Subject: [FFML] [fanfic][ranma] [draft][Change of Scene, chapters 67-69]
From: "KaraOhki" <karaohki@snet.net>
Date: 3/16/1999, 12:02 AM
To:

"A Change of Scene"  Chapters 67-69
February, 1999, by  June "KaraOhki" Geraci
karaohki@snet.net
To see earlier chapters:  surf.to/karaohki

The characters from Ranma 1/2 in this fiction are the
creations of Rumiko Takahashi, and borrowed without
her permission.
This story was written for non-commercial purposes only.


Chapter 67


"NO!  Noooooo . . ."

The visions in Ranma's head kept shifting, from bad to worse.  No
matter how many times he saw them, he never, ever got used to them.

Akane vanished, and her clothes drifted down into Ranma's arms  She
was gone, and it was all his fault for not doing a better job of
protecting her.  He closed his eyes tightly, trying not to cry. . .

The little doll that was Akane sat on the edge of the table, staring
at nothing.  There had to be a way to bring her back . . .

Ranma stared at Shampoo, afraid to move, because she held little Akane
in one hand, her thumb pressed against her head.  All Shampoo had to
do was push . . .

Akane looked so tired.  Ranma held her close to his face, and pleaded
with her. "Don't fall asleep, Akane!  Don't!"  Akane smiled faintly,
raised her arms towards Ranma's face, and closed her eyes . . .

Akane lay in Ranma's arms, not breathing.  No matter how loudly he
called her, she wouldn't wake up . . .

"No . . . please!  Don't leave me!"

Ranma woke, gasping for air.  He reached for the light, and looked
down at Akane, who was still sound asleep.  Just to be certain, Ranma
took Akane's hand, which was reassuringly warm, and felt the strong
pulse in her wrist.  He was amazed that she was sleeping, because his
nightmares usually woke her, and then he remembered that she'd taken a
pain pill before going to bed.

He turned off the lamp and tried to sleep, but the dream continued to
haunt him.  He'd been having it over and over again since Jusendo.
The first time it had happened, which was on their way home from
China, Ranma had crept into Akane's tent to make sure she was still
there, alive.  He'd sat there for the longest time, watching her
sleep, until he was calm enough to go back to his own tent.

Ranma wondered what Akane would think if she'd known how many nights
he'd spent in her room between their failed wedding and departure for
college.  Despite the fact that he knew that she was all right, and
he'd only been dreaming, Ranma was never able to go back to sleep
until he'd reassured himself that Akane was still there, and therefore
he had spent many long hours sitting beside her bed, watching.  He'd
hoped that the nightmares would go away once he and Akane were
married, but they continued to plague him, and he would wake up and
turn on the lamp just to look at Akane and make sure she was still
there.  This time, though, he needed to do more than just look, and
Ranma gently lifted his wife into his arms, carefully avoiding the
bandage on her arm. With Akane's comforting warmth filling his arms,
and her hair tickling his chin, Ranma was finally able to relax, and
sleep.

When the alarm rang, Akane stirred, and found herself unable to move.
Her dead-to-the-world husband had his arms around her, and she
couldn't reach the clock to turn off the ringing.

Ranma's eyes slowly opened, and one hand let go of Akane long enough
to turn off the alarm, and then it returned to caress her cheek.  He
gently traced her black eye, kissed her, then let her go.  When he got
up and began dressing, Akane sat up and stared.

"Where are you going?"

"Somebody has to tell Konatsu that Ukyo is in the hospital."

Some time later, still arguing, the couple approached Ucchan's.

"If you go in there alone, you'll end up fighting with Konatsu.  I'm
going so that I can keep things calm!"

"Calm?  Akane, you said CALM?  Since when were YOU calm?  Besides, I
said I don't want you in there!  When Konatsu hears that you knocked
Ukyo out, who knows what he'll do!"

That was enough to make Akane stop short.  Since she'd gotten out of
bed, Ranma had been telling her not to come with him, but now he was
finally telling her why.  She put her hand on her husband's arm, her
face a mixture of affection and amusement.

"I don't think he'd try to hurt me."

"I won't let him try!"

"Ranma!"

Instead of responding immediately, Ranma touched the bruises on
Akane's face again.

"Your father is going to kill me when he sees this."

"It wasn't your fault."

"Yeah, but you know I promised him that I'd protect you.  He'll say
I'm not doing a good enough job of it."

Akane couldn't decide if she wanted to hit Ranma, or kiss him.  From
the look on his face, it was evident that he was preparing to duck if
necessary, and his expression changed to relief when she smiled at
him.

"You can't be with me every second, love."

A voice behind them made them both jump.

"Excuse me, but have you seen Ukyo?  I've been searching for her all
night."

The couple turned around.  An exhausted-looking Konatsu was standing
there.

