TALES OF RANMA AND RANKO
Story One: "Ranma's Secret". By Lady Tesser and Jack Staik
--------------------
Chapter Onev
Akane growled deep in her throat. She knew that
Ranma was cheating on her, she had known for the
longest time. She had tried following him, but had
always lost him.
Now, though, thanks to the tracking device that
she had purchased through Nabiki, she had learned
of the location he went to a couple of times a
week - his secret hideaway.
Akane had not known that the school gymnasium had
a dropped ceiling, with about six feet between
the indoor ceiling and the roof. Now she and
Nabiki were there, through the
concealed hatch, in the place, which was furnished
like a small apartment. There was a loveseat and
some futons and a table and even a hotplate and a
small refrigerator. Some
plyboard facade walls seperated it from the rest
of the area, with a couple of mirrors to suggest
space.
"Hmmm, looks like Ranma-kun's been busy here."
Nabiki commented.
"I'll bet he's been 'busy' - the pervert!" Akane
accused. "All this time, he's been bringing his
sluts up here! I bet Shampoo and Ukyo and Kodachi
know all about this place!"
"Nope. I've had my people trail him - when he
comes here, all their whereabouts are accounted
for. If he is bringing a girl here, it's not one
of the usual suspects."
"So, he brings some *other* girl here! Just wait
until I get my hands on the baka! He'll *beg* for
a malleting, just for a break from the pain!"
Nabiki edged away from her little sister's battle
aura, which was getting uncomfortably warm.
"Unless you make the place burst into flames
first."
"Nani? Oops - sorry." Akane breathed deeply,
letting her aura dampen down. "I just get so mad
at that -"
"I know, Akane-chan. Now, let's find someplace to
hide. Ranma will be here soon, and we can catch
him red-handed!" Nabiki readied her camera; a few
candid - hopefully very
candid - shots of Ranma with his secret lover
(assuming there was one) would go a long way
toward the Tendo college fund.
Unfortunately the position the two girls had to
hide in was behind a facade wall, prevented them
from getting a clear view, but they could hear
just fine.
"Ah! Alone at last!"v
(Ranma! He was here! Nabiki put her camera up over
the wall slowly - trying not to alert Ranma's
preternaturally-sharp martial-artist's senses.)
"Trying to get me alone again, huh, Saotome?"
asked a playfully sultry voice.
(Who the heck was *that*? The voice sounded
familiar, but neither girl could place it.)
(Akane went pale as a sheet. Inside herself, she
always knew that Ranma was a victim of
circumstance, that he hadn't been running around
with the other fiancees. And she
subconsciously expected this to be another one of
those incriminating coincidences.)
(But there was a girl here.)
"C'mon Ko-chan, you know I wouldn't do that!"
('Ko-chan'?)Nabiki thought. No, not Kodachi,
the accents are wrong - not to mention that this
one is differently pitched, a bit lower. And
Kodachi is in rehab right now. Not that it does
any good...>
"I know, I know. 'Saving yourself for marriage'. I
swear, Ranma-kun, you are the only seventeen-year-
old boy on Earth who can drag a willing girl off
to a secret attic and *not*
try to get fresh with her!"
(Akane's attitude did another about-face. 'Saving
himself for marriage'? He *wasn't* messing around
with her? Even though she *wanted* to?)
"Of course not. I'm a man, not a boy, and *men*
don't behave that way."
(Akane thought about that. Ranma's statement would
mean that he... wasn't a pervert. And the fact
that this 'Ko-chan' was up here with him and he
wasn't trying anything with her...
proved it.)
"Oh well, a girl can dream. If we didn't have
these obstacles in our way ... "
"I know," Ranma sighed. "Y'know, Ko-chan,
sometimes I just want to start crying. It seems so
hopeless! Why can't everyone just leave us alone?"
Ko-chan let out a girlish sigh. "I wish I knew.
But they won't. Poor Ranma-kun - why do they abuse
you so?"
"I don't know. They all want to use me - everyone
just wants to make me the thing that solves their
problems. There are only two people that don't
want to use me - you and Akane."
(Akane's heart skipped slightly. Perhaps - )
"You don't want to use me because you love me, and
Akane doesn't because she hates me."
(Akane's heart stopped skipping. Ranma thinks I
*hate* him?)
"Now Ranma-sama, I don't think -"v
"Yeah, yeah, you don't think that Akane really
hates me." Ranma chuckled in a dry, grim fashion.
"She beats me, she curses and insults me, she
poisons me, and you say she
doesn't hate me."
Ko-chan's voice suggested amusement. "Actually, I
think she's in love with you."
Ranma's laughter echoed through the attic. A faint
"No, I'm serious." could be heard from Ko-chan,
almost drowned out by Ranma's belly-laugh.
(Nabiki almost chuckled herself - until she saw
Akane's face, with that blank look, as if her
brain had shut down. Could it be that her over-
emotional little sister had never figured it out
herself? That she honestly believed her protests?)
When Ranma's reaction had died down to a chuckle,
Ko-chan cleared her throat. "Are you quite
finished now?"
"Hee-hee-hee... almost, just a minute... hee-hee-
hee..."
"Just look at the facts - "v
"She wallops me daily for no reason," Ranma
stated. "She calls me a pervert, even though
*she's* the sex-obsessed one. She accuses me of
cheating on her, even though she
sleeps with Ryoga whenever he's in town. She tells
me to my face that she hates me and wants me dead.
And she force-feeds me poison!"
(Nabiki heard Akane sob slightly. Hearing Ranma
talk about her like this was getting to her. Well,
the little princess needed to be taken down a peg
or three.)
(Akane was shocked. Ranma thought *she* was a
pervert? That she was sleeping with Ryoga? That
comment about her cooking just slid past, so
shocked was she at the rest of it.)
"She's scared and insecure, too," Ko-chan said.
"She's afraid of her own sexuality, and you arouse
her, so she lashes out at you. She gets jealous
because she's afraid of being
abandoned. And to be fair, I don't think that she
knows that Ryoga is P-Chan, and perhaps she really
is a bad cook."
(Nani?? RYOGA?!?)
"Nobody could be that bad a cook! It must be on
purpose! And P-Chan is so damn obvious!"
Ko-chan snorted.
"Why are you defending her?" Ranma asked.
"Because she's really a nice girl, and I
understand what it's like to love someone who
doesn't like you," she said sadly.
Ranma was silent. "Oh."
"I'm sorry, Ranma-kun, I shouldn't have mentioned
-"
"- that I tried to kill you?"
(The Tendo sisters were surprised at this
statement. Ranma - trying to kill a girl? They
would be more likely to believe that Cologne had
won a beauty contest than that.)
"I forgave you a long time ago, my love."
"I know. But I haven't really forgiven myself."
"Ranma-sama, please -"
"I hated you so much, and when I finally talked to
you - I was so ashamed of myself ... "
For several minutes, the only sounds were Ranma's
sobs and Ko-chan's soothing, gentle words.
(Ranma crying? Nabiki was shocked that Ranma would
let his guard down around anyone. Did he really
love this girl?)
(Akane listened to Ranma's pain. She had never
seen this part of Ranma before. But he thinks I
hate him. Why would he show his feelings to me?)
"Why do you torture yourself like this, Ranma-kun?
You had every reason to hate me."
"And I'll make it up to you, Ko-chan. I promise."
"You already have. You were my first real friend.
And you saved my life more than once. Remember
when Kuno had that sword? I could have died, but
you managed to stop him."
(Kuno? Trying to kill a girl? When did *that*
happen? Nabiki had Kuno under almost constant
surveillance; how did both he and Ranma get away
from her minions long enough for a fight? Someone
in her organization would be answering some very
unplesant questions.)
"That was nothing.."
"Stop being so modest. Y'know, darling, you have
got to do something about your self-esteem."
"What's wrong with my self-esteem?" Ranma said
defensively.
"Nothing, Ranma-kun. In fact, you have the
greatest inferiority complex in all of Tokyo."
"Yeah, that's right - hey!!"
Ko-chan chuckled. Soon, Ranma joined her.
* * * * * * * * * *
The two talked for nearly three hours, chatting
about school and the fiancees and martial arts
techniques and ice cream and sports. They had a
spirited discussion about the virtues and vices of
the latest Jackie Chan movie, and about a fantasy
novel (it seems Ko-chan liked her Piers Anthony in
Japanese translation, while Ranma preferred the
original English; neither Tendo girl knew that
Ramna knew the language - he certainly didn't use
it in his school English work.) Nabiki even
managed to sneak a few pictures of the "happy
couple" (at least, she hoped so; being unable to
see her subjects made photography difficult).
