Spirit within part 10: close quarters.

Legal Crap: I don't own Ranma 1/2 or any of the Related Characters or
situations and Also I have no money so leave my poor little fan heart alone. 
NYaaaaa! >;'p

	Ranma woke stiffly from his cot and stretched uncomfortably. He had been
staying with Ukyo and Ryoga for about a week now hiding in the back of
Ucchans, occasionally doing dishes and working in the back as he laid low to
recover. He felt a smile come as Ukyo gave her wake up call. 
	"Ryoga you jerk!" cried Ukyo as she sent Ryoga out the window and into
Nerima, it would be several hours before he returned. Ranma walked down the
stairs and sat at a table. "You shouldn't be out here, they might see you and
if they show up and wreak my restaurant Saotome." She said angrily.
	Ranma smiled and stood up. "Thanks for every thing Ukyo 
I'm almost completely healed." he said as he walked out. 
	"Ranma wait. Where are you going?" Ukyo said suprised. 
	"Home." said Ranma simply. "I'm better now and I can't hide forever." he said
looking serious. 
	Ukyo blinked and muttered. "Whatever."
	"How is she?" he asked standing in the door way.
	"Not good, I think if you get yourself killed she'll die a widow." said Ukyo
flatly. She turned to see Ranma standing in the shadow between the door and
the light from outside unmoving. "Ranma you can't push her away." she said to
him. 
	Ranma looked at the floor. "Why did I do it?" he asked himself out loud and
walked out finally.
	"Just don't get yourself killed. I want to do it remember?" said Ukyo with
out much malice. She then turned to see a stack of pot sitting in the sink.
"Ryoga you jerk! How dare you leave without doing your chores?!" she yelled. 
	Outside Ranma couldn't help but smile a little. He realized that Ryoga had
probably replaced what his life should have been. He Idly wondered if Ukyo
would be kidnapped instead of Akane all the time if they got through this. He
would return home and then school, he had hated leaving like he had but he
couldn�t let his parents know where he had gone. He knew they must be worried
about him, but he couldn't risk contact with them with the old goul running
around. He would have to deal with her sooner or later and he knew she would
be dangerous even with all his preparations. He had to deal with her quickly
as long as she was around Akane was in danger.

	Mousse awoke the next day with a hard face he had not lived in comfort over
the past few days. But then he was used to that, at least he was with Shampoo
for that time, but the fact remained that he had failed. Cologne would do
everything in her power to get Ranma to wed Shampoo. 	Mousse watched as
Shampoo rose from his side awoken by his movements. <What�s wrong?> she asked
him.
	Mousse looked into her eyes, and said one word. "Ranma."

	Shampoo nodded and lay back down getting what rest she could. She would die
before she married Saotome, he had scarred her and destroyed her pride. He
could not survive, Ranma Saotome would not exist or she would die it was that
simple. How could it be done? He was seemingly invincibly lucky. A smile
formed on her lips as a plan formed. <Ranma I have you now.> she said quietly
and went to sleep.

	Soun Tendo walked into his daughters room and smiled pleasantly. Akane sat on
the bed looking tired. "Akane dear, you've been cooped up for days. Why don't
you come down and-" He was interrupted by his daughter. 
	"Meet your friend and his son? I don't think so, -he is coming back for me-"
she said looking at her father with a gaze of ice. 
	Soun went white as a sheet as he saw Akane's gaze her face was hard and
bitter, she looked exactly like her. Nabiki walked in from her place out side
the door where she had been spying with an odd look on her face completely
oblivious that every one now would know she had been there. Akane steadied her
gaze on her father as he backed out of the room. Kasumi walked in and looked
around. Her gaze met with Akane's stare and she dropped the tea she had
brought hopeing it would calm everyone down. They all turned away and quickly
left the room. Akane sighed and lay back down, she could not believe the nerve
her father had over the past few days. "Ranma." she said staring at the
ceiling.

