I'm going to do something I rarely do, and that is critisise Richard's
work: This story isn't ready. It has some major problems that make it
incoherent as a story. 
The story never explains this scene. I'm going to call the universe where
Ranma + Akane have a child (#1) and the one where Akane killed Ranma
and never had a child (#2).

It might help you to know that Universe #1 is the setting of Richard's
"Thy Inward Love", and Universe #2 is that of Zen's "The Bitter End", and
that this story is set some time after the end of both.  If you are not
familiar with either story, you are going to be missing a *lot*.   

the road. (re-reads again)  OK. It _could_ be Ryouga and Akari on the
road. I could buy that. 

It is, as far as I can tell.

"S-Saotome Akane."
Ranma blinked.  Saotome?  Why did she think her name was Saotome?

Did you mean 'Tendo' here? Or are you implying that in universe #1, Ranma
took the Tendo name?

He did.  Plot point in "TIL".

Tofu looked at Ranma's face, and again Ranma saw a first: Tofu looking
slightly angry.  "I truly hope you know what you are doing, Ranma.  It
would be a terrible tragedy if Akane were to die.  Terrible if it could
have been prevented."

How did we manage to jump from 'passes out when she see Ranam' and has
delusions to 'if Akane were to die'? 

I think Tofu's being a good doctor and an overprotective brother-in-law at
the same time here, but you've got a point.

The past sighed happily.  She loved happy endings.

Ummm...Did I miss something? A sane and (up till now happy) Akane has been
'thrown to the wolves' for something she never did, while an insane Akane
is now living with the sane Akane's husband? IED doesn't just _go away_.

Um, you missed the fact that the Akanes swapped back.  The whole point of
"TBE"'s Akane getting sent to "TIL"'s universe is so that she can receive
the reassurance and forgiveness that she thinks she needs before she can
let herself get better.  Once that is achieved, both are returned to their
proper universes.

-- Bob

-- 
===============================================================================
Robert M. Schroeck            || "When in trouble or in doubt,
rms@cnj.digex.net             ||     Run in circles, scream and shout."
http://www.cnj.digex.net/~rms || I have no mouse and I must scream.