his family.
It was decided, he will tell Akane first.
Ryoga wanted to be with him when the moment came, of course. He wanted to support him when he was facing his family and Akane. 'You're not doing this alone, ok?' he told him last night. But he knew that he needed to be alone when telling Akane. It would be too violent if the two of them would be there when telling her.
Ranma looked at the digital clock on the dresser. It said 7:03 a.m. He decided he had slept enough, and Kasumi would be awake soon. He got up, put on his signature black trousers and red Chinese shirt and got out of the room being careful to not wake up anybody making too much noise. After picking a few cookies in the kitchen, he went to train in the dojo until the rest of the house would wake up and Kasumi would make breakfast before they go to school.
The morning would be long for him. He and Ryoga decided that after the turn of events last night, it would be safer if he stayed in his tent at the empty lot, despite some initial objections from Ranma. The pigtailed boy was eager to see his… lover? Boyfriend? They hadn't had a date yet. They would figure that out later. Yes, they had to wait till Ranma finishes school to see each other again. They had a lot to talk about, and lots of things to do. Besides, Ryoga promised him he would not leave the lot until Ranma came back this afternoon, to avoid any chance of him getting lost.
After 45 minutes of training, Ranma heard Kasumi calling him outside for breakfast. He removed some sweat from his forehead, and run to the washitsu, where all the Tendo family were already sitting and waiting for him.
"Good morning!" he said to everyone, before taking his seat. The Tendos greeted him in the same manner. His father was nowhere to be seen. Probably still sleeping.
Several dishes had been laid on the big table, and Ranma could notice a big bowl with steamed rice, another with miso soup, grilled fish and some vegetables. Soun was reading his newspaper as usual, and Nabiki was already leaving. She liked to be at the school early to attend her usual businesses before classes start. Akane seemed to still be pissed at him because of their fight yesterday, judging by the way she looked him. They didn't talk after Ranma returned home at night. Despite that, she asked him as soon as he took a seat.
"Where were you yesterday? You returned pretty late, and you skipped dinner." She tried to ask casually.
Ranma swallowed a lump in his throat. He couldn't say a word about what happened after they had dinner, at least not yet.
"I went with Ryoga to watch a movie at Toshimaen station's theatre. We had dinner at a food stand on our way back home." He answered, trying to keep his cool.
"Oh, I knew you were really good friends, you and Ryoga" added Kasumi, her signature smile on her face.
"Just that?" asked Akane again.
"And we chatted. What else do you think we did?" Ranma was starting to get impatient.
"I don't know. You didn't say anything when you arrived last night, and you and Ryoga are spending a lot of time together lately."
"We're friends. That's what friends do Akane." Ranma insisted.
"Yeah, I can see that. You two are getting along really well. I can hardly believe it." Said Akane smiling. Ranma and Ryoga leaving behind their rivalry was something she hoped for a long time.
"We have nothing to fight for against each other anymore, and we are very alike, so I guess it was natural that we ended up being good friends." 'And now we are more than that.' Ranma thought.
'I hope you can understand, Akane. Last thing I want is to hurt you.' He reflected, but he knew that he will hurt her, when the truth comes out. Knowing her, any other outcome was very improbable.
The two young students finished their breakfast quickly, knowing that they were running out of time to get to school. Once their plates were empty, they got up, went to pick up their schoolbags and exited the dojo, running their way to Furinkan High before Principal Kuno had them grounded with some crazy punishment.
Very much like the day before, the sky was cloudy, but no rain for the moment. And the clouds had a light grey colour, which meant they should not have too much water. On the other hand, the temperature was quite pleasant, around 22 degrees Celsius. A clear improvement over yesterday.
Luckily, Ranma and Akane made it in time to school, so they didn't have to endure any punishment from the Principal. The only obstacle they had to face at the entrance was Kuno, as usual, that was quickly dealt with by both youngsters placing a well-aimed kick to his face, leaving him behind unconscious.
The day passed as any other school day to Ranma. Except that instead of being distracted during class because of boredom, it was because he was thinking about Ryoga, and about the possible consequences of their relationship.
He spent recess talking with Hiroshi and Daisuke about the things they usually talked. At one point Hiroshi asked him when he was going to finally choose one of his fiancées and leave the rest free so they could have a chance to date them. Little they knew that Ranma had chosen already. He wondered what would be the school's reaction when the news became known to everyone. Would they insult him or tease him? A few would try, but they would meet his fists. What Ranma feared the most was to be marginalized by his schoolmates, to be an outcast. But if that was the price to pay for his happiness, so be it. To his own relief, the term would end soon, and he would no longer be a student at Furinkan High.
The school day finally ended, and Ranma and Akane walked their way back home, as every day, but the pigtailed boy was lost in thought, his head lightly tilted looking the street floor. Akane was wandering what was going on her fiancée's mind. Since yesterday, he seemed different. When he returned last night he was cheerful, but after saying 'Tadaima' he went directly to his room. Today, during the classes, he had been more distracted than usual, always looking like pondering about something important. She wondered what could it be.
"Ranma, what's the matter? It looks like something's running through your mind. Did something happen with Ryoga?" Ranma's eyes went wide, not expecting a question like that, but he didn't look at her, hopping she didn't notice his reaction. Did she know? It couldn't be. "Did you have a fight?" She continued. "I know how close you two have become, and I could understand that a fight now would trouble you more than if it had happened a year before." Ranma sighed with relief. 'That was close.'