Akane was miserable. Ranma never talked to her
like this. How could this be the bakayarou hentai
she had malleted so often? Sweet, caring,
affectionate ... had she scared him so much he
couldn't open up to her like this? Was she wrong
about him?
A watch alarm chirped. "Damn, gotta go, Ko-chan. I
should get home."
"Chikuso! I don't want to go!" Ko-chan whimpered.
"We never have enough time!"
"We'll meet later, sweetheart. One day, all this
madness will be over with. And we'll find a way to
be really together."
"I love you, ichunnohito ... 'who dwells in the
center of my heart'."
"I love you, Ko-chan. Always."
After a few minutes of silence, Nabiki got nervous
and peeked. And got a good look at Ko-chan.
Akane heard Nabiki whispering; it was a prayer
their mother had taught them. What could shake
Nabiki up like that?
Akane carefully peeked over the wall ...
* * * * * * * * * *
That night, Akane was quiet, not even rising to
Ranma's digs. Soun was alarmed, but then Genma put
a positive spin on it; that she was finally
developing the thicker skin she
needed to live with Ranma.
Akane's thoughts kept on churning.
Nabiki's thoughts were busy as well.
And foremost in their thoughts was what they saw
...
Ranma stood at a mirror, gazing at Ranko, their
hands resting on opposite sides of the mirror's
surface. The look the two had on their face was of
love and pain and longing.
Ranma let his hand fall from the mirror then
turned and left. Ranko stood at the mirror a
minute or so after Ranma left, then walked away.
* * * * * * * * * *
Chapter Two
Akane tossed and turned that night, first thinking
of the sneaky Ryoga stealing into her bed and
never telling her he was the adorable P-chan; but
those same thoughts gradually
drifted back to Ranma and Ranko, and the image
that burned itself into her memory forever of the
two standing with the mirror between them.
How could she not have known? That Ranma could
live day to day, between being glomped by
fiancees, drilled by a self-interested father,
target of assassination and her own abuse. How
could she have known that he'd find peace in the
affection of his female half.
She got up, turning on her desk lamp, and unlocked
her drawer, pulling out various photos she had
collected from Nabiki's blackmail material on her
fia ... on Ranma.
She placed two photos side by side. One of Ranma
on the school grounds, looking right at the camera
and smirking. The other of Ranma-onna, smiling
gently, being caught off-guard during a game of
shogi.
But Ranko was now more real, her own entity, if
Akane would allow herself to believe it. She was
almost sure there was something perverted about
it, but the memory of Ranma's sobs filled her ears
again. There was no perversion in the basic love
she offered him. Ranko was the only one who he
allowed to witness that side of him.
Again, Akane wished she had been more
understanding in the beginning. She recalled when
they first met, he was in his female form, and he
refused to fight her. He was so sweet then -
She knew it was her own fault. She finally
admitted it to herself now, after knowing that he
didn't love her. Her reaction to finding out "she"
was really a "he" was rash, uncontrolled, all out
of fear and persona ... and he responded in kind.
They both hurt, she knew that. It was too late
now. Far too late. If she started treating him
better, he'll begin to suspect, then find out that
she knows about him and Ranko. Who knows what
he'll do if he found she knew.
Akane fished deep in her soul ... and found
nothing, for she fell asleep across the pictures
of Ranma, dreaming of Ranko stepping out of the
mirror and taking Ranma away for good.
* * * * * * * * * * *
The next morning, Akane still remained thoughtful
as she and Ranma raced to school, she jogging in
the streets and he striding on the fencetops,
whistling to himself.
"Hey, Akane," he goaded her. "You haven't talked
since class yesterday. You got sick on your own
cooking?"
She looked up at him, a frown crossing her face.
"Shut up," she replied at last, running faster.
Ranma paused, staring after her, wondering why she
hadn't dragged out another mallet right at his
head. The sky that had been threatening all
morning rumbled ominously, and he
hurried after her.
* * * * * * * * * *
All morning in class, he sat back with Hiroshi and
Daisuke, making comments about the teacher's
inability to draw on a chalkboard, then shooting
pieces of wadded notebook paper at the other girls
in class, causing them to giggle.
Akane remained quiet, watching him out of the
corner of her olive eyes, wondering how long Ranko
had been intimately part of his life. He showed no
sign on the outside. Could it have been since the
beginning, since Phoenix Mountain, since when?
Nothing had changed ever since they had met over a
year ago, except now she didn't respond to his
zingers.
"Miss Tendo!"
She looked up. "Yes, sensei?!"
"Pay attention! What is the square root of 256.8?"
"Hey, Akane," Ranma whispered, sotto voce.
"Whatever you had that's making you dumb as a
brick, keep taking it. You're almost bearable."
She suddenly burst out with "Ranma no baka!" and
brought out an extra large mallet, starting on a
swing.
She could have sworn she saw him smile in *relief*
... until the eraser hit her head.
"Akane! Ranma! Go stand in the hall!"
* * * * * * * * * *
"That was fun," Ranma whispered, holding his pail
of water at his side, staring straight ahead.
"How was that fun?" she demanded, whispering
fiercely.
"I was wondering what was wrong with you." He
remained expressionless.
"You ... you worried about me ... ?"
He snorted in laughter.
"No, just wanted to make sure it wasn't
contagious."
She growled, hoarsely replying, "Anajaku!"
"You are so uncute."
Before she knew it, she threw her pail at him, and
he moved fast out of its fury ...
But not fast enough, for the well-built dark-
haired teenage boy was not standing before her,
but a nicely shaped redheaded girl. At the moment,
she was shaking her hair of the excess water.
"Now what was *that* for?!" Ranma-chan demanded.
"You are such a pig!" Akane yelled back, feeling
the tears well up in her eyes. She bit them back
hard, turning away from the redhead.
"Actually, Ranma is," a softer voice stated. "I'm
a bitch."
Akane held her breath. It was the same voice Ranko
had, the one filled with soft understanding. She
slowly turned around to face her fiance.
Instead of a cross-faced Ranma-chan, it was a
giggling Ranko, who was still wringing the excess
liquid from her baggy clothing.
"Nani?" was all Akane could manage.
"I know," Ranko smiled apologetically. "He can be
obnoxious at times, but once you get to know him,
he's not all that bad."
"Where's Ranma?"v
"He's here," she pointed to her breast. "Inside
me. I sensed it was time for me to come out, after
you and Nabiki finally caught us."
"H-h-how did you know that?" Akane asked as alarm
filled her. Would Ranma kill her for having this
conversation?
"Even I can hear the old prayer Nabiki was saying
when she saw us. Ranma is a little too sloppy
when he opens to me, but it's kept him sane ... "
a small smirk passed her lips.
"As sane as he can manage with you clobbering him
half the time."
The Tendo girl turned her face shamefully to the
floor, studying the flecks of color in the beige
tiles at her feet.
"What now?" she mumbled.
"Can you keep a secret, Akane?"
Akane looked up at her, seeing expectancy in her
blue eyes.
"What?"
"Come with me to the attic. It's the only safe
place to talk in all of Nerima."
Akane nodded, and followed the sprinting redhead,
both girls quietly running through the halls as
silently as shadows. The only sounds were the rain
on the roof and the scratching
of students' pencils in the classrooms.
They raced each other to the gym, then stopped
short, realizing that the martial Arts Rythmic
Gymnastics team was in practice. Ranko grinned,
and whispered, giggling
girlishly, "Remember the Art of Invisibilty -
become one with the walls."
Akane furrowed her brow and pursed her lips
together, unsure of what she meant by that, but
watched as Ranko shimmied up the bars over the gym
windows, then made her way across the wide ceiling
by hanging on the rafters over the parquet floor.
The youngest Tendo daughter inhaled deeply, tucked
her skirt up to keep it from falling in her face,
and climbed up.
As she crawled with all her limbs hanging onto the
rafters, she looked down to the floor, watching
the gymnasts stretch. If they only knew what was
going on about a dozen meters above their heads
...
Akane reached the open hatch and Ranko's slender
hand appeared to help her in. After she was safely
inside, the trap door was closed, and Ranko let
out her breath, plopping down on a multi-colored
striped futon.
"Do you want anything to drink?"
"No, thank you, Ranma ... I mean, Ko- ... I mean
... " she grunted and balled her firsts.
"There's no need to be angry with yourself, my
friend," Ranko laughed sweetly.
Akane's aura changed completely at the
affectionate tone in her voice.