*****

Cologne held down the lid of the carton while Shampoo taped it.  The
room was filled with cartons, and the half-open door of Shampoo's
closet showed that it was close to empty.

"Is there anything else you need to pack, child?"

"No, Great-Grandmother.  What I have left will fit in a small bag.
When Shiro tells me he's ready, I can be gone in less than an hour."

Downstairs, the bells jingled as the Nekohanten's door opened, and the
driver from the air freight company entered.  He loaded the boxes into
his truck, and closed the doors.  Shampoo watched as he climbed
inside, pulled away from the curb, and turned the corner, and then she
went back to work.  A few blocks down, a man on the sidewalk stepped
out in front of the truck, causing the driver to screech to a stop.

"Hey!  Watch where you're going!"

The driver continued on, and Mousse took his glasses off his forehead
and placed them over his nose.  He didn't want to get run down before
he could see his darling Shampoo again.  He began to run toward the
Nekohanten.

"Shampoo!  Your ring!"

Shampoo heard Cologne's hiss and looked down at her hand, fearful that
she'd lost her ring.  When the door of the Nekohanten opened,  she
realized what her great-grandmother was trying to tell her.  She'd
barely had time to remove her ring and shove it into her apron pocket
before Mousse dropped his bags and swept her off her feet, hugging her
tightly.

"Shampoo, you don't know how much I missed you!"

CONK!

"Behave yourself, Mousse!  Make yourself useful.  Put your things away
and get to work!"

For just a second, Shampoo could see rebellion in Mousse's eyes.
Cologne waved her staff as if to hit him a second time, and Mousse
dropped his gaze to the floor, picked up his bags, and headed
upstairs.  Shampoo moved closer to Cologne, and spoke to her softly.

"Did you see the way he looked at you?"

"I did.  Watch yourself, dear.  He's going to break soon, and it may
be very dangerous for anyone in the way."

*****

The Saotomes watched Konatsu running toward the hospital, turned
around, and headed for campus.  Konatsu had been so worried about Ukyo
that he'd been relieved just to learn where she was.  When he found
out why she was in the hospital, his anger had flared for just a
moment, but one look from Ranma had convinced him to sit still long
enough to hear an explanation.  Once he'd heard it, Konatsu's only
concern was to get to Ukyo as fast as he possibly could.

"That was easier than I thought it was going to be, Akane."

"I hope she'll be all right."

"Me too.  I think I'll go see her tonight before rehearsal."

"I'll go with you."

Ranma squeezed Akane's hand.

"Not a good idea.  I don't know if she'll want to see me, and she
definitely won't want to see you.  She might even try to hurt you
again."

By this time the couple was on campus, and they stopped for a cup of
tea before classes began.  They were too busy talking to notice the
stares coming their way.  Afterwards, Ranma started walking Akane
toward the building where she had her first class.

"Ranma, shouldn't you be going the other way?"

"I'll see you inside first."

Akane saw that Ranma was wearing his "protective" look again, and
sighed.  He would probably be that way for the next few days, at the
very least.  She saw that Kikue, one of her classmates, was trying to
get her attention and waved for her to wait while Ranma kissed her
cheek and headed off to his own class.

"See you at lunch."

Akane was settling herself into her chair when Kikue came up to her,
looking very uncomfortable.

"Um, Akane, can I talk to you for a second?"

"Sure.  Sit down."

The girl fumbled around in her bag for a moment, and took out a
brochure.

"Look, I know what's going on between you and your boyfriend is none
of my business, but I think you'd better read this."

Completely confused, Akane looked down at the brochure.  Her eyes
popped open wide when she read the title:

"How to Break Free From an Abusive Relationship."

"What on earth do I need this for?"

Kikue looked embarrassed, and gestured to Akane's bruises.

"I've been watching you, Akane.  The two of you have all the signs.
I've noticed how he's always with you, holding onto you.  Now you show
up with these bruises!"

Akane took a couple of breaths, trying to remain calm.  She couldn't
believe that someone was accusing Ranma of beating her.

"First of all, Kikue, Ranma isn't my boyfriend.  He's my husband."

She held up her hand, showing her rings.

"We just got married, so don't you think it's natural that he'd always
be with me?  Secondly, he didn't do this.  Someone else did."

"Look, that's what everyone says, but you can tell me the truth.
You're married?  Sure, he makes you wear the ring, but he doesn't wear
one.  Doesn't that tell you something?"

Again, Akane had to fight to maintain control.  Ranma was wearing his
ring, but on a chain around his neck.  The day he'd smashed the
fountain his ring had fallen off when he'd changed, and it had taken
them a half hour to find it in the grass.  Her classmate's assumptions
were annoying Akane almost more than she could handle.