"Yeah, that's it. We argued about some nonsense, and we separated pissed off at each other. But don't worry about it. You know we've been through much worse than that. We'll make peace next time we meet." He lied. For the moment, he had to. At least until he could find a good moment to tell her the truth, and think about the best way to explain.
Akane seemed satisfied with Ranma's lie, and they resumed walking to Tendo home, with Ranma relief for dodging a bullet, at least for the moment.
After lunch, Ranma went to his room, excited and nervous at the same time. Last night, Ryoga told him that he would take him out for a date, this afternoon. They decided to do it in the afternoon so they could finish the date at a reasonable time, not making anyone suspicious, and far from Nerima, to reduce the chances of someone recognising them. A date, with a guy. A date with Ryoga. His father would say he had gone mad, and he will probably say it, when they tell him. It's incredible how much things have changed in the last months. From rivals to dating together.
Ranma was anxious to see his boyfriend. 'Yes, he's my boyfriend, and I'm his… girlfriend? Boyfriend? He had decided to go as a girl, so today he was going to be his girlfriend. That way they would draw much less attention. The question was, should he (she) wear his (her) usual clothes, or maybe something more appropriate for a date? There had to be something not too girly he (she) could wear that would fit a date. But why was this important to him? Was he really willing to wear girl's clothes? Well, he has worn them on many occasions, and for reasons much less important than this. But those times they were disguises, he argued to himself. This time it would be for real. 'Yeah, and I will do it for the person I love. This time I want to do it for him… So I'm gonna do it, but what do I wear?' You could hear the gears moving in Ranma's head, until he finally came to a decision.
"Yes! That will do." He said out loud.
Ryoga was bored to death. He promised Ranma he would not leave the empty lot to not risk getting lost, but staying in that barren spot for so many hours alone, it was taking its toll on him. He could have trained, but presenting yourself covered in sweat to your first date was anything but appropriate, and he couldn't go to a public bath because he would get lost on the way there. So he limited himself to just katas, and he did every single one he knew. After the last kata, he didn't know what else to do anymore, so he just sat in front of his tent. After an hour of just sitting there, he started to get hungry, and he decided to go and prepare something to eat. That would get him distracted for a while at least.
Browsing his backpack for some instant ramen made him realize he was running low on supplies. That was a problem. He barely had a few cans of yakitori and one or two of tsukune, and nothing else. He looked around not sure of what to do, when he noticed a little supermarket just across the road that went besides the lot. It was clearly visible though he didn't noticed before, and the lot was just next to it. He was in luck.
After grabbing his backpack, he walked to the supermarket, very careful to keep his eyes on the building the whole time, just to make sure he didn't get distracted. In a couple of minutes, he was at the front door of the shop, and went inside. The place was not too big, with a couple of checkouts near the front door, and beyond there was a maze (at least for Ryoga) of different aisles of products the shop was offering. He asked to one of the workers there where to find canned and instant food, and she gave him some directions. Very politely and with some embarrasment, Ryoga asked the girl if she could lead him to the location, and after a couple of seconds of hesitation, she agreed and lead him to the desired place. Once there, he thanked the girl and she went to continue with her duties. He then started to get the supplies he needed, picking up some bottled water too, which was conveniently stored next to the canned food section. After placing everything in his shopping basket, he proceeded to return to the checkouts section to pay, walking along the lane and turning right as he remembered when he was brought here by the supermarket worker, but that turn led him to another lane of which he didn't have any memory. He tried not to panic. Walked to the end of the lane and turned left leading to a long corridor with several lanes that intersected, but no sign of the checkouts. He was now in panic. Lost in a supermarket. 'Mark another one in your list of embarrassing moments because of your troubled sense of direction, Ryoga.' he thought. He tried to find anyone to ask for help, but it seemed that today was a slow day for the shop, because he couldn't see any customers anywhere, nor any workers.
A couple of hours later he managed to finally find the checkouts, and with great relief he paid his purchase and exited the place. Right in front of him it was the empty lot, and his tent. Once he was in front of his tent, with his backpack laid on the ground next to him, he took a look at his watch. Nearly 4:30 p.m. He didn't realize it was so late. His adventure in the supermarket definitely had took its time. He quickly sat down and started to prepare his camping stove to make some instant ramen. After several minutes, he was happily eating his food, satisfied of being able to get the needed supplies and not ending up in Okinawa in the process. With his date time getting closer, he started to grow nervous. He knew where to take Ranma for the afternoon. He just hoped that she… he would like it.
Finishing his food, he took a look at himself. His clothes were pretty worn, and a little dirty. He panicked again. There was no way he would present himself dressed in those rags in front of Ranma. He entered the tent carrying his backpack and started to browse it looking for the newest piece of clothes he had. Luckily, all the ones in his backpack were clean. He picked the newest looking pair of black trousers and mustard yellow long sleeved tunic he could find, considering he only had long sleeved tunics and a few yellow and black sleeveless shirts and several black trousers. That was all his wardrobe. Once he picked the chosen clothes, he quickly changed to the new ones, storing the worn and dirty ones in his backpack.