"Sorry ... this takes some getting used to. What
*should* I call you? You aren't Ranma - "v
"True, I am not Ranma, and not even a different
facet of his personality. I am ... well, the
female half of him, had he been born female, yet
all my memory is his as well ... " she trailed off
softly. "Call me ... Ranko."
Akane nodded, sitting next to her and drawing her
knees up to her chin. "So, what secret do you want
me to keep?"
"It's not a question of 'want', my friend, but of
need. So far, only two people know of Ranma and
me: you and Nabiki. Can I trust Nabiki to not
reveal my exsistance?"
"She can't find any way to make any money off it,
so you're safe with that."
Ranko's face relaxed into a smile. "Good. I like
Nabiki, She is useful at times, though a pain the
rest of the time."
Akane said nothing, gazing at the mirror where she
saw Ranma and Ranko standing the day before. The
look they gave each other came to her mind again,
and she turned back to the redhead.
Ranko continued, "I also need you to not mention
to Nabiki that I can walk at will when Ranma is in
his female form."
"How is that done?"
She looked up thoughtfully, then, half to herself,
said, "It seems that when I came into
consciousness inside him, I was an 'alternate'
personality. If the first personality - Ranma
- became out of control, the second personality -
me - could take over.
"But, I found I could take over at will when he
got wet, and plenty of times we had battled for
dominance at given moments. He finally gave in ...
"
She looked off toward the mirror. "When we began
to actually talk, and he saw I was not going to
hurt him ... he wanted so much to be able to trust
someone ... "
Akane shifted uncomfortably, knowing she was
partly to blame. She had abused him the moment she
found out he was a boy, embarrassing her when she
accidently walked in on him in the bathing room,
thinking that the redheaded girl who sat beside
her now was really in there.
She fell back on the cushion, and mumbled into her
hands covering her face, "I'm sorry, Ranko. I'm so
sorry, Ranma ... "
Ranko was drawn out of her thoughts and stared in
awe at the girl.
"I never thought I would ever hear those words
with all that sincerity from you, Akane," she
stated quietly. "And I held firmly to the belief
that you cared for him, despite your abuse toward
him."
"How could you know?" Akane bit back the tears
again.
"Are you still convinced that I *am* Ranma? My
friend, I am female, as much as you. I think and
react and feel as one. I know all those mallets,
all those head slaps, all that name calling was
out of jealousy. Granted, you react like a twelve-
year-old with those jealous fits."
Akane removed her hands from her eyes to stare
down Ranko, but all she saw was concern and
honesty. She could find nothing in her to attack
the girl for her statement. Because it was true.
Below them, the bell rang for the lunch period,
but they ignored it.
"Does Ranma know we are talking, Ranko?"
"No. That was going to be the third part of you
keeping this secret. You are to tell him nothing
of our conversation, and you still do not know of
my exsistance. As far as he believes, no one knows
of my existance or his and my relationship. You
must understand, he is scared, and he needs
somebody ... until you are ready to be his
fiancee."
"But I heard him," Akane sat up. "He doesn't want
to marry me."
Ranko giggled. A rather pixie-like laugh, then she
replied, "Akane-chan, who do you think he's saving
himself for in marriage? I almost envy you for
having that honor!"
* * * * * * * * * *
Later that day, Ranma had been restored to his
natural state, properly mad and storming up to the
tiny apartment above the gym.
"Ko-chan!" he called, trying to keep his voice and
temper down.
Ranko's image appeared, dressed the same as he.
She was braiding her pigtail.
"I thought we weren't to meet today, Saotome." She
smiled. "But this is still a nice surprise."
"What happened today after Akane threw that bucket
of water at me?"
"I decided to walk around for awhile," she placed
her palms on her side of the mirror.
Ranma, touched his palms to hers, all he could
feel was the cold glass of the mirror. He sighed,
and leaned his cheek against hers, meeting more
coldness.
"Was I about to ... to ... hit her?"
Ranko remained silent, wondering what to do. She
made like she laced her delicate fingers between
his large ones, sighing softly.
"I didn't feel like being punted through the
ceiling - "
"But was I going to? I don't fight girls- " he
began as Ranko giggled. "- when I can help it."
"I know, my love. No, you weren't at that point
and I didn't feel like it."
"So, what happened?" he looked up and stroked her
face, his fingertips sliding over the cool, smooth
glass surface.
"I yelled at her a little, and ran off to the
nurses' office. Hinako-sensei was there, and she
wanted to talk about everything for a while so I
obliged her, and only when she left was I able to
turn back and hand everything over to you."
She rested her hand against his chest, looking up
at him.
"Does Akane suspect?" he asked for the umteenth
time in ten months.
"Not at all. We had a lively name-calling session
for a little bit. 'Anajaku' seems to be her
favorite insult nowadays. After I left, I
understood she carried out her punishment and went
through the rest of the school day without
incident. She's probably back home, cooking up a
wonderful welcome home dinner for you."
Ranma gagged, and pretended to pinch her arm, "I
already feel bad enough! Don't make me think she's
doing what she calls 'cooking'."
She giggled, leaning up to kiss his cheek, saying,
"Have a cast iron stomach, darling!"
"Her cooking can melt a cast iron anything," he
chuckled.
She laughed, lacing her fingers against his again.
"Suki da."
"I love you, so much, Ko-chan ... " he sighed
deeply. "Sometimes, I do need you to hold me."
She sniffed and commented softly, "I only wish I
could. Then we can be together."
"And then we can get away from here - from crazy
fathers and psycho fiancees and dirty old hentai
masters and jealous idiots ... "
"And poor Akane ... "
Ranma paused and looked up into Ranko's blue eyes.
"You don't mean that?"
"I do. I know your heart better than you do,
Ranma-sama. It's the part of you that you won't
look into often, but it is what I am mistress of."
"No, Ko-chan, don't go in there ... "
"I don't have to because I already know," she
moved her hand to under his chin. "I know why you
won't fully give yourself to me, even though we
could do so in a round-about way right now. I know
you plan not to marry me, even should I be
released into your world with my own body."
"Ko-chan, *must* you say anything about it?"
"Yes. Akane will wonder someday, she's a bright
girl. She knows you haven't been actively
searching for a cure for our Curse the past few
weeks."
Ranma sighed, closing his eyes, only feeling the
cold mirror under his hands.
"I don't want to lose you," he whispered, feeling
the tears sting his eyes, then spilled over,
trailing down his cheeks. "How do you do that?"
"What, my love?"
"Bring everything out of me. I've never ... I've
never wept before ... I've never been loved
unconditionally. I've never needed to be held so
much ... " he wiped his eyes. "The Old
Man would kill me if he saw me like this. Then
he'd commit seppuku so he can follow me in the
afterlife and nag me there."
"But I'd be with you, and we can both run from
him."
He smiled gently, touching her lips. "I'd rather
spend an eternity running with you than spend the
rest of my life here."
"We could," she replied, moving her mouth from
under his fingers. "But you stay here for one
reason."
"I could leave when I damn well please!"
"Then do it now ... " she pulled back, crossing
her arms, her pretty lips pouting.
Ranma, turned his body, but his feet remained
planted. He finally gave up and turned to face her
again.
"I- I- I can't ... "
"And I know why -"
"Don't say it!"
"- you're in love with Akane!"
Ranma lowered his head, covering his face with his
hands, slipping down to the floor. Ranko only
gazed at him.
"She kills me every time she insults and accuses
me! I can handle the abuse, but not the hatred!"
Ranko crouched down to his level, touching her
hand to where his head was.
"Ranma-sama, she loves you." She let him snort in
disbelief. "I understand the female mind and
emotions better than you do, my love. All of her
attacks on you are out of fear, jealousy, and
control."
"Lack of control!" he snapped.
"Think about it, you silly goat. She has no
control over her passions, so she responds by
controlling you. She is jealous of all the other
fiancees glomping on you because she wants
to but her pride won't let her, and she is fearful
that you'll succumb to this glomping and leave her
for one of the others. It's a vicious cycle; she
desires, but she can't express it."
Ranma looked up at her wide-eyed, truely in shock
by this revelation.
"Are you *sure*?" he asked in an awed whisper.
She smiled gently. "I would never lie to you, not
in these matters especially."
He leaned his cheek against hers on the mirror,
"Why do you want me to be with her when you desire
me?"
"Why do you desire her but wish to be with me?"
"You love me."
"And I love you, that is why I want you with her.
We will never be happy together, my love, you know
that."
"I *could* be happy with you - " he began. He had
it planned out, too, in which they would run off
to live alone and have their own little place and
garden and maybe even a few kids running around
... no Amazons or chefs or Tendos or anything
related to Nerima.