"Whether or not my husband wears a ring is none of your business!  I
got these bruises defending myself from someone who attacked me last
night.  If you REALLY need to confirm it, go ask Shiro! Ranma is
sticking close to me because he's worried!  Isn't he allowed to be
worried about me?"

Kikue turned very red.

"I'm sorry, Akane.  I - I meant well . . ."

Akane's anger left as quickly as it had come.  She patted Kikue's hand
and smiled at her.

"I know you did.  If you knew my husband better, you wouldn't have
thought this of him, and if you knew me better, you'd know that I'm a
martial artist.  I can defend myself pretty well."

"Don't tell him what I said!  Please!  I'd be SO embarrassed!"

"Okay, I won't, but I still think you should see for yourself what
kind of person Ranma really is."

After a little hesitation, Kikue nodded.

"Thank you.  I will."

*****

When Akane met Ranma for lunch, she discovered that Kikue wasn't the
only person who'd drawn the wrong conclusions.  Ranma was standing
outside the cafeteria, and it was evident to Akane that he was
involved in some kind of disagreement with several students.  One of
them saw Akane approaching, and gestured in her direction.

"You should be ashamed of yourself, Saotome!  How could you do such a
thing!"

"Look, I TOLD you, it wasn't me!"

"Hey!"

When Akane shouted, everyone turned in her direction.

"How dare you accuse Ranma of hurting me!"

"Look at you.  How can you deny--urk!"

Whatever the young man was going to say, it was impossible for him to
continue once Akane had both hands on his collar, holding him off the
ground.

"I'm only going to say this once, so listen.  My husband is NOT
responsible for these bruises, and if I hear anyone say it again,
we're BOTH going to flatten them!"

"Akane, take it easy!"

Akane dropped the unfortunate student, and turned on Ranma, fury on
her face.

"No!  I won't let them talk about you that way!  You won't do more
than tap me when we practice together!  How could they think you'd
hurt me?"

The circle around the Saotomes drew back a little when Akane began to
glow.  Ranma grabbed her hands, and pulled her towards him.

"Don't!"

There was a collective sigh of relief when Akane's glow faded.  Ranma
drew her closer, picked her up, and glared at the circle of men
standing around them.  When they didn't move, he simply jumped over
them and disappeared.



Chapter 68



"Where are we going?"

"Hold still, Akane!  I'm taking you home."

"But--"

"Don't argue with me!  We're taking the afternoon off."

Akane quieted, and Ranma left the campus and took to the rooftops.

*****

"Mousse!  Order for delivery!"

Cologne waited impatiently as Mousse tore his gaze from Shampoo, took
the order, and left the Nekohanten.  The lunch crowd was rather thin,
and she waved Shampoo into the kitchen.

"I'm sorry, Shampoo.  I've made a great many mistakes, and I'm afraid
it's going to make your life more complicated."

"Mistakes?"

"I should have told you a long time ago about our family secret, and
let you decide whether you wanted to be included.  Instead, I
encouraged you to pursue Ranma.  After he hit you and I told him he
couldn't marry you, I knew you were still following him around.  I
like Ranma, Shampoo, and I still hoped that you would win him over."

"That's all right, Great-Grandmother.  It all worked out for the
best."

"But that's not the worst of it.  I encouraged Mousse to pursue you,
and he didn't need the encouragement.  Now he's going to be a big
problem, because he thinks you've accepted him."

Shampoo suppressed the urge to laugh.  Mousse had been a big problem
in her life for a long time.

"Don't worry about Mousse, I can handle him."

Cologne's hand flicked out, lightly slapping Shampoo's cheek.

"Don't get overconfident."

*****

The wind picked up as Ranma took the direct route home, traveling from
roof to roof.  Within a minute it was raining, and Ranma landed on the
roof of their house in girl form.  Ranma set Akane down on the roof,
climbed down to the kitchen window to open it, and helped her through.
Akane barely waited before her coat was off to start asking questions.

"Ranma, why did you bring me home?  Shouldn't we be in class?"

Ranma was already headed for the bathroom, shirt half unbuttoned.

"I don't know about you, but I wanted to get away from campus before I
hurt someone."

The bathroom door closed behind Ranma, and Akane stared at it for a
few seconds.  A year ago, Ranma would have lost his temper and said
something foolish, or gotten into a fight.  Today he'd kept his
self-control, calmed her down, and gotten them both away before any
damage could be done.  Coming home had been a good idea.

A sudden thought made Akane smile and she walked toward the bathroom
door.  Ranma was already working with the shower taps, adjusting the
temperature, and Akane peeked around the curtain in time to watch him
change.  He became aware of her presence, turned around, and watched
quietly as her clothes joined his in the hamper, and she stepped under
the hot water with him.

"As long as we're taking the afternoon off, we might as well enjoy
ourselves."