Once outside, Ryoga kneeled down near the camping stove and the cooking pot where he prepared the ramen, and started cleaning up and packing everything. He was nearly finished when he noticed a woman in the distance, but he didn't recognize her, so he returned to his task. A minute later a feminine voice called him a few meters from him.
"Or you ate really late or you left the cleaning for the last moment" she said playfully.
"Ranma! Yeah, I got a bit carried away and I had to lunch late" Ryoga replied, still not looking at her. Then he raised his head and turned his eyes to her. His mouth went agape, and his eyes went wide not believing the girl in front of him was Ranma.
She was styling her hair loose and combed, falling gracefully over her shoulders. The intense red of her mare was making her appearance more spectacular, and the contrast with her intense blue eyes was just incredible. She was wearing a nice and simple light green v-neck t-shirt and tight blue jeans, which delineated amazingly her exquisite figure. To complete the outfit, she was wearing black low heel Mary Janes shoes and navy socks. She was… stunning, and Ryoga couldn't believe how beautiful she was dressed like that. His brain short-circuited and all he could do was just staring at her with his eyes like dishes and his mouth open.
Ranma moved her hand to her mouth and repressed some giggles. 'Just as I expected' she thought happily. "Well, how do I look?" she asked amusingly.
"Y… you lo… look… You look amazing Ranma." He finally could say after babbling for a moment. Then he raised and moved to get closer to her.
"Really? Great. It would have been a real bummer to go to all the trouble to dress like this and you not liking it. Even I had to get out of the house through a window so nobody could see me." She said smiling sheepishly. She loved the amazement expression in Ryoga's face. He looked really adorable. "Ok, you won a prize for being so cute." She said, and then brought her lips to his and kissed him lovingly, with gratitude. Ranma knew that she should be careful so close from the Tendo dojo, but in that moment didn't think about it.
Ryoga loved the feeling of Ranma's lips against his, soft and warm, a feeling that fuelled his heart. A moment later, their lips parted and they opened their eyes to stare at each other's.
"I hope to be worthy of more prizes like this one during our date." He said smirking.
"We'll see. You'll have to work hard." Ranma said while sliding her index finger through his cheek.
Ryoga chuckled. "Ok, fair enough."
"Did you think of a good place to go for our first date?" she asked looking sheepishly at him.
"As a matter of fact, yes. I know of an Arcade Saloon not too far away from my home. Besides, it's far enough from Nerima, as you wanted." He said with confidence. "I've been there a few times, when I managed to find it, and it's a lot of fun."
"An Arcade Saloon…" she said doubtfully. "But I have never played video games in my entire life."
"That's why I want to take you there. It will be a new experience for you. I'm sure you'll like it."
"Ok, I trust you. C'mon, we'll go to your home first, and then we'll look for the place from there." The readhead said while offering her hand to Ryoga.
"Sounds like a plan. Wait a moment. Let me pack my things and we're good to go." He said resuming the task of storing his cooking utensils in his backpack.
"You can put your things inside your tent. I don't think anyone will steal them. Besides, who could lift your backpack except you?" she joked. "Do you have a padlock for the tent's zip?"
"Yeah, I have one." He said, and after a moment, his backpack and umbrella were inside his tent. "Ok, now to zip the door and close the padlock. There, ready. We're good to go." He looked to Ranma and smiled.
"Ok Romeo, off to our date." She said, and grabbed Ryoga's hand, giving him a light squeeze.
They didn't notice a pair of eyes that were spying on them from the distance. The couple didn't hear the clicking of a camera neither. When they left the empty lot, the unknown spy left the place as well, satisfied with the taken photos. They would be put to good use…
After half an hour of walking, the two love birds were facing the front door of the Hibiki residence. Shirokuro could be heard barking loudly in the backyard, no doubt she had sniffed her master's scent.
"I'll go check on Shirokuro. It's been a while since I was here and I'm going to make sure that she has enough food and water. It will be just a moment." He opened the door and invited Ranma to enter the house. Once inside, she took a quick look at the living room, and she didn't notice any change. All was just like the last time she was here, like a year ago, when she disguised herself as Ryoga's fake sister, Yoiko. Ranma smiled at that memory. She remembered how mad Ryoga was when he found out that her 'sister' was in fact herself, his rival, messing with him.
She sat down on the big couch in the living room, waiting for Ryoga to check on Shirokuro's food and water. Constant happy barks could be heard from the back side of the house. After a few minutes, Ryoga was back. "All settled" he said smiling, and offered his hand to Ranma. She took it without hesitation, and they exited the house.
"Great. Now we only have to find that Arcade Saloon. Is that its name?" Ranma thought that it wouldn't be hard to find the place, provided Ryoga could remember the name of that saloon.
"No, it's called Ebisen Arcade. It's near Ekoda Train Station. I just hope it still exist." He said with a worried expression. "It's been years since the last time I was there."
"Don't worry. I have a hunch that it will be there." She said with confidence, and then she kissed her boyfriend on his cheek. That made Ryoga to blush instantly.
"You know how to raise a man's spirit Ranma. Ok, let's go. You lead." He said, his cheeks red.
The walk to the Arcade was an adventure in itself. Since Ryoga couldn't tell where it was, they had to keep asking people until they met a group of teenagers, a couple of years younger than the two martial artists, that knew the place and gave them the proper directions. Ryoga regretted not peeing in his home's bathroom, because right now he was feeling his bladder about to explode. After a few minutes walking with Ranma taking the lead, they were traversing a small park. Ryoga noticed a little building with the word 'Toilets' in a sign fixed to the front wall, and he stopped.