"Not fully, because your heart has belonged to
Akane since your eyes met, before we had ever
spoken. You knew she was the only woman who could
ever fulfil you."
"It won't be her cooking that will."
Ranko giggled, caressing his face. "Meanwhile,
it'd be odd for you to be married to an image in a
mirror."
He sighed, "I still need you ... just to feel you
love me, how you would hold me."
Ranko remained silent, debating within herself.
Since she became self-aware, she had always wanted
Ranma, as friend, lover, even husband. But she
knew him better than he knew himself, and he still
had too much to learn. She was more woman than he
could handle, to put it simply.
Besides, all Fates point toward Ranma and Akane
reaching Perfect Union together. Her place in the
equation set by the Gods was only to awaken them
to that fact.
She thought about that. This urge was never part
of her thoughts before. She admitted to wanting to
steal Ranma away from Akane, if nothing more than
to protect him from her. However, this desire to
bring the two together felt *right*, and it felt
natural like it was supposed to occur *now*. Yet,
both were not cooperating - as usual!
She shrugged. Both were more stubborn than mustard
stains on white clothing.
The alarm beeped and she sighed.
"Time to go home, Ranma-sama."
"No, I want to stay here with you ... home is the
crazy Old Man, weird Tendos, and violent Akane."
"I don't think she'll be hurting you all that much
tonight."
He raised his head. "Why not?"
"She's finally growing up, as you should be doing
as well."
Ranma nodded, then puzzlement crossed his face,
"Waddaya mean by that?"v
"Nothing - except you are rather immature, picking
on girls!"
"Hey, they pick on me first!"
"Pick on and mallet and poison and hogtie and beat
up and spatula slam and - "
"Okay, okay, I know the drill, Ko-chan ... I love
you."
"I love you."
"God, I'll never hear that enough."
" ... "
* * * * * * * * * *
Chapter Three
Ranma felt strangely empty as he walked home.
Ranko's words bothered him, in ways he didn't want
to think about.
As he idly hopped over Mousse's Training Potty of
Death and dodged yet another group of drug-crazed
spearmen from the Cult of the Holy Shoes, he
considered the possibility that Ranko was right
about Akane - that she lov- lo- had feelings for
him.
Ranma acknowledged that his Ko-chan was brighter
than he was (a legacy of the Old Man beating into
him that intellectual pursuits were "unmanly").
She understood girl-stuff better than he did. She
could make sense out of the silly rules and weird
rituals called "politeness" and "civilized
behavior" that everybody took for granted and no
one else ever
bothered to explain to him - except to say that he
just violated them.
But this was just - it felt wrong, somehow. Akane
was so - vicious, so cruel. The closest thing he
knew of was a memory of his childhood, when he was
attacked by a rabid dog. Akane often had that same
look on her face. Love couldn't do that.
But then she would smile at him. And more than
once she had actually helped him. When Happosai
first showed up, and the Old Bastards had kicked
him out for not bowing to the little creep, Akane
came to him and helped him defeat the Old Fart.
Ranko could be right - perhaps Akane did care, and
couldn't say it.
Ranko could be wrong - perhaps Akane hated him,
and enjoyed his pain.
He didn't know which possibility frightened him
more.
* * * * * * * * * *
Akane sat in lotus position, deep in thought.
Her usual practice of smashing bricks and timbers
hadn't helped her regain her equilibrium. And when
she went to the practice dummies - the ones with
the red shirts and the pigtails - she started to
cry.
Meditation had never been one of her strongest
disciplines. But at least she could sit silently
and think.
What could she do now?
Ranko said that Ranma lov- lo- had feelings for
her. That he cared for her, was saving himself for
*her*.
But she looked at herself and saw a flat-chested,
chunky-thighed tomboy. "Feminine as a brick".
"Strong as a gorilla". What was there to love?
That was what really hurt about Ranma's insults -
the fact that they were echoes of her own heart.
What she always knew about herself, despite all
the boys trying to date her and
proclaiming love.
But Ranko knew Ranma. He opened himself to her.
She was *inside* him, where he couldn't hide
anything. She said that Ranma loved her.
Ranko loved him ... and wanted Akane to love him.
Ranko loved him enough ... to give him up.
But Akane knew that hers was a small and petty
love. Yes, Akane loved him; she could admit it
here, alone. But she wanted him all to herself.
She wanted to chase the world
away and keep him away from anything that might
make him leave her.
If she had to let him go, she would die. She had a
heart of glass, and anything could shatter it, so
she wrapped it in thick blankets of anger and rage
and pride.
She was Akane Tendo. She was the Champion and Heir
to the School. Nothing could reach her to hurt
her.
Nothing could reach her to make the pain go away.
* * * * * * * * * *
P-Chan wandered the endless labyrinth that was the
Paris sewer system, hoping to locate a manhole or
a tour group or *something* to lead him out.
Turning that corner and finding Kasumi chopping
vegetables was a shock. he thought. Then Ranma walked in
and grunted a greeting before grabbing a soda from
the refrigerator and going to his room.
Ryoga was relieved. He didn't know how he had
ended up here, but he stopped asking how he got
*anywhere* when he was very young. At last, he
could be with his Akane.
Akane came in from the dojo, looking more
depressed than Ryoga had ever seen her. He 'bwee'd
loudly, hoping to attract her attention; her sweet
pet pig P-Chan always cheered her up.
Akane glanced up at the sound, and saw P-Chan.
"Oh look, Akane. P-Chan's home! Isn't that nice?"
Kasumi chirped.
Akane's frustrations and confusions had eaten at
her for so long without release. She was unused to
looking at her own heart, and couldn't take solace
in her usual rage against
Ranma.
Now she could focus.
Now she had a target.
Now she could *release*.
P-Chan looked on as Akane's battle aura snapped
on, as the Mysterious Mallet of Doom came from
somewhere and lifted high into the air. He briefly
glanced around to see if Ranma was behind him ...
but he wasn't. Then who was going to Get It?
"RYOGA NO HENTAI!!!"
The Mallet Descended.
* * * * * * * * * *
Japan is Earthquake Country. And anyone who's
spent any significant amount of time in Earthquake
Country knows the First Rule: when the ground
moves *Get Out Of The House*!
When the Tendo home trembled, the windows
disgorged various members of the household, all
whom instinctively leapt out to safety.
"Wait a second!" Nabiki shouted. "That wasn't an
earthquake!"
"Then what was it?" Soun asked. "An explosion?"
"MY KITCHEN!!!" Kasumi cried.
The Tendo's and Saotome's ran to the source of the
scream - the kitchen.
Or, rather, what had been the kitchen, and was now
a shattered ruin. In the devastation, along with a
shocked-looking Kasumi, was a blankly-staring
Akane, gazing at a hole in the floor where a
column of smoke rose.
"Akane!" Ranma cried, pushing Soun out of the way.
"What happened??"
"I hit Ryoga," she said in a flat tone. "He went
boom."
Nabiki looked down in the smoking hole and saw, a
couple of meters down, a small piglet with a
bandana. He wasn't moving, except for his barely
perceptible breathing.
"Akane? Are you all right?" Ranma asked.
"I don't know," Akane answered, still staring
straight ahead. "Am I? I don't know ... "
"Why don't I take you to lie down?" he said
calmly.
"Okay," she said woodenly.
Nabiki reached down into the hole to retrieve the
piglet, while Kasumi telephoned Doctor Tofu.
Soun and Genma, in a true display of their skills
as leaders and parents, went to the dining room to
play shogi.
Nabiki gazed at the somewhat nerve-shattered
piglet that she dragged from the hole, clicking
her tongue and shaking her head.
"And how long did you think she was going to stay
dumb?" she asked him.
P-Chan made no move. He was wondering how the
Paris cab ran over him in the sewer.
* * * * * * * * * *
Ranma guided the stiff-limbed Akane up the
staircase, one step at a time.
What ran through his mind was Akane calling P-Chan
"Ryoga". Did she finally figure it out? Took her
long enough. And she always wondered why he had
kneed the baka in the head every chance he got.
Akane remained passively in shock, letting Ranma's
strong hands guide her down the hall and to her
room. His touch ... she paid attention to his
touch for the first time, and
realized how tender it was. There was no pushing
or grumbling, just him placing her gently on her
bed and pulling up the sheet over her.
And there they were, staring each other eye to eye
for several long moments, each thinking their own
thoughts.
Both wondered how Ranko was taking this.
Finally, curiosity forced Ranma's hand.
"Ahem. You knew about Ryoga being P-Chan?" he
asked.
Akane nodded, whispering, "Yes."
"Since when?"