*****

Shiro picked at his lunch while he read Shampoo's letter, which had
arrived by courier.  Her revelation of Cologne's secret had been a
complete surprise, and also a relief.  After everything Shampoo had
told him about Cologne, Shiro had been preparing himself for a great
deal of trouble with her, and he was very relieved that one of their
problems had been eliminated.

Shampoo had been thrilled when Shiro had written her, suggesting that
he take her to China so that he could meet her father.  His botany
class was taking a trip to China to study and collect medicinal herbs,
and it would be no problem for Shiro to arrange for Shampoo to travel
with them, and take the side trip to Joketsuzoku on their own.  Now it
seemed that Shampoo wanted to explain how Shiro should act in public
once he arrived there.

Shiro began to chuckle as he read, totally unaware of the looks of
amusement he was getting from the people sitting nearby.

"Shiro, you pretend very meek and humble when you get there.  In
Father's house Shiro can be himself.  Shampoo's family will
understand, and Elders will be fooled.  I know you will not like to do
this, but is only when there.  You will do this for Shampoo, please?"

The only possible answer could be yes.

Except for this little secret, Shampoo's letter seemed only to be
affectionate and chatty, and Shiro couldn't help but wonder why she'd
sent it by courier, until he picked up the next page, which had been
dated the previous day.

"Mousse come back yesterday.  He pretend to be only foolish Mousse,
but I can see is big lie.  So can Great-Grandmother.  He treated me
very nicely all day, but was different last night when
Great-Grandmother went into the back to count the receipts.

"Mousse grabbed me, and said he was tired of waiting.  He said we must
marry right now.  I was surprised, and tried to pull away.  Next part
worse.  Shampoo is afraid to tell you this.

"He hurt me.  Mousse squeezed Shampoo's wrist so hard.  Am sure there
will be big bruise tomorrow.  Am in bed, writing this letter, and
already doorknob has rattled twice.  My door is locked, but Shampoo is
not sure if Mousse will respect the lock.

"I know is too soon for you to have place for us to live, but Shampoo
is going to leave home now. Will come to Ube this weekend.  I know you
can find me place to stay.  Too bad girls not allowed in dormitory."

The rest of Shiro's lunch was abandoned when he ran out of the
cafeteria in the direction of the nearest phone.  There was only one
place he could send Shampoo where she wouldn't be found.  After that,
he would need to talk to Ranma about Mousse.  Maybe he could catch up
to him at rehearsal.

 *****

"How long will you be gone, Ranma?"

"An hour, maybe.  I might be home sooner than that, if Ukyo throws me
out."

The worried look on Akane's face bothered Ranma all the way to the
hospital, and the more he thought about it, the angrier he got at his
father.  Many of the troubles that he and Akane experienced were due
to the foolish decisions his father had made.  He couldn't blame
everything on him, but engaging him to both Ukyo and Akane had been
really, really stupid.   Why had he accepted Mr. Kuonji's offer when
Ranma was already promised to a Tendo daughter?  No matter who Ranma
chose, someone was going to get hurt, and that was one of the reasons
he had hesitated for so long to tell Akane how much he cared--he knew
that Ukyo was going to be hurt, or angry, or both.  It had turned out
to be both, and she'd ended up in the hospital.  Genma was going to be
at the receiving end of a lot of trouble when Ranma went home for the
weekend.

The young woman at the reception desk smiled at Ranma.

"May I help you?"

"Yes, I'd like a pass to see Ukyo Kuonji."

The reply Ranma got was a smile that made him rather uncomfortable,
and an offer to walk him in the right direction.

"It's time for my break, and I have to walk right by there, so it's no
problem."

The smile made Ranma wish he was wearing his ring around his finger
rather than around his neck, but he accepted the offer, and walked as
far away from the young woman as he could without appearing to be
rude.  She dropped him at the nurses' desk, and the nurse brought him
to Ukyo's room.

"You are Ranma?  Miss Kuonji seems to spend a lot of time talking to
herself about you."

They reached the room, and the nurse opened the door, but there was no
one inside.

"Miss Kuonji?"

Worried, she opened the door to the bathroom.  It too was empty.  Ten
minutes later, a thorough search of the floor proved that Ukyo was
gone.

"Are you all right?"

The nurse looked at Ranma with concern.  He had gone pale, and broken
out into a sweat.

"I have to get home.  My wife--"

The pass fluttered to the floor, but Ranma was out of sight before it
landed.

*****

There it was again.  A scraping noise from somewhere up above.

Konatsu left the grill, and climbed the stairs as quietly as he could.
He arrived in time to see Ukyo climbing out of the window, spatula in
hand.  He rushed to the window and leaned down as Ukyo was reaching
the ground.

"Ukyo!  Come back!"