"Ranma, I need to pee. There's a toilet over there. Do you mind to wait for me here for a moment?
"Of course man, what kind of question is that? Go ahead. I'll be just here when you finish." She replied winking at him.
Ryoga smiled and nodded, and then run to the toilet, disappearing inside. A few meters away from the building, Ranma saw a stone bench which was empty, and sat down on it. She observed a zone with swings where several children were playing under the watching eye of their mothers, and smiled at how happy they looked.
A couple of minutes passed and Ryoga was still inside the building. 'I hope he doesn't get lost in there. And I hope this Arcade Saloon is a funny place. He seemed pretty convinced. Please, let this date go well.' She was pleading to the Gods, wishing good luck in her first date with the man she loved, when she felt a hand resting on her shoulder. Her first thought was that it was Ryoga, but she immediately saw her mistake.
"My, my, what a beauty we have here, and she's all alone, hahaha" a big man with a scar on his face and frizzy black hair sat by her side. Another guy with sun glasses appeared in front of her. They must have approached from behind the bench, Ranma thought, and being distracted, she didn't notice them. "Baby, you're really hot. A pretty girl like you shouldn't be alone in this place. It can be dangerous."
"Thank you for your concern, but I can defend myself. Now get lost." She ordered, slapping his hand away.
"Ouch! You're pretty strong eh?" The thug said while rubbing his hand. "Hey Chiharu, we have a resisting one, just how I like 'em." the two brutes started to laugh in unison. Then he stared with lust to her cleavage. "Little bunny, I'd love to fuck those nice big tits of yours." Suddenly, he reached his hand and groped one of Ranma's breasts.
In a split second, Ranma grabbed the thug's hand moving it away from her and, while getting up, she twisted it until a snap could be heard, and a terrible scream came out from his throat. The other guy was still processing what just happened when someone called from behind.
"Hey you!" Ryoga screamed. The guy turned to see who it was, and as soon as he faced the martial artist, he received a strong punch to his face that threw him several meters away. He fell to the ground unconscious.
The other guy was on his knees, holding his broken wrist while whining. Ranma stared at him for a couple of seconds and decided that he had had enough. He probably learned his lesson.
"Are you ok?" Ryoga asked her with concern.
"Yeah, don't worry. Nothing I've not been through already. Let's get out of here." She said and grabbed Ryoga's hand, walking out of the park. Once they were outside of the place, Ryoga was the first to talk.
"I leave you alone for a couple of minutes and you get into trouble. What am I going to do with you?" he said joking with a malicious smirk.
"You know me, I'm all charm" she said, batting her eyelashes. They both laughed, releasing the tension from moments ago. A couple of idiots were not going to ruin their date.
Ranma wrapped her arms around Ryoga's arm, while they kept walking. The young man turned his eyes to his love, finding hers, and they both smiled. She tilted her head, resting it on his shoulder.
Finally, they arrived to the sought after Ebisen Arcade. There was nothing spectacular about the entrance. A big sign with the name of the place illuminated by neon lights, and the entrance itself was a simple glass door with a metal frame. But when they entered the Arcade, Ranma was speechless. A huge hall was cramped with arcade cabinets each one decorated with really cool marquees and with its own illumination. The music and sounds of every arcade game mixed together in a cacophony of electronic chaos, but to Ranma, it wasn't bothering. Quite the contrary, she found it cool and it set perfectly the ambience for a place like this. There were several tens of youngsters of different ages playing to different games or browsing, looking for another arcade cabinet that would give them their next dose of fun.
"Now we pay a couple of tickets for 1600¥ each one and we can play how many games we want and how many times we want." Ryoga explained to Ranma, who was listening to him, but couldn't stop looking the endless rows of arcade cabinets distributed throughout the huge hall.
They walked to a small table with a computer, where a young man, maybe a couple years older than them, was typing in the computer's keyboard. Ryoga paid for two tickets, and they were allowed to access to the main hall. First Ryoga took Ranma to look around, getting a glimpse of every cabinet.
"There are a lot of new games. I remember the older ones, but the newest ones must have been released during the last few years, because I don't know them." Ryoga told her, raising his voice so she could hear him over all the ambient noise.
During the next 90 minutes, they tried several games, most of them playing together. They played shooters, platformers, brawlers, sports, even light gun games. Seeing Ranma's face, Ryoga could not be any happier. She was having a blast, and she looked like a kid when she received her Christmas presents.
Once they finished their last game, Ryoga told her. "Ok, now I've got a surprise for you" said while looking for a specific game, walking through the corridors of cabinets. "I've left this one for the end, because I think you're going to love it."
"What game is it?" asked Ranma with curiosity.
"It's a fighting game. You've already seen a few, but this one is the very best of all. Ah, there it is, come on." said the Lost Boy leading his girlfriend to one of the cabinets. A huge image of a warrior with a red bandana was on the side of the arcade. In the marquee it could be read the title: 'Street Fighter II'. Since the intro of the game, where a muscular guy punched another in a street brawl, and hearing the music, Ranma could feel that this game was special. They pushed the start button for their players, and a rooster of 8 fighters appeared in front of them.