She thought about an explanation. Forget saying
she overheard him and Ranko talking it over.
Insight struck, and she was amazed she hadn't made
the connection before.
"I finally noticed the bandanna."
"So, after all this time... "
"Ryoga no hentai," she stated darkly.
Ranma nodded, biting his lip and moving to get up.
"Well, I'll leave you - "
Akane's hand shot out of the sheet, wrapping
around his wrist, "Stay with me!"
"What's with you, Akane?" Ranma asked, taking his
hand back from her. "You've been weirding out the
last two days."
Could Ranko have been wrong? Was he even capable
of loving her? The young Tendo girl looked up to
him with her large eyes fixed to his.
He was going to
be sick if it was. He felt the equivalent of a
mental eraser thrown in his head, and he felt
Ranko push him to listen.
Both were saved by the soft knock at the door, and
Dr. Tofu entered, postponing any more soul
searching.
Which suited each just fine. It was exhausting.
* * * * * * * * * *
The diagnosis: extreme emotional stress. Doctor
Tofu recommended that Akane stay home the next few
days, then perhaps a counselor or therapist should
be consulted.
The Tendo's were too proud to admit that one of
their own needed therapy (even though they all did
to varying degrees), but they did allow that
perhaps Akane needed some rest.
Ryoga (after changing back to his human state) was
diagnosed with one massive contusion covering his
entire body, cracked bones at various points, and
a concussion. They allowed the doctor to take him
to the clinic, and made a note that as soon as he
recovered, they were going down as a family and
beating him some more.
Nabiki went to her room and brooded.
* * * * * * * * * *
Ryoga awoke in a hospital bed, his ribs taped and
his head bandaged. After a while, Doctor Tofu came
in.
"Hello, Ryoga-kun. Do you know where you are?" he
asked.
Ryoga looked at him blankly.
"Oh. Gomen. Forgot who I was talking to." Tofu
shined a penlight in Ryoga's eyes, checking pupil
reaction. "You're in my clinic in Nerima. Do you
remember how you got here?"
"Well, I was in the Tendo kitchen... Akane came
in... She saw me..." His eyes got as big as dinner
plates. "OH GOD SHE KNOWS!"
"Yes, I would say so." Tofu said wryly. "You know,
she *never* hit Ranma as hard as she hit you. I
would dare say that if you didn't have the
toughness from the Bakusai Tenketsu training, you
would be dead now."
"Well, that's one good thing about being slammed
into boulders for several days." Ryoga said
bitterly. "How did she find out?" A thought popped
into his head - "This is all Ranma's fault!"
(Actually, this thought had been there for several
years, but Ryoga's mind was a rather small place,
so he kept bumping into the same thoughts over and
over.)
Tofu snorted quietly.
"Maybe if I explained -"
"That isn't possible, Ryoga."
Ryoga and Tofu turned to the door. Kasumi stood
there, a sad look on her face.
Tofu's glasses fogged over
"K-k-kasumi! What an amazing coincidence to meet
you here of all places!" he babbled, wringing his
hands together. Of course, the fact that Ryoga's
arm was there didn't stop him.
"OW!! OUCH!! AAAAA!!!!" Ryoga commented.
"Ryoga, I have come to inform you that you are no
longer welcome in our home - in either form. For
the distress you have caused poor Akane, you will
not be easily forgiven."
"But -OW!!-it was all-YOW!!-Ranma's fault! WAH! He
must have-EEE!!-told her - "
"No, he didn't." Kasumi said, visibly irritated.
"Stop blaming Ranma-kun for your own inadequacies,
you little pervert. Good day."
Tofu stopped deforming Ryoga, shocked. Kasumi was
angry! Yes, this was her sister that was wronged,
but still - she was *Kasumi*, after all!
"Well, Ryoga, you've made Kasumi angry - something
I believed to be beyond even Ranma's talent for
foolishness."
Ryoga smiled weakly. "I must be a bigger fool that
anyone thought, ne?"
Tofu turned from the door where Kasumi had stood.
"Now, Ryoga, you need a proper frame of mind for -
how did you dislocate your arms?"
* * * * * * * * *
Akane woke up after midnight. She was exhausted
and sweaty and had fading memories of unpleasant
dreams.
Ignoring the time, she stumbled to the bathing
room. The cold-water scrub and rinse helped her
focus a bit, at least to think clearly.
Easing herself into the furo, she dwelled on the
events of the past few days...
Her Ranma (yes, she admitted it now, now that it
was too late) was in love with Ranko, a person who
didn't even exist in her own flesh. A girl who
gave him understanding and love
and kindness and caring ... everything she denied
him.
He was gone forever.
And Ryoga ...
She had thought Ryoga was different, that he was a
nice guy. But now she saw everything differently.
Ranma sneaking into her room - to protect her from
Ryoga. Ranma fighting with Ryoga - because Ryoga
kept abusing her trust. Ranma picking on P-Chan -
and why not?
And Akane also saw herself, yelling "Ranma! Stop
picking on poor Ryoga!" and "Ranma! Stop picking
on poor P-Chan!". And she had even *dated* Ryoga,
just to make Ranma jealous.
Something occured to Akane. That time she went
over to Ryoga's house... he was trying to get her
alone! With Akari! And if Ranma (could it have
even been Ranko, too?) hadn't shown up there and
fooled him with that lame disguise, he might
have... with *both* of them! And she had beat
Ranma up for that!
Akane couldn't help but sob in the chest-deep
water.
"Mama's right. It's all my fault. Because I'm
stupid and mean and fat and clumsy and ugly and -
and - " Her renewed sobs choked off the rest of
her words.
"And R-ranma - " Oh how she wanted to call him
'Ranma-sama' like Ranko did, or Kodachi. But the
words wouldn't come.
The name echoed in her skull: Ranma.
Without thinking, she leapt out of the tub and
dashed to his room.
* * * * * * * * * *
Ranma saw it again.
It had tortured him on nights like these, since he
started talking to Ranko. It was as if she had
left him on his own in the night, when he most
needed her.
Akane standing over him as he lay on his mat, her
mallet held high. As the mallet swung down, it
became a bear trap of steel teeth, landing on his
chest. He felt the teeth
ripping into his flesh, breaking his ribs apart,
digging into him. Then it came out with his still
beating heart clamped in its teeth. Akane's face
was the rabid dog, saliva dripping off her teeth,
lips pulled up in snarl.
"I need that!" he cried.
"No, you don't. It's all in your head, you dumb-
as-a-bag-of-hammers idiot. Nobody loves you!"
"Ranko!"
"Needing a girl to protect you, how weak!" the
Akane-dog snapped.
Ranma struggled, his body (what was left of it)
struggling to right itself but to no avail. Akane-
dog pulled the dripping heart from the mallet's
jaws, picking it apart with her nails.
"Give that back!"
"Never! It's mine! You gave it to me, remember?
Oh, how you looked, stepping out of the furo
completely naked, and there was no doubt where you
stood with me!"
She laughed hysterically, clawing at his heart. He
groaned, still feeling it inside him.
"And you are such a narcissistic pervert! Falling
in love with your female half!"
"She's not my female half," he replied weakly, his
voice cracking through the tears. "She's her own
person ... she's alive ... I love her because
she's NOT ME!"
"Love is a weakness, there is no strength in it,"
the Akane-dog slapped his face with his heart. "It
makes you weak and vulnerable, defenses are
unguarded, leaves one open for hurt and abuse."
"What I get from you," he replied bitterly.
Ranko watched the movie play through his mind,
feeling her own heart break. Ranma was too scared
to face Akane, fearful that the monster he dreamed
of is what really resided in his fiancee. Thus, he
attacks her. She inwardly sighed, wondering if
they were just too emotionally wrecked to be
salvaged and set right to love again.
She felt something move outside, and she reached
out to touch the aura ... Akane. Ranko wondered
what the girl was doing in Ranma's room, but
dropped the thought. She
proceeded to kick Ranma awake, mostly to get him
out of the nightmare.
He wouldn't budge.
She hated to do it, but it was the only way. She
pulled up all her energy and ripped through the
dream bubble in his sleep consciousness.
The Akane-dog looked up, dropping Ranma's heart.
"Ranko, I presume? So, you are the one who has
taken my Ranma's affections!"
"No, I think not," she pulled a katana from her
bracelet. (The only real advantage to being in
dreams, the neat tricks one can pull.)
"Ko-chan!" Ranma yelled.
"Right here, darling. I hope you know this isn't
really Akane."
Ranma remained silent, reaching for what was left
of his heart.