Ukyo just ran.

"I'm terribly sorry, folks, but I have an emergency.  Please let me
pack your dinners into takeout boxes, because I have to close down as
soon as possible."

Within minutes Konatsu had succeeded in clearing the restaurant.  He
left the dirty dishes where they were, locked up, and left.  He had a
very good idea where Ukyo was going.

*****

Akane was starting dinner when a rustling noise from the window
distracted her.  She smiled, opened one of the cupboards, and took out
a bag of birdseed.

Akane had begun feeding the birds shortly after she and Ranma had
returned from their honeymoon. An earlier tenant had put a bird feeder
outside the window, and Akane was fascinated with the variety of birds
that visited her.  She'd told Ranma that she missed P-chan less
because of the birds.  He'd given her a funny look, but hadn't said
anything.

It was sunset, and the birds usually came for a snack before going to
their nests for the night. They'd probably cleaned out the feeder
today, judging from the tapping sound Akane was hearing.  Some of the
bolder birds would actually scold her when she'd open the window, as
if to chastise her for forgetting to feed them.

"All right, all right, I'm coming!"

Akane chuckled as she scooped some of the seed into a cup, and pulled
aside the curtain.  Then the cup fell out of her hand, and spilled all
over the floor.   Ukyo was outside the window, attempting to open it.

For one second, their eyes met, and they both understood what the
other was thinking.  Ukyo had come to finish what she had started.
Akane had no intention of letting her do that.

Ukyo yanked at the window, bringing it up a few inches.  She got her
arm under it, and was attempting to push it up the rest of the way
when Akane turned around, distracted by the sound of running
footsteps.  The door flew open, and Ranma ran into the kitchen.  One
look at the expression of fury on his face caused Ukyo to cry out as
if she'd been struck, and she vanished.

"Oh no!  Ranma, did she fall?"

Akane wrenched the window up the rest of the way, and was about to
lean over the sill when Ranma pushed her aside and looked for himself.
Ukyo had already climbed part way down.  He gasped when she lost her
grip in her haste, and began falling.  Then a dark figure below caught
her.

"Konatsu!  Is Ukyo all right?"

Konatsu looked up long enough to nod.

"She's fine."

He was gone before Ranma could say another word.

Ranma closed the window, turned around, and grabbed Akane.  He gave
her a little shake, and glared at her.

"How could you try to lean out, when Ukyo was out there?   What if
she'd pulled you out with her? If you'd both fallen, Konatsu would
only have been able to catch one of you, and. . ."

Akane hung her head.  Konatsu wouldn't have caught her.

"I--I'm sorry, Ranma."

Ranma pulled Akane tightly against him, and wrapped his arms around
her.  Akane could feel his heart racing.

"Did you run all the way from the hospital?"

"Yes."

Akane lifted her face from Ranma's chest, and kissed him.

"Thank you, love."

She stepped back, and slid on the birdseed, causing Ranma to clutch at
her.

"What's all this on the floor?"

"I was going to feed the birds, but when I opened the curtains Ukyo
was out there.  I was so surprised that I dropped it."

Ranma pulled Akane close to him again.

"What would you have done if she'd come in?"

"I don't know.  I wouldn't have wanted to hurt her unless I had to."

"I hope you never have to, Akane."

A little while later, the kitchen had been swept, the seed put outside
for the birds, and Ranma hung up the phone and joined Akane at the
table for dinner.  He had phoned Ucchan's, but no one had answered.
Another call to the hospital told him that Ukyo had returned there,
something that surprised him greatly.

"Ukyo's back at the hospital, Akane.  I'm glad--she needs help."

Ranma took a mouthful of dinner, swallowed hastily, and drank nearly
all of his water.

"That bad, Ranma?"

"I've had worse."

"I'm sorry.  I don't cook very well when I'm upset."

"I noticed."

The hurt look on Akane's face told Ranma he'd put his foot in his
mouth again.

"Sorry, Akane."

"About the dinner, or what you said?"

"Both.  And sorry you don't have a normal life, like other girls."

Akane's expression softened, and she reached across the table to pat
Ranma's hand.

"If I'd wanted a normal life I would have married someone else."

Ranma held his breath, waiting for Akane to continue.

"I don't want anyone else."

*****

Ukyo struggled vainly as Konatsu carried her away.

"Put me down!"

"No.  I'm taking you back to the hospital."

"I don't want to go back there!"

Konatsu had been cutting across campus, and he roughly deposited Ukyo
on a bench and sat next to her.

"You belong there, Ukyo."

Ukyo's face crumpled.

"He hates me.  Ranma hates me."

"No, he doesn't hate you . . . yet."

"What do you mean?"

"You nearly made the biggest mistake you could ever make.  Ranma likes
you, and he wants to be your friend.  If you killed his wife, he would
never forgive you."

