"Breaking Free, part 10", a Ranma
« fan fiction, by KaraOhki, May, 1998
karaohki@snet.net
Ranma « and its
characters were created by Rumiko Takahashi, and are used here with
apologies
to her, and without permission.
This fiction was written for my enjoyment,
and for the enjoyment of others who love
Ranma 1/2.
The first and final
parts of the story can be found at KaraOhki's
Pagoda
http:/www/fortunecity.com/victorian/rothko/228
Breaking
Free
Chapter 10
AN UNEXPECTED SEPARATION
Akane sat back, remembering her fight with
Shampoo. Cologne had stopped trying to
manipulate Ranma, leaving Ranma
and Akane wondering. Did she give up because
Ranma was married, or
because of what Akane had done? She and Ranma had spent a
lot of time
speculating on whether or not Akane should have fought Shampoo when
she'd
first returned to Japan. It was a question that would never be
answered.
Shampoo had shadowed Ranma for several weeks
after that. He made it a point of
ignoring her, and she never came near
enough to speak. Then one day she, Cologne and
Mousse vanished.
Except for a letter sent by Cologne several months later, they'd never
heard
from them
again.
Akane was so deep in thought that she didn't realize
Ranma's doctor had entered the
room until he spoke, and she
jumped.
"I'm sorry, Mrs.
Saotome. I didn't mean to startle you. I wanted to ask you a
question."
"Yes?"
"Your father and
father-in-law are downstairs, asking for permission to come back up.
What do
you think?"
Akane smiled. It felt
good to have someone ask her opinion, rather than force their
decision upon
her.
"It's okay with me, so
long as they promise to keep calm and stop trying to order
me
around."
"All right,
then."
The doctor stepped to Ranma's
side, took his pulse, and looked him over.
"Nice, strong pulse,
Mrs. Saotome. He'll be back with us soon, I'm sure."
Akane smiled at the doctor,
and resumed talking to Ranma once the door had closed
behind
him.
"Your father is coming
back, Ranma. Let's see if he really does keep his word not
to
interfere. He hasn't been able to do it yet. I still don't
believe that he managed to
separate us after we