"Pick anyone you like. Just don't pick Zangief or Dhalshim now. They are hard to use for beginners." Ryoga selected Guile, an American blond guy with an impossible haircut.
Ranma looked for a few seconds, and selected Ryu, the guy from the image in the cabinet, that sported a white gi and a red bandana. "This one looks cool. He reminds me of someone" she said while looking to Ryoga with a giggle. He lifted one of his eyebrows and smiled.
Before the combat started, Ryoga explained to Ranma the basics of how to control her fighter, and told her a few special movements. Then they started to fight. Ranma found controlling this game quite different from the others they had played. You had to anticipate your opponent movements in order to block him and counter-attack. She lost the first two rounds, losing the match, but the second one was close to a tie. They played another combat with the same fighters, and using what she had learned from the first one, she was more careful, striking, then immediately blocking, using more the special movements. After two very close rounds, which ended in a win for each one, the third round was almost like a real fight. Both being very focused, Ryoga put to good use the Flash Kick to avoid Ranma's aerial attacks and keeping her at distance with his Sonic Boom, while Ranma was bombarding him with Hadokens whenever she could, waiting for an opening, and attacking his feet with low kicks. Nearly without energy both of them, Ryoga failed his Flash Kick and Ranma took advantage of his mistake to hit him with a flying kick, and thereafter beating him with a low strong kick. 'Ryu wins' could be read on the screen.
"Ohh, come on. I nearly got you there. If I hadn't messed up my Flash Kick…" said Ryoga whining.
"But you did, mister, and left an opening." She said winking at him and sticking her tongue out.
"You're a fast learner, always have been." He conceded with a big smile, and then kissed her lips softly, which she thanked with a quick groan.
"I'm not gonna let you win because of that" she told him smiling.
"So, care for a rematch?" he said defiantly, and she nodded without losing the smirk.
They spent another half an hour playing Street Fighter II. Ryoga was right, she loved that game. She had to think strategically, fooling your opponent making him believe you would do something but in the next move change tactics and surprise him, or wait for some mistake on his part. It had quite a few strategies close to a real match, and she could appreciate that. She would definitely play again this game next time they would come here.
A voice coming out from several speakers hanging from the walls announced that the Arcade was going to close in 5 minutes. Ranma left a long whimper of disappointment and looked at Ryoga. He couldn't do anything but to shrug.
"We'll come back soon. I promise" he said with a comforting smile.
"I'll take you on that." she said pointing a finger at him. "Let's get something to eat. I'm starving." After thinking for a few seconds she added. "We can look for someplace on our way back, or we can get some takeaway food and have dinner in your home. What do you think?"
"Whatever you may prefer Ranma. I don't mind any of those two."
"Ok, then will have dinner at your home. That way we give company to Shirokuro. She must be very lonely." She decided, scratching her chin.
"Ok, that sounds great."
30 minutes later they were in Ryoga's house, preparing the dining table in the living room. A couple of medium size pizzas were resting in the table. A couple of dishes and glasses had been placed, along with a knife to cut the pizzas. Shirokuro was circling around them and wagging her tail repeatedly, not losing detail of what they were doing. Ryoga was coming from the kitchen with a bottle of water.
"She's pretty excited uh?" Ranma commented about the dog while chuckling.
"She's not used to have people here." Replied Ryoga while Shirokuro was jumping over him. "Shirokuro, sit down!" he ordered, and the dog sat down obediently. "That's better, girl." And he petted her.
With Shirokuro more calmed, they were able to dinner, chatting animatedly about the two idiots in the park, but especially, about the experience in the Arcade Saloon. How she loved the place, the decoration, the ambient with all the music and sounds effects from the different cabinets mixed together. The cooperative experience from the two player games imbued a sense of team work to both martial artists that reminded them of the times they fought Herb and Saffron together. And the icing on the cake for the time they spent there was the Street Fighter II game. Ranma loved the way you had to play it, the way you had to think to best your opponent. When Ryoga told her about the Arcade Saloon, no having played a videogame ever, she feared she would not like it, but now, she could state that the experience had been amazing. This was the first date she had ever had. The problems with Akane and the difficulty to express their feelings didn't allow them to have a proper date, but with Ryoga, everything was so easy, so smooth. He was the sweetest boy she had ever known, and the bravest. He made her feel safe, understood, and she trusted him with her life. With him, she was totally comfortable being a girl, something that none of her loved ones or other people she knew had accomplished, and with many of them quite the contrary.
In time, they finished their pizzas, and started to clean up. Once the clean-up was done, they sat comfortably on the big couch, with Ranma cuddled to Ryoga, her head resting on his shoulder. They stayed like that for a few minutes, with Ryoga stroking Ranma's hair.
"You have a beautiful hair. I never noticed. It's so soft, and it smells so good." Confessed Ryoga to her, feeling the softness of her red mane.
"Thanks. I used a hair conditioner when I bathed before picking you up" she smiled to him. It amazed her the things she was willing to do for him, things that a year before would had made her go bonkers, but now they didn't bother her, she reflected. "To tell you the truth, it's more comfortable this way. I like braiding my hair, but maybe I wear it this way more, at least in my girl form."
"You don't have to do anything that you don't feel comfortable with because of me Ranma. You know that, right? I love you just the way you are" he assured her.