When Ukyo collapsed against him, crying miserably, Konatsu let her be
for a while.  Then he picked her up again, and continued toward the
hospital.

*****

"Akane, you look terrible!  Does it hurt?"

"Please, Mishi.  Don't make a fuss."

That was just the start.  The entire cast and crew surrounded Akane,
asking what had happened.  She and Ranma tried to keep the explanation
short and simple, and most people accepted it and went back to what
they were doing, with the exception of Yoshimi, who was more
interested in Akane's bruises for the visual impact rather than any
pain she might be in.

"Do you think we can cover that with makeup?  You said you have
stitches in your leg?  Will they show?"

Akane saw Ranma's anger at the questions, and shooed him toward the
catwalk.

"I'm sure the bruises will fade before next Saturday, Yoshimi.  And
the stitches come out a couple of days before that.  Could you just
drop it?"

Recognizing the danger signals in Akane's eyes, Mishi tapped Yoshimi
on the shoulder, and asked him to come with her to see some changes
she'd made to the costumes.  She glanced back at Akane as she walked
off, and was rewarded with a grateful look.

By the time the rehearsal was over, Ranma and Akane were tired, and
very hungry.  They hadn't eaten very much of what Akane had cooked,
and looked forward to stopping for a snack on the way home.  Shiro
found them as they were putting on their coats.

"Do you two have a minute?"

"We were going to get something to eat, Shiro.  Want to come with us?"

Shiro never refused an invitation to eat, and the three were soon
seated in a small restaurant, where he told them about Shampoo's
imminent arrival.  When Shiro revealed what Shampoo had told him about
Cologne, Ranma was stunned.

"You mean to tell me that old bat has been lying to us all this time,
and half the women in the village are in on it?"

"That's right."

"Wow."

"So I expect Shampoo some time this weekend, and I'm going to take her
somewhere safe, and leave her there until we get married."

"Where's that?"

"I'm not going to tell you.  If Mousse figures out that Shampoo came
here, he'll follow.  I don't want you to have to lie."



Chapter 69

Friday was an uneventful day for the Saotomes, which was a welcome
relief.  They were happy to leave their classes late that afternoon,
collect their bags, and get on the train for Nerima.

The Tendo house was dark and quiet when Ranma and Akane arrived.  They
let themselves in, and were about to go upstairs when they noticed a
piece of paper on the dining room table.

"Welcome home.  I left a snack on the counter for you."

Ranma immediately headed for the kitchen.

"Kasumi's cooking!"

Akane followed, a little more slowly.  Someday she hoped Ranma would
respond that way to her cooking.

Ranma already had his mouth full when Akane came through the door, and
was holding a plate out to her.

"Eat up, Akane.  This is great."

Soon there was nothing left but crumbs.  Akane started to wash the
dishes, and Ranma disappeared. He returned a short time later and came
up behind his wife, putting his hands on her waist.

"Where did you go?"

"I brought our things upstairs, and put them away.  You nearly done?"

"Just about."

Akane had a very difficult time washing the last couple of dishes, as
Ranma's arms pulled her back against him, and he began to kiss her
neck.

"Mmmm.  Stop that."

"Why?"

"Wait 'til we get upstairs."

Ranma's response was to toss Akane over his shoulder, and carry her
upstairs.

*****

Shampoo sat up the moment her doorknob rattled.  She was about to open
the door and pound on Mousse, when she heard the soft whisper.

"It's me, Great-Granddaughter.  Let me in."

Cologne closed the door behind her, and the two women sat down on the
bed.

"You're leaving, aren't you?"

"How did you know?"

"I could tell."

Shampoo looked exasperated.

"I didn't want you to know, Great-Grandmother.  Then you could be as
surprised as Mousse will be when I disappear."

"I can be as surprised as necessary.  Don't worry about it."

*****

The early morning sun woke Akane and she looked up, momentarily
confused.  The window was in the wrong place, and the ceiling wasn't
slanted, as it was in the little attic bedroom she shared with Ranma
at home.  No, this was her father's house.

Akane came fully awake.  When had Ube become home, and the house where
she was born her father's house?  She'd have to give that some
thought.

Akane left the futon and dressed quietly.  She had her hand on the
doorknob when Ranma opened his eyes.

"Wha . . . where are you going?"

"For a run.  Go back to sleep."

Ranma never argued with the opportunity to sleep in, and Akane sighed
with relief when he closed his eyes and turned over.

The Nekohanten's door opened as Akane reached the restaurant, and
Shampoo came out with a bag in her hand.  She turned around after
locking the door, and jumped when she saw Akane.

"Akane!  What you doing here?"

"Ranma and I are visiting my family."

Shampoo grabbed Akane's arm, and dragged her down the street.