Akane-dog made a run toward Ranko, who had made a
leap straight up in the air. She landed delicately
on the shoulders of the creature.
"Isn't nice to go around as my friend Akane-chan,
monster."
"I AM Akane!" it bellowed, grabbing at the
redhead's ankles. Ranko twisted her arms, sending
the katana down into the neck of the creature.
"No, you aren't. The real Akane wouldn't hurt
Ranma like this," the redhead took the moment of
distraction to flip over, landing lightly on her
feet. "The real Akane loves him, despite her
childish temper."
The monster that pretended to be Akane Tendo
writhed and howled in pain, trying to pull the
katana out of its back, gushing blood into a
puddle surrounding it.
She turned to her host, and picked up his heart,
settling it back into his chest. He looked up at
her, touching her cheek.
"That was Akane ... " he stated.
"No, it wasn't," Ranko replied softly, holding his
hand to her face, wishing it were real. "That was
not the real Akane-chan. That creature has
completely died, it no longer
exists. Now, my love, you must wake up, for she's
sitting by your mat, wanting to talk with you, I
believe."
"Why?" he asked, taking her face in his hands.
"I do not know, but you need to give her a chance,
my love. Do not turn her away or act gruff. Be ...
gentle with her."
"I don't know how to do that."
"Yes, you do. You found enough love to be so with
me, now find enough love to be so with her. You do
want to marry her someday, and both of you are too
passionate to have a cool relationship."
He closed his eyes, fading from the dreamscape.
"I'll try, Ko-chan ... I'll try ... "
She watched him vanish and she whispered, "That's
all I ask."
* * * * * * * * * *
Chapter Four
Ranma stirred from his sleep, placing his hands
over his eyes. Akane watched, holding her breath.
She could have *sworn* she heard him murmur "Ko-
chan" in his sleep.
"Ranma, wake up!" she whispered fiercely.
"*groan* 'Nother ten minutes ... "
"Wake *up*!" she hissed, whacking the center of
his chest.
He gasped, sitting straight up, making sure the
Akane-dog was gone. He stretched and yawned,
asking, "What'cha doin' waking people out of sound
sleep?"
Ranma groped for the lamp beside his mat, but his
hand landed on something soft and wet. He sharply
inhaled. So did Akane, for his hand was on her
thigh.
"Akane ... " he gulped.
"I - I forgot to ... " she stuttered, wishing she
could dig up a hole and pull it in after her. Yet,
she couldn't deny the powerful feeling that filled
up her body when he touched her. It was similar to
excitement, but deeper, rounder, even fuller.
Ranma pulled his hand quickly away and pulled the
sheet from around him to drape over her. Ranma was
at a loss, since he never actually ... touched her
...
He blushed deeper than she did.
In the dim light, from the street lamp, Ranma
tried to not watch her wrap the sheet around
herself. The words came out before he could catch
them.
"You look nice like that."
Akane stopped, and for a heartbeat, she savored
the compliment. It was all she wanted to hear.
Then Akane Tendo, Heir of the Anything Goes Dojo
interrupted, and retorted, "Fine thing to say to a
girl who wants to just talk to you."
Ranma gulped and proceeding to pound his head with
meaty thunks against the wall.
* * * * * * * * * *
Nabiki heard the pounding in her room. Pounding
sound ... middle of the night ... Ranma's room.
she thought. She
snatched up her camera and headed in the direction
of (what she was sure was) a quick profit. After
all, Ranma caught in an ... intensely personal act
would sell big to certain parties.
* * * * * * * * * *
"Stop that, you look stupid," Akane said. She
placed her hand between the wall and Ranma's
forehead, and he rested, feeling her cool palm
against his blushed skin.
"I'm sorry," he finally blurted.
"Uh-huh," she nodded, then whispered, "Me, too."
He looked up at her in the dim light, her eyes
trailing tears. He reached up and wiped them with
his thumb, like he tried to so many times with
Ranko. This time, he succeeded, and the saline
clung to his own flesh.
"What do you mean?"
"Ranma, I'm sorry for everything. I'm sorry for
hitting you, I'm sorry for beating you, I'm sorry
for insulting you -"
"Are you really Akane?" he asked.
The tears were streaming harder now, and she
placed her hands on his broad shoulders.
"I don't blame you for hating me. I'm mean and
selfish and petty and fat and ugly and -" her sobs
became louder " - and I'm not feminine enough for
you!"
Ranma did the only thing that came to him - he
grabbed Akane against him and held her tightly,
rocking her gently.
He was even more surprised that he was holding
her.
Akane cried into his shirt, sobbing out every
doubt that had plagued her, every hurt that had
seeded and grown in her breast. The blankets of
pain, anger, pride being pulled
away. She saw her own heart for the first time,
naked in her rain of tears, and she knew she had
to say it.
"Ranma, I - I - lov-"
Nabiki was expecting to catch Ranma doing
something embarrassing, after hearing the pounding
earlier. Even she was surprised by what she saw
...
Ranma and Akane on his sleep-mat, she only wearing
a damp sheet and they were holding each other ...
"Not good," Nabiki said, raising her camera.
The sound of a voice woke Genma, who glanced over
and saw Ranma and Akane.
Akane looked up at her sister, at Genma-baka, and
she felt a familiar emotion ... rage.
She had finally found it in herself to open up, to
finally tell Ranma what she felt, and someone
barges in to *RUIN* it!!
Just like every other time!
NOT THIS TIME!!
Genma had gotten up and was dancing around with
victory fans. "Oh joy! Oh happy day! I'll wake up
Soun and we'll - ACK!!"
Akane dragged the idiot to her face by his throat.
"No you won't. You won't do a thing. You won't say
a thing. You'll shut your hole and go away and not
wake anyone, because if
you do I'll kill you. Got it?!?"
Genma, ever living up to the example of his
spiritual totem, the Cowardly Lion, nodded meekly.
The trip out the window allowed him to realize
that the dojo might be a good place to sleep
tonight.
Akane turned to Nabiki. "Go away. No photos. No
comments. No interruptions. You will go away and
forget everything. Understand?!?"
Nabiki looked nervous, but quickly recovered.
"I'll need some sort of compensation-" (Ranma and
Akane in theUltimate Compromising Situation! There
was cash to be had!)
"Keep quiet and you'll stay out of the hospital,"
Akane snarled. Behind her, Ranma shuddered,
reminded of the dog-thing in his dream.
"Eep!" Nabiki exclaimed. It was so amusing when
that glare was on Ranma, but when it was on her,
it was terrifying.
"Good," Akane said. She shoved her sister back and
shut the door.
Akane breathed deeply, trying to get some sort of
equilibrium. She had been on a roller-coaster of
emotions recently, and she was still disoriented.
Ranma, meanwhile, couldn't help but notice that
Akane had dropped her sheet, and she was upset.
Even though he wasn't a good math student, the
equation wrote itself:
Angry Akane + Ranma + Locked Room - Akane's
Clothes = Closed-Casket Service.
Akane turned around, to find Ranma cringing in a
corner, his arms over his head defensively,
whimpering "I didn't look! I didn't look!" in
tones of utter terror.
"Ranma no baka," she commented roughly, picking up
the sheet from the floor and wrapping it around
herself again. Her own sister and his father of
all people, interrupting them! She looked down at
his still cowering figure.
"Stand up, Ranma," she said in a softer tone,
which passed off as still a little too rough.
He did so, keeping his eyes to the ground.
she realized. The thought
ripped at her heart.
"P-please look at me... Ra-ranma-sama... "
He breathed sharply, and looked up at her.
"What did you call me?"
Akane looked into his face, meeting his blue eyes
with her olive ones. "I called you 'Ranma-sama'."
She looked frightened. "You don't mind, do you?"
Ranma remained silent. His suspicions had grown
since that afternoon, when he lost those hours
when Ranko walked around in his body. Her story
didn't sit right with him, and he
wondered off and on the entire evening. Perhaps
Akane knows, perhaps Ranko told her something,
perhaps she let something slip ...
"No, I don't mind."
Akane studied him, letting her eyes caress his
round cheeks, down to his well-muscled arms and
solid body. She found it actually calming to do
so, and she let her anger drain from her, feeling
her battle aura cool off.
"I'm sorry for everything. I was ... immature and
frightened," she murmured, sniffing. "Gods, this
is so hard to say."
He locked eyes with her at last, and he felt that
odd tug in him again. His heart skipping two
beats, telling him ... telling him what? He
listened for Ranko's soul to guide him,
begging for her help. She only chuckled.
Ranma smiled gently. "Forgiven as always, Akane.
Thanks for apologizing. That's all I wanted."
"But I'm not making myself clear."