	Soun sat wordlessly at the table with his news paper in front of his face and
tears in his eyes. "I can't believe I never saw it before." he thought. His
friend Genma had left after realizing that every one seemed uncomfortable
after coming out of Akane's room. Nabiki and Kasumi kept the silence with
their own thoughts and from the looks they had it was obvious they had seen it
too. Akane had looked exactically like her mother when she was angry back
there. Not a close resemblance -exactly- like her. Soun was very unnerved by
it. 
	Nabiki didn't know what to think, that look, the one Akane had given her and
her family was one thing she had never forgotten about her mother. It was the
look she got when she wanted them to know that they had crossed the line.
	Kasumi looked at her father and sister quietly sitting and waiting for the
silence to end. "Oh my Akane looked very upset, I hope she's all right." she
thought to herself.
	A knock at the door stopped the silence. Soun got up and walked to the door.
Kasumi started to get up but Soun smiled and walked past her. He opened the
door and stopped. Ranma stood before him looking at him calmly. "Hello." he
said.
	Soun growled and quickly closed the door behind him as he stood outside with
Ranma. "What do you want? Akane is upset enough..." he said angrily  
	"If you haven't forgotten I am the heir to the Any thing goes school. I would
like to speak to the master." said Ranma calmly. 
	Soun looked at Ranma hard. He did not like being reminded that his daughter
had an obsessive infatuation with the man Happosai had chosen as his heir.
"Wait here I'll get hi-" said Soun only to be shoved aside by Happy who had
emerged from his room. 
	"Ranma my boy what brings you here?" he asked. 
	"I need to train." said Ranma simply. Nabiki looked at him with a gaze that
was unreadable from inside the house. Ranma returned it and turned to walk
away to follow Happosai.
	"You come to me to train? why?" asked Happosai after a few moments of
walking.
	"Because however unorthodox your methods are they are also effective. I need
to beat these people or Akane is in danger. I hate being apart from her and
I'll do any thing to ensure we'll be safe when we are together." said Ranma
calmly "Even if it means all of their lives none of them will use her to get
to me." The two rounded the corner and Ranma ducked under a hand that swung at
him. He looked up to see Nabiki staring at him angrily.
	"What the hell do you think you are doing?" she yelled at him. 
	Ranma looked at her and sighed. "You would rather have her die with me?" he
said to her calmly.
	"With you?" she asked suprised and horrified.
	"Do you have any idea what I'm up against? Do you know how powerful Cologne
is? Do you know that I am not facing  just these amazons but an entire
village? If they fail more will come after me. You think I'm going to let
Akane live like that? Always running for her life? Never being safe? Nabiki I
doubt if I'll even survive this." Ranma looked at Nabiki hard. 
	Nabiki looked at Ranma sadly. "I didn't know." she said looking ashamed. 
	"So thats why you left me." said Akane as she walked out from behind a tree
nearby. 
	Nabiki turned and looked at her in shock. "Akane?!" she cried.
	Ranma smiled and turned away. "Now you know." he said sadly.
	"I don't care." she said to him. 
Ranma turned to face her. "Akane don't do this you don't know what your
getting into." he said pleading with her.
	"I don't care." she repeated calmly.
	Ranma looked at her and faltered. "Akane you can't do this..." he said
wavering under her gaze.
	"Ranma your stuck with me. I'll hunt you down if you try to run away. I love
you and you can't stop me from being with you." said Akane seriously.
	Ranma looked at her and sighed gathering his chi in his hands. "Can't I?" he
said staring her down. Akane walked up to him and kissed him her chest coming
dangerously close to the energy ball in his hands as it dissipated. 
	"No you can't." she said smiling at him. Ranma looked at her and fell to his
knees. 
	"You win." he said to her with a sort of sad smile. Akane sat next to him and
kissed him again. 
	Nabiki and Happosai watched the argument form the side. "This is boring c'mon
Ranma we've got to train." he said to him dragging him away. 	Nabiki smiled as
Akane followed them. "I just hope they don't try to get her to cook for them
while they are away." she said dryly waving them off.
	Mousse smiled as he watched the exchange from the bushes. <He can't protect
her forever.> he smiled. Shampoo in her female guise sat next to him in the
bushes. 
	<We don't have much time before Great grandmother try to get rid of her.> she
said to him.
	<If she does we only need to wait for him to come after us, your in no danger
of having to marry him now Shampoo.> said Mousse with a grin.
	Shampoo nodded and looked ahead with a grim smile. <I'll make you pay for my
face Ranma Saotome.> she said bitterly toughing the scarred tissue under her
hair.
	Ranma followed Happosai as he led them towards Nerima station. Ranma stopped
and looked at the building he was standing next to. "Ucchans." he said reading
the sign. "Hey Old man wait up for a minute." he called. 
	Happosai turned and looked at Ranma impatiently. "Hurry it up boy!" he said.

	Ryoga sat at a table and relaxed, he was tired after the lunch rush and was
enjoying some quiet time in the restraunt. "Hey Ryoga feel like going on a
trip?" said a familiar voice from the door way.
	Ryoga looked up and saw Ranma sticking his head through the open door. He
stood up and grabbed his pack from the corner. "Sure." he said without a
second thought.
	Ukyo watched the whole exchange from the grill and sighed. "Ryoga you jerk."
she said to herself. 
	 Akane poked her head in behind Ranma. "Ukyo are you coming?" she said
smiling.
	"Are you joking? I have a business to run here!" she cried putting her hands
on her waist.
	Akane blinked and smiled "O.K.." she said cheerfully.
 	Ukyo turned off the grill and grabbed a small bag from under the counter.
�If you insist." she said dryly. 
	Akane looked at her and smiled cheerfully not really understanding.
	"Are you gonna take all day?!" called Happy from outside.
	"Besides I'm not letting Ryoga go off alone with him! who knows what he'll be
like when he gets back. He's perverted enough as it is." said Ukyo in a failed
attempt at covering her true reason for tagging along.
	"Hey! said Ryoga defensively.
	"I think your just worried about him." said Ranma from beside Akane.
	Ryoga blinked and looked at Ukyo, "Really?" he said dumbly.
	Ukyo turned red and protested loudly "Of course not!" she cried hitting him
over the head with her spatula. 
	"This is going to be a long trip." sighed Happosai.
	"And just where do you think your sighing?!" cried Ukyo pulling him from her
chest and hitting him into orbit.



Another mediocre Chapter that sets up more interesting things later on. The
story takes a rather dark turn in the ending chapters. But I'm not saying how.
IT should be almost over at most four good sized post. [But no promises.]