"Must not let Mousse see us together!  Shampoo--I--am leaving here
today.  If Mousse saw you with me, would blame you."

Akane nodded, and the two girls sped off around the corner, and walked
in the direction of the train station.  The walk was a silent one.
Akane had a purpose in mind when she visited Shampoo, but was
uncertain how to start.  Shampoo, for her part, had never viewed Akane
as anything but a rival.  The rivalry was over now, and she had no
idea what to think about the girl walking beside her.

No, that wasn't entirely true.  Akane had volunteered to forward
Shiro's letters to Kasumi, and thence to her.  Shampoo acknowledged
that she at least owed Akane some gratitude.

A glance at the timetable on the wall showed that it would be some
time before the train arrived. The girls got themselves some tea, and
settled down on one of the benches, where the silence between them
grew.  Finally, both started to talk at the same time.  Akane smiled,
and waved at Shampoo to continue.

"Thank you, Akane.  I do not understand why you so kind to me.
Shampoo try to kill you, try to take Ranma."

Shampoo looked down and played with her engagement ring.

"Was very lonely.  Shiro's letters so wonderful.  But being with him
better.  I will not be lonely now."

It was Akane's turn to talk, judging from Shampoo's expression, but
she didn't know where to start.  She'd always disliked and distrusted
Shampoo.  Akane had never admitted fear of Shampoo, but there was good
reason to respect her abilities.    She'd gone to see her because she
didn't trust her, and was afraid Shiro was going to get hurt, but now
that she'd listened to her talk, and looked at her . . .

When Shampoo spoke about Shiro, there was a look in her eyes that
Akane recognized.  It was the same one she saw in the mirror when she
thought about Ranma.  She was intensely grateful that she'd allowed
Shampoo to speak first, or she'd have put her foot in her mouth.  Just
the fact that Shampoo was sitting here talking to her was amazing, but
Kasumi had written that Shampoo needed a friend.  Could she have been
trying to give her a hint?

"Akane?  Train comes soon.   You wanted to tell me something?"

"Yes.  Do you, do you think we could be friends?"

Akane's stuttered question was answered by a tentative nod.

*****

The sound of the door sliding open woke Ranma, who opened his eyes in
time to duck under his father's arms.

"Lazy boy!  What are you doing in bed at this hour?"

"Pop?"

Ranma avoided his father's charge and tripped him, sending him
stumbling across the room and into the wall.  Genma was still
untangling himself when Ranma pulled on his pants and walked out of
the room.

"Give it a rest, Pop.  I've seen every move you have.  I'm going
downstairs to find some breakfast."

Kasumi already had breakfast on the table when Ranma got downstairs.
He wasn't surprised to see his mother sitting there, talking quietly
to his father-in-law.  Nodoka smiled and patted the space next to her,
and Ranma sat down.

"Good morning, Mom."

"Where is Akane?"

The question was repeated by Genma, who sat down on the other side of
Ranma, and began serving himself a huge breakfast.

"Shouldn't you have thought of that BEFORE you walked into our
bedroom, Pop?  You didn't even knock.  She's out for a run."

Genma opened his mouth to retort, but one look from his wife made him
look down and concentrate on his breakfast.  It was soon gone, and his
chopsticks flew towards his son's plate.  His hand stopped short a
second later, Ranma's chopsticks having caught his wrist.

"No way, Pop."

Genma's response was to reach for the serving plate, but Ranma held it
out of his reach.

"Leave some for Akane.  She should be home soon."

Another voice made Genma stop trying to get the plate from Ranma.

"You had a rather large breakfast at home, dear."

Ranma ignored his parents, and continued eating.  Some things, like
his father's greed, never changed.  Then Ranma heard the front door
open, and his mother smiled at him, and moved over to make room for
Akane to sit next to him.  She took the serving plate from Ranma, and
nearly dropped it when Kasumi gasped.

"Akane!"

Nodoka looked, and carefully put the plate down.

"Akane, what happened to you!"

There was already a puddle of tears in Soun's lap when he got up, ran
around the table, and embraced his daughter.

"Oh, my poor baby girl!  Who would do such a horrible thing to you?
Tell Daddy if it hurts!"

"Only where you're squeezing me, Daddy.  I'm fine."

Soun abruptly let go of his daughter, murmuring apologies.  Then he
stiffened, began to glow, and turned on his son-in-law.

"And where were YOU when this happened?  I NEVER would have allowed
you to take my little girl so far away from home if I knew you
wouldn't take proper care of her!"

Even though Ranma had expected this from his father-in-law, it still
wounded him.  He cringed under the assault, unable to respond beyond a
few inarticulate sounds.

"Leave him alone, Daddy!  Ranma was at work when this happened, and it
wasn't his fault!"