Akane softly stepped over to him, and stood him
face to face. Her eyes were red and swollen with
all her crying and her skin was mostly dry now.
Her hair stuck out crazily about her head, a halo
of blue-black that surrounded her exhausted face.
He reached up to touch her cheek, and bit his lip,
trembling in the flood of emotion pouring through
him.
He loved Ranko ... as friend, sister, mother.
He loved Akane, as his fiancee ... and lover.
For the first time, he knew what that meant.
"Ranma-sama?" she reached up, holding his large
hand against her cheek to quiet the trembling. She
trembled, too, his touch making her stomach clench
in excitement.
"Akane-chan... " he breathed, seeking her eyes for
permission, finding her willing.
He leaned over and lightly touched his lips to
hers.
Akane gasped, feeling his warm mouth against her
lips, and she closed her eyes, relishing his kiss.
She moved to wrap her arms around his neck,
melting into his body, moaning
softly.
* * * * * * * * * *
Nabiki punched at the pillow under her head,
unable to sleep. Her sister had not come out of
the Saotome's room yet and there was no sound of
death and destruction. Perhaps
Ranma was actually being reasonable, they were
actually talking about everything. Maybe he was
confessing about Ranko, and Akane was too
depressed to fight about it.
Nabiki knew that if they married, it'd be hell on
Earth. Akane loved Ranma, Ranma loved Ranko, Ranko
loved Ranma, Ranma and Ranko cannot have each
other. Ranko wants Ranma, even though Ranma can't
have Ranko, and he is saving himself for marriage.
So, he marries Akane, gives himself to her, but
loves Ranko anyway.
She finally gave up trying to figure it out. She
had the biggest chance imaginable to make a hefty
sum of yen, and Akane spoiled it for her. Well,
she *was* scary. Even Pantyhose on his worst day
wasn't as scary.
"Ranma," she whispered into her pillow. "This is
all your fault."
* * * * * * * * * *
Ranma woke the next morning, feeling Akane's body
against his. They had talked all night, holding
each other tightly. They talked about how they
felt all that time, of how they loved each other
in secret, of how they had let pride and persona
dictate their lives to the point in which they
almost believed the lies they told themselves and
others.
They did not take advantage of the situation. The
emotions from simply holding each other were heady
enough, causing each to break into tears at times,
the feelings more intense than they ever
experienced in their lives. They wiped the other's
tears, softly comforting the other.
To Ranma, it was pure heaven. He had needed it so
long, all his life. Everything that he knew he
should feel if Ranko could hold him, he felt by
Akane's hands. Yet ... this was
different. This was ... even more intense.
He wrapped his arm around his Akane-chan's waist,
hugging her to him.
*His* Akane-chan! He admitted it, fully and
completely. He loved her, he needed her, he'd die
without her. All the other fiancees didn't matter,
they could all be part of the Old Pervert's harem.
Only him and his Akane-chan ...
Akane-chan?
He thought about it. Last night, before he woke
up. His nightmare, when Ranko came in ... 'Isn't
nice to go around as my friend Akane-chan,
monster.' she had said.
Friend? Akane-chan? Nani?!
"Akane-sama, wake up."
She giggled softly in her sleep, turning over and
laying against his chest.
Ranma smiled gently, taken by this simple act.
"Akane-chan, wake up ... darling."
She cracked her eyes open, trying to focus on him.
She yawned and murmured, "I like waking up to your
face ... pretty ... "
"I like waking up to your face, too," he
suppressed the wiseass comment that would have
normally followed by reflex. "It's beautiful. But
I have to ask you something."
"Hmm? *yawn* What is it?" her eyes opened a little
wider.
"What happened after I left when you turned me
into my girl form?"
Akane remained silent, then hesitantly replied, "I
went to ... the girls room and ... "
Ranma raised his eyebrow, "Funny. A red-headed
girl told me you carried out your punishment."
He watched Akane's eyes grow a little wider, then
she set her mouth. "And do you remember everything
that happened after you asked me why I splashed
you?"
"Complete honesty, Akane-chan, I don't know. By
now you know Ko-chan only tells me as much as she
thinks I should know."
Akane looked down, caught red-handed in
conspiracy.
"She didn't want me to let you know ... "
"I know," he smiled nervously. "She's like an
older sister - what I think an older sister is
like, anyhow. Always protecting me from my own
silliness."
"I thought you were actually in love with her ...
she spoke of you so affectionately, and you
weren't searching for a cure to the Curse ... "
He closed his eyes.
"I thought I was in love with her," he sighed. "I
wanted someone to love me, and she did, so I loved
her. Yet ... her love isn't what I want from my
fiancee, the woman I'll marry," he picked her chin
up with his finger, their eyes meeting. "*Your*
love, Akane-chan, is what I want."
She smiled, hugging him. "That's good. I don't
want to fight with her for your affections. I just
want to take you away from the rest of the world,
and no one will ever bother us.
Just you and me, Ranma-sama."
"I like that," he chuckled. "I also like you
saying 'Ranma-sama' better, much prettier."
She blushed, and finally realized she was still in
the sheet and in Ranma's room. "Oh ... kuso!
School, Nabiki, your father, the other fiancees
... "
Ranma laughed.
"Don't worry, Akane-chan. Things will work out."
"Why do you say that?"
"That's what Ranko always tells me."
He pulled her head to his and kissed her.
It was still magical, just like the first time,
morning breath and all.
At last, their lips separated, and their eyes met.
"Ranma-sama, I love you."
His breath caught, and tears began streaming down
his face. Akane wiped them away with her fingers,
and he smiled.
"I love you, Akane-sama."
Her breath caught, and she felt her heart skip two
beats.
"I'm afraid."
"So am I."
"What do we do now?"
"I don't know."
* * * * * * * * * *
Chapter Five
Ranma and Akane were almost late for school,
narrowly avoiding the accusing looks of Nabiki and
Genma's shouts of promising to work the boy extra-
hard that afternoon for
missing the Sunrise Surprise Attack (being that it
happens every morning, the 'surprise' part has
lost its meaning, but that didn't faze Genma in
the least).
They ran through the streets of Nerima, hand in
hand, racing each other toward the school,
giggling in their euphoria.
"Nani?!" Susuke exclaimed, nearly falling off the
roof he occupied, spying for his master.
He picked himself up out of the rain barrel,
spitting a frog out of his mouth that had been
taking a morning swim. He watched as the
obviously-in-love forms of the Saotome boy and
Tendo girl run off in the distance.
"Oh, not good. The Master is going to not like
this at all."
Susuke attempted to climb out, but the giant panda
stood over him, barking ferociously at him.
Finally, the panda whipped out a sign that said
, then smashed the sign down on
top of the ninja. said the next sign, which also
smashed into Sasuke's head.
The panda left, and Susuke lay in the barrel in a
daze with his head through the sign. The frog
hopped back on him, staring him eye to eye.
"Ribbit," the frog commented.
* * * * * * * * * *
Akane and Ranma halted at the gates of Furnikan
High, and she turned to him.
"What do we do now?" she asked. "Everyone will
figure out we're ... we're in love, and then Kuno
will -"
"'Make the vengeance of the Blue Thunder upon the
head of the vile Saotome'," Ranma finished,
brushing his fingers across her bangs. "The
fiancees are going to find out as well, and your
admirers won't like it either."
"And if anyone asks Nabiki, she'll ask for payment
and then tell."
Ranma nodded, setting his jaw. "We'll just have to
accept the fact that a lot of people won't like
it." He hugged her to him quickly. "And if anyone
hurts you, I swear, I'll kill
them."
She smiled, kissing his cheek. "And I'll kill to
protect you."
Ranko commented, unheard inside
Ranma's head.
Ranma made a mental note to speak to Ko-chan some
time today.
* * * * * * * * * *
The actions of the two lovers went unnoticed, as
the classes were concentrating on the development
of a typhoon in the Sea of Japan, reported on the
classroom radio. The weather forecasters said it
would possibly hit Tokyo in about thirty-six
hours. Wind speeds up to fifteen meters per
second, possibly even higher if the typhoon gained
more strength before it hit Nerima.
The students were too busy worrying about typhoon
preparation to notice Ranma and Akane passing
notes in class. Hiroshi was the poor messenger
between them, and he
wondered how they could remain so calm during a
silent argument. After all, this was Ranma and
Akane - what else could be written on those scraps
of paper?
Hiroshi would have been sick if he knew what those
notes held.
* * * * * * * * * *
"It isn't fair, not really," he said.
She turned around at the sound of the man's voice.