She chuckled to the concern of her boyfriend. "I know that silly. It's true that I do these things for you, but I really don't mind doing them. I… I'm starting to like them in fact. Just don't expect me to go all girly on you." She said smiling, tapping softly his nose.
Ryoga stared at her with his eyes filled with love. He tilted his head down, looking for a kiss from the beautiful redhead cuddling to him, and she looked at him with the same love, and satisfied him, locking her lips with his, softly, tenderly. After several seconds, they parted their mouths, not averting their gaze form each other.
"Ok, now we need to discuss something that we can't delay anymore." Ryoga started. "How do you want to handle this with your parents and the Tendos." This was something that sooner or later they had to talk about, and he thought that better sooner than later.
"Yeah, we need to decide something. We won't be able to keep this a secret for much longer." A feeling of fear started to form in Ranma's guts. She knew they were about to bring a storm to her family, but she knew as well that it was something they had to face if they wanted to be together.
"Whatever the way you decide to take, I'll be with you till the end. You won't do this alone, ok?" reassured Ryoga, giving her a soft squeeze with his arm around her shoulders.
"Yeah, ok." She nodded. "Thank you Ryoga, it means a lot, and it will be a lot easier with you by my side. I… just hope we can make them understand, in time at least." The redheaded girl said thoughtful.
"If the worst happens and they cast you out, we can live here, all the time we want, until we find a permanent solution." He told her with determination. It was a good thing he had a house that was empty most of the time.
"But what about your parents? You think they would be ok with that?" she argued with concern.
He negated with his head. "There won't be any problem. They barely come home, and in any case they are not like your parents. I'm sure that once we explain, they will be ok with us staying here."
"O… ok" she nodded again, not totally convinced, but Ryoga knew his own parents better than her. "Then, tomorrow we'll tell 'em. I'll make sure both my parents are there, in the dojo, so we don't have to go through the same twice."
"Fine, tomorrow then. Don't worry, well get through this. I promise." He said. He meant it, and she could feel it.
Ranma raised her head to look at her loved one, her friend, her boyfriend, and their gazes met. Again, Ryoga made her feel safe, confident in their future together. She felt his love in his eyes, and knew that he would never abandon her. She knew that she wanted to spend the rest of her life with him, and that he wanted the same, that he felt the same for her.
She closed her eyes, closing the distance between them, and a couple of tears ran through her cheeks. He approached his lips to hers, eyes closed too, and their lips touched, timidly at first, but more and more passionate with every passed second. At one moment Ryoga claimed Ranma's tongue with his own, and she satisfied his demand. Both tongues moved against each other in a lustful dance, not wanting to give up, not wanting to stop.
Meanwhile, Ranma took Ryoga's hand and placed it on her bosom, moving it slowly, asking him to caress her soft breast. He obliged, and with great tender he started fondling her breast while keeping tasting her mouth with his tongue. He realized that she was wearing a bra, which surprised him, but continued fondling her sensitive breast, which made her moan, satisfied, overwhelmed by the pleasure she was feeling. She moved one of her hands to Ryoga's groin, touching his hardness, caressing him slowly, but without hesitation. She rubbed her hand along its length over the pants, up and down, making Ryoga groan. All of this was making them feel like in a dream state. Everything around them disappeared. There were just them, and the task at hand, which was feeling each other, pleasuring each other.
She then slid her hands under Ryoga's tunic, fondling his abs, moving her hands to his chiselled pecs, getting so aroused by feeling his muscles. She could not hold it anymore, and after interrupting their passionate kissing, she took off his tunic and threw it to one side, resuming again her caressing of his muscles, now on his naked torso. He then retaliated, stopping her for a moment, and took off her shirt, revealing that she was wearing a bra indeed, a nice but simple light green padded bra. Ryoga stared at it, drawing a playful smile on his face. When Ranma realized what he was looking at, she blushed, and sheepishly grinned. Then she proceeded to remove the bra, slowly, seductively, letting it fall to the floor. When it was removed, her beautiful ample breasts were exposed in all their glory. Ryoga almost suffered a nose bleed at the sight. He had seen Ranma's breasts before, and they almost always had the same effect of him. But this time there was something different. Ranma was showing them to him, she was offering herself to him, and this made him feel excited, thrilled, but at the same time he felt some concern. There was something he needed to ask her.
"Ranma, are you sure you want to do this? We don't have to if you're not sure. I can wait until you're ready. I don't want to rush things." He said taking one of her petite and delicate hands.
"I'm sure, and I want to do this, as long as it is you with who I'm doing it." She answered while caressing his cheek with her other hand. He smiled, and nodded. "Please, keep touching me Ryoga. It feels so good." She asked suggestively.
He resumed fondling her breasts, caressing one of the pink nipples with his thumb, all while kissing tenderly her neck, little by little. She moved her hand to the back of his head while moaning loudly. It seemed like an electric current was running through the body parts where Ryoga was touching her. Then he moved his kisses from her neck to one breast, and started to kiss her nipple, softly, then using his tongue, feeling how it turned hard under his care. This was making Ranma crazy. She was panting and groaning to the intense pleasure Ryoga was making her feel, and a new need was growing inside her. A need she couldn't resist anymore. A very feminine need.
"Ryoga…" she said while panting, lifting his head to make him look at her. "I need you… I need you, please."
"I'm here my love." He answered, trying to make her feel safe and cared, trying to assure her that he will always be there for her.