Soun burst into tears.

"Ranma promised me he'd take good care of you, and he hasn't!  I never
should have let you leave home. . ."

Soun trailed off into sobs, and Kasumi got up and put her arm around
him.

"Now, now, Father.  I'm sure Ranma takes very good care of Akane.  Let
me pour you some more tea."

As she spoke, Kasumi gave Akane a look that caused her to pick up her
chopsticks and begin eating her breakfast.    Soun allowed Kasumi to
lead him back to his seat, where his sobs grew softer, and Ranma was
beginning to think he was off the hook when Genma opened his mouth.

"Son, what exactly DID happen to Akane?"

Between the two of them, Ranma and Akane told the story of Ukyo's
attacks on the two of them.  By the time they were done, Akane had
finished her breakfast, and Kasumi was clearing the table.

"Pop, if you hadn't engaged me to Ukyo and then run out on her, she
wouldn't be in the hospital right now.  This is your fault!"

"Growf!"

"Turning into a panda isn't going to get you out of this!"

"Son, some of that responsibility is yours."

"Mom?"

Everyone's attention was drawn to Nodoka, who was calmly sipping her
tea.

"Your father made the arrangement for you to marry Ukyo, and that
bound you to her.  If you couldn't marry her, you at least should have
done something for her."

"Mom, that's what I want Pop to do!  He's got to repay that dowry."

"That's not exactly what I meant, Ranma.  Ukyo needs more than money.
She needs you."

Ranma began to sweat.

"I--I've tried to be her friend, Mom."

"That's obviously not enough for her.  Can't you be more?"

"What are you getting at, Mom?  You want me to be her lover?"

Nodoka nodded.

"MOM!"

"Oh my!"

"Mother Saotome!"

The reactions from Ranma, Kasumi and Akane seemed to confuse Nodoka.
Then she looked carefully at Ranma and Akane.  Ranma was sitting with
his arm around Akane, holding her close to him.  Akane was clutching
Ranma possessively, as if someone was trying to take him from her, and
he was talking softly to her, ignoring everyone else in the room.

"I wouldn't consider it, Akane.  Not for a moment."

After a moment of thought, Nodoka got up, poured hot water on her
husband, and pulled him out of the room.  They returned after a few
minutes and sat down.

"Son, your mother has convinced me that we have to go to Ube and do
something for Ukyo.  I realize this is a difficult time for you right
now, and we'll do what we can until you can do your part."

"Difficult time, Pop?"

"Well, yes.  Akane needs you now, and that's understandable, but after
the baby is born you'll have to give Ukyo some of your attention."

Soun spilled his tea.

"Baby?"

Before Akane or Ranma could speak, Soun had once more flown around the
table, and embraced his daughter.

"I'm so happy!  Why didn't you tell me?"

"Daddy!"

"An heir to the School!"

"Daddy!"

"Yes?"

"I'm not pregnant."

As abruptly as he'd begun to cry, Soun stopped.  He let go of Akane,
and glared at Ranma.

"What do you mean, not pregnant?  Aren't you doing right by my little
girl, Ranma?"

If Akane weren't boiling mad, she'd have laughed at Ranma's reaction.
He turned beet red, and started to stutter.

"Yes, er no, I mean . . ."

Ranma visibly calmed himself and tried again, looking at his father
rather than his father-in-law.

"First of all, Pop, what gave you the idea Akane was pregnant?"

"You've been married nearly two months.  She should be by now, unless
you've been doing something to prevent it.  The School needs an heir."

Akane suppressed a cry of pain when Ranma's hand squeezed hers so hard
that it hurt.

"Pop, our sex life is none of your damn business!  We'll have kids
when we're good and ready to, and that isn't now!"

The reactions from the people in the room were almost predictable.
Genma looked angry, Soun tearful but accepting, Kasumi simply nodded.
Nodoka brightened and patted her son's arm.

"Well then, Ranma, that will mean you'll be able to give Ukyo some
attention."

That was enough for Ranma.  He got up, pulling Akane up beside him.

"I've had it, Akane.  Come on, we're going out."

Ranma had dragged Akane halfway out of the room when she freed her
hand and walked back to her mother-in-law.

"You don't seem to think there would be anything wrong with my husband
having a mistress, do you? Does that mean you wouldn't mind if your
husband had one?"

Genma smiled, and nodded at his daughter-in-law.

"Nothing at all wrong with it, Akane.  Why--"

His words were abruptly cut off when the Saotome sword appeared under
his chin.

"You were saying, Dearest?"

"Um, I was only . . ."

Genma trailed off, and Nodoka pulled back the sword.  Akane's chuckle
made her turn around.

"I think I made my point."

Akane returned to Ranma, and they left the house.


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Comments are welcome - public or private - this is a draft, after all