"Oh, my," she said, then bowed low. "Greetings, O-
Kuni-Nushi-san. May I be of assistance?"
"I was thinking, Benzaiten-san, that I could be of
help to you."
The Goddess of Happiness Caused By Love looked
quizzically at the God of Medicine and Sorcery.
"In what, if I may ask?"
"These," he said, gesturing at the hero Ranma and
the girl-child Akane. These souls burnt with the
golden fire of love, intensely enough that living
things in their vicinity healed at an accelerated
rate.
"You fulfilled your mission as set by Kami-Sama -
to bring happiness to the world through love.
These two know happiness, and can bring happiness
to their families and friends."
"Thank you," she answered simply, blushing. She
seldom got acknowledged for her works. Indeed,
there were few shrines to her in the Mortal
Realms, since most mortals only thought of her as
one of the Seven Lucky Gods.
"But what of this one?" he said, pointing. "What
of her pain?"
"Who?" the Goddess asked.
"Look."
Benzaiten looke d more intently, uncertain of what
she sought ...
... and, hidden in the glare of Ranma Saotome's
soul, was another soul of equal intensity.
Benzaiten gasped.
O-Kuni-Nushi nodded. "You had used this one to
bring the other two together. What of her needs?"
Benzaiten gazed at the female soul, tinged with
the deep blue of grief, streaked with the red of
pain and loss. "I didn't know ... I thought she
was a construct of Ranma's mind and curse ... "
"Instead, she is a real person, with a karma of
her own," the God said. "A soul that is in pain. A
pain that will taint and corrupt the love that has
blossomed, turning it from a thing of beauty into
something foul."
"Yes, you're right. But - how?"
"I have an idea," the God held out his hand. "With
your help, perhaps?"
Benzaiten blushed and nodded. The Master of the
Land and Patron of Heroes asking for *her* help!
"Now, this is what we need to do ..."
* * * * * * * * * *
Ranma had to do it.
He hated to. He didn't want to. Would she think
that he betrayed her?
He kissed Akane good-bye that afternoon, telling
her that he'd meet her in last period, that he had
to talk to someone. She agreed, knowing that he
had to talk with Ranko about this
sudden development.
Ranma entered the tiny apartment, looking around
at the simple furnishings. He created it as a
place to get away from everyone, to have time to
himself to think and ponder. This was where Ranko
came to him, as he meditated on his image in the
mirror in self-examination meditation. She
appeared, sitting on her side of the mirror,
announcing her presence by voice. She nearly
scared him to death, thinking that she had come to
battle him for dominance of the body they shared.
But, Ranko had only begged him to end her
existance, which he couldn't find himself able to
do. She knew him more than he knew himself, was
able to love him for who he was, even gently tease
about the implications of an intimate relationship
between them. She was there to listen to his
doubts, his fears, his needs. He loved her for
being the most perfect woman on Earth.
He stood before the mirror, his image completely
absent. He knew she was on her way by this. He
smiled nervously as she appeared from the other
"doorway" of the mirrored apartment.
"Well, Saotome," she smiled sweetly, her eyes red.
"It looks like you've found true love at last."
He tried to wipe her eyes, seeing the tear trails
down her pale cheeks. His fingertips only met the
cold mirror. She wiped them herself with the back
of her hand.
"I don't like seeing you crying," he replied
softly. "It hurts me more than you think. You
shouldn't be crying."
"Who said I was crying?" she asked, smiling
sheepishly. "I didn't know it was so hard to let
you go, ichunnohito."
"But you insisted I give Akane a chance," he
swallowed the lump in his throat. "I did. I know I
love her now." He blinked back the tears. "*We*
know we love each other now."
"That's as it should be," she remarked, pressing
her hands to the mirror in front of her, at his
chest. "That is what the Gods, Higher Powers,
what-have-you, have set. My work is
done."
"Ko-chan, I still love you. I shouldn't, but I
do."
"I love you as well. 'The more you love, the more
you *can* love - and the more intensely you love.'
Love is never limited, it is ever expanding. That
is how you can love Akane-chan as your fiancee,
how you can love me as your friend, and I can love
you both enough to warrant your happiness before
my own."
"I'm sorry," he whispered. "I promised to find a
way for you to get out, to always be with you.
You're more than a friend, more than a sister, yet
... "
"I know, my Ranma-kun. I told you it would not
work out, and we would not be happy."
Ranma leaned against the mirror, his cheek against
her forehead. "It's not fair."
"Could be worse," she chuckled. "I could be the
man-hunting Onna-Ranma and step out of the mirror
to kidnap you."
"Ko-chan, given the chance, you would," he smiled
gently.
"Hey!" she protested.
He chuckled back at her, and she smiled, releasing
a small giggle.
"Yes, I probably would, but I'd return you to
Akane once I got tired of you."
"How long would that be?" he took the bait.
"How long do you think you can last, Stamina-Boy?
You'd be dead of exhaustion in a week - ten days,
tops."
Both looked at each other for a silent moment,
then erupted into a fit of laughter, leaning
against their respective sides of the mirror,
guffawing hysterically. They slid down, shoulder
to shoulder, trying to control their laughter.
"Are you done yet?" Ranko demanded, trying to
sound she were in control amid her own giggles.
"Nope," he replied, going off into a chortle.
They finally quieted down, sitting on the floor,
their heads touching the other's through the
glass.
"Well, a girl can still dream," she stated with
perfect dignity.
Ranma chuckled to himself. "It'll take a hell of a
man to deal with you, my Ko-chan."
She nodded.
He reached up to touch her cheek, tracing the
outline he knew so well from his reflection, and
from her own image.
"Will you be okay?"
She breathed deeply and nodded. "I am a Saotome -
I'm so hard-headed, nothing can affect me."
"Liar."
"I know. Ranma, you do have my blessing to be with
Akane. Your happiness together is all that
matters. Give me time to let it sink in."
"I never wanted to hurt you, Ko-chan. You know
that."
"Yes," she reached over to caress his cheek.
(Elsewhere, a God and Goddess nodded; all was
ready. Now just a gentle nudge ... )
He closed his eyes, feeling the soft fingertips
trace down his cheek and under his chin ...
"Nani?!" Ranko squealed, pulling her hand back.
Ranma snapped up, alert to the odd occurrence. He
pressed his hands to the mirror, only feeling the
glass.
"Ko-chan, what happened?"
Her jaw was still slack in disbelief. "I- I- I
don't know!"
"Push your hand out," he said, standing up.
Ranko stood as well, hesitantly pressing her
fingers to her side of the mirror. She gasped,
feeling her fingertips slide through. The mirror
felt like nothing more than a thick bubble of
soap.
"I'll ... be ... damned!" Ranma stated in awe. He
laced his fingers in hers, and pulled her toward
him. Her hands were trembling.
"Ko-chan, walk through the mirror!"
She pushed her body forward, feeling the bubble-
like shield move over her as she strained through,
Ranma's strong hands pulling her ... birthing her
into his world ...
With a final pull, she sprang out, landing on top
of Ranma. He was giggling, shaking under her. She
opened her eyes, looking into his blue eyes so
much like her own.
"What the hell happened?" she asked, propping
herself up.
"Who knows? Who cares?!" He sat up, hugging her.
"Just once, the Gods or whatever decided to do
something *for* us instead of dumping on us! This
is wonderful!"
She hugged back, as she had longed to do for so
long. He felt strong and warm and *alive*! "Now
I'll be able to challenge Akane to single combat
with you as the prize!"
Ranma jerked back and looked at her, wide-eyed.
"Joke! Kidding! A funny!" she added hastily.
Ranma exhaled. "Don't scare me like that!"
Ranko smiled, a brilliant and sunny smile.
* * * * * * * * * *
"Oh the happiness of brother and sister, finding
each other!" Benzaiten sang. "Oh true love
fulfilling itself! It is so perfect!"
She turned to the other deity. "O-Kuni-Nushi-san,
if I may be so bold, why have we done this thing?"
"Liberating Ranko, you mean, instead of
reincarnating her or just letting her Pass On?"
O-Kuni-Nushi looked away, toward another location
...
"Ranma is one of mine, in my role as Patron of
Heroes. As is Ranko. And another one of those
under my protection has need of Ranko."
"May one ask who?"
"You may. I won't tell you, but you may ask."
Benzaiten nodded. It was not the place of a
Goddess so low in the hierarchy to question on so
high-ranked a deity as O-Kuni-Nushi.
Instead, she watched with happiness as Ranma and
Ranko laughed while dropping through the gymnasium
ceiling and racing through the school, both
anxious to share the news.
-End "Ranma's Secret"-
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