"I… I need to feel you inside of me." She pleaded, still panting and her cheeks as red as her hair. Ryoga swallowed a big lump in his throat and started sweating. He thought his head was going to explode. 'We're going to do it, we're really going to do it.' He thought, still finding it hard to believe.
Ranma started to unbutton her jeans, pushing them down, which snapped Ryoga out of his thoughts. When the jeans were at the level of her ankles, he helped her to take them off completely. Then Ryoga noticed the second piece of her underwear, a nice and cute bikini type panty, same colour as the bra. It looked so nice on her. He was starting to wonder where did she get the underwear from, when he saw her remove the panty as well, and his eyes couldn't go wider, starting to feel giddy.
She remained sat in the couch, totally naked, looking sheepishly at Ryoga, who was staring at her blushing.
"It's your turn." She told him.
"M… my turn? For what?" he replied confused, still hypnotized by the sight of such an adorable being. Her loose red hair and her beautiful face gave her the look of an angel, her generous breasts were hanging graciously and had a perfect shape, her waist giving her a nice hourglass form, and long legs nicely toned from her constant exercise. She was a sight to behold that left him speechless.
She giggled. "Your pants silly."
"Oh, right." He said embarrassed for being so dense. The Lost Boy unbuttoned his pants and pushed them down together with his boxers until he was totally naked.
Ranma took a good look at his body too. His broad shoulders, chiselled chest, defined abs, strong arms and legs that looked like coming from a Greek God or a hero from the Iliad. He was more muscular than her male form, she concluded, reflecting his training being focused in power, while her own focus was in speed, her male body being well built, but slender. Then she looked at his manhood and she saw that even there he was well gifted, especially now that he was so well 'motivated'. She had a flash image of what he would do to her with that 'tool' and blushed furiously, getting aroused at the thought. His body excited her, she found him really attractive, and the idea that a man's body could accomplish that made her a little nervous. Did this well sculpted body attracted her because it was Ryoga's, or did she felt attracted to men in general? She didn't know, and didn't want to think about it in this moment. All that mattered was that she loved Ryoga, and to show him her love she wanted to gift herself to him, give him her most intimate possession, her body, her virginity.
Ranma extended her arm to him, making a gesture with her hand inviting him to come to her. He obliged, and sat next to his girlfriend, both looking to each other. She brought her lips to his, and kissed him with passion, using again her tongue to taste him, to feel his own tongue in another dance of desire. He leaned over her, moving his body over hers and resting his weight over her own body, feeling her breasts pressing against his chest, while keeping the passionate kissing. She then spread her legs, uncovering her treasure and offering it to him. The strong young man positioned himself over her delicate body with great care, so his manhood was aligned with her opening. He stared at her, asking permission, and she nodded. That was all he needed, and entered her tenderly, but without hesitation. She moaned loudly, feeling a pleasure she had never felt before. Not when she had pleasured herself in male form, but neither in female form when she tried to 'experiment'. Ryoga pushed his hips against hers, reaching all that his length allowed, and then pulled back, only to thrust again. This was creating a rhythm, a flow that generated waves and waves of pleasure, waves that irradiated from their groins towards the rest of their bodies.
She wrapped her legs around his hips, resting her calfs against his thighs, and making force to push him inside her with more strength. She had her eyes close, her mouth open, and with each thrust she moaned and panted, her full body moving up and down with each push from Ryoga, and her breasts bumping against his chest. She felt the orgasm building up inside her, nearer with each thrust for the young man, its intensity growing stronger.
"Don't stop Ryoga! Please don't stop! I'm so close!" she managed to tell him between gasps, the pleasure increasing more and more.
Ryoga was very close to his climax too. He kept moving rhythmically, pushing and pulling back his hips and feeling how his orgasm was getting closer. He was sweating profusely, gasping because of the physical demand what he was doing required. He couldn't hold it anymore, and climaxed, groaning loudly at the feeling of voluptuousness that irradiated his body. He kept thrusting though. He wanted Ranma to experience such a wonderful feeling too, so he kept moving, he kept the flow, and she wailed with each thrust, louder each time.
"I'm almost there! Please Ryoga, please! Don't stop!" she begged him, and wrapped her arms around Ryoga's neck.
Suddenly her orgasm exploded making her utter a long moan, her back curved, lifting her body from the couch, nailing her fingers on his back. The feeling was making her like losing her head. She couldn't believe she could feel so much pleasure in this body, in a woman's body, her body. It was unreal.
Little by little, the feeling was growing weaker, and she suddenly collapsed on the couch, panting loudly and covered in sweat.
After a few seconds, Ryoga kissed her lips softly and stared at her. "I love you…" he said, feeling complete now. All the loneliness, all the bitterness he felt all those years forgotten in this moment. He had Ranma with him now, and he loved her like he had never loved anyone before.
She smiled, feeling his love in his beautiful brown eyes, and gave him the only possible answer she could give. "I love you Ryoga." The redheaded beauty kissed him back, caressing his black hair. Then they parted their lips, and moved so Ryoga could lay on his side and back, supporting his head with a cushion, and Ranma was cuddled to him, her left leg over his left thigh and her left hand over his strong chest. Her head was resting on his arm, which wrapped around her, holding her tight. Her breath was now more regular, and she was delineating his muscles with her index finger.
"I can't believe we just had sex. If someone would have told me a year ago, I wouldn't have believed it." Ryoga said, staring at the ceiling and amazed at what they had done.
"Do you regret it?" Ranma asked with sadness in her voice, looking away from him.
Ryoga felt a sting in his heart when he realized. "No, no, Ranma, please! Of course not! I don't regret anything! That's not what I meant!" He forced her to stare at him, taking her chin. "This is one of the most amazing experiences I've had in my whole life, and it's so special because I did it with you. Do you get it? It's you who made it so incredible."
Ranma smiled at him, her fears gone, like a heavy rock was lifted from her. She moved a little to kiss him in his cheek, and then rested her head on his chest. She felt his heartbeat, strong and rhythmic.
"It's just that a lot has changed in the last year, especially these last few months, and very quickly. But, everything that has happened between you and me since then, I'm thankful for it, and I wouldn't change a bit."
She nodded thoughtful. "You're right. A lot of changes happened regarding us... and I don't regret them either. I'm thankful to have found you, to finally have found you."
"Me too Ranma." He kissed her on her forehead. "And… how it was… to do it with… me… You know."
Ranma smiled and looked at him. "You mean how it was making love with another man? Before doing it, I was a little nervous, and… if it had been any other guy… I don't think I could have done it. But with you, it just feels natural. I barely had to think, just let myself go. And being in my female form makes it easier too."
"Yeah, I understand you." He said, carefully considering her words.
After a couple of minutes where they just were there, silent, and embracing each other, Ranma moved to sit up.
"Ok handsome, time for me to get back home. It's really late and they will be wondering why I have not returned." She was looking at a rounded wall clock. It was saying 11:10 p.m. "But first, I need to get a bath. I can't go like this, all covered in sweat and smelling of you". She said with a malicious smirk, looking at him.
"You're right, but we don't have a furo here. The bathroom is too small. You'll have to take a shower. Go first, I'll shower after you." After a moment thinking about something, he added. "I'm going with you to the Tendo's."
"You're going to spend the night in that damned lot? Why don't you stay here, sleep on a real bed, and I pick you up in the morning? We can tell to my family then."
"Ranma, I've been sleeping in a tent for years. I don't mind one more night. I want to be close to you. I want to be with you from the very first moment."
"Ok, we'll go together." She finally said, convinced.
Ranma picked up her clothes and went naked to the bathroom to take that shower. Meanwhile, Ryoga, after putting his clothes on again, did some cleaning of the dining table and did the dishes. After 15 minutes, Ranma went downstairs fully clothed and with her hair braided again.
"All yours." She said, kissing him in the cheek and giving him a quick pat on his butt.
"Ey!" he replied, and retaliated kissing her lips. Then he went upstairs to take a shower. Soon they would be on their way to the Tendo dojo.
Ryoga consulted his watch: it said 12:15 a.m. They were at the empty lot where he had been for the last couple of days, just a couple of blocks from the Tendo dojo.
"It's pretty late. How are you going to handle it?" he asked her a little concerned.
"I'll enter through my room's window. That way I can change clothes. Then I'll just tell them I'm home and I'll improvise some excuse. Don't worry. I'm good at this." She answered him, almost smiling. "Ok, I'm going in. Tomorrow I'll come to pick you up first thing in the morning."
"Ok, good night." And after that he gave her a quick kiss. She looked at him one last time and smiled before leaving.
Ryoga watched her leave, and then unlocked the padlock he used to lock the tent's door and started to prepare his futon for the night.
Meanwhile, Ranma approached the dojo with haste, jumped the exterior wall and run to the side of the house where her room's window was. No sound appeared to come from the house. Maybe they were all sleeping already, she thought. The window was open, just as she left it when she left several hours ago. She jumped applying the needed strength to reach the second floor, and entered in silence in her room. The lights were off, but the room was dimly illuminated by moonlight. No sign of her father. He was probably downstairs playing Shogi with Mr. Tendo. She noticed the door open, so she walked stealthily and closed it. She felt safe now, so she went to her closet and opened the doors slowly. Suddenly someone turned the light on and the door opened violently, making Ranma's heart to jump several beats. Akane entered the room looking angry, followed by the other Tendo girls, Soun, Genma… and her mother? What was happening? Everybody had a somber look on their faces. Ranma was looking at them with her eyes wide open.
"Where have you been!?" asked Akane, anger in her voice. "You've been with him, haven't you?"
"W… with whom?" Ranma asked, still shocked, unable to process what was happening.
"With Ryoga!" she screamed almost hurting her throat, tears starting to form in her eyes. Then she threw to Ranma some photographs.
She kneeled hesitantly and gathered the photos from the floor, stood up and took a look at them. She started to feel an intense anxiety. In those photos it could be seen she and Ryoga in the empty lot, kissing, and holding hands in some street. Someone had spied on them.
She looked at the faces of everyone incredulously: Genma and Akane showed hostility and resentment. Nabiki had her usual neutral expression, but showed disappointment in her eyes. Soun showed no hostility, but perplexity and sorrow; he was about to cry. Finally, Kasumi and her mother showed a deep sadness, and they look like they wanted to say something, but couldn't. All of her family was there judging her and looking at her like she was a total stranger. She couldn't believe that in the end, it was going to go this way.
'Oh Kami Sama, please, not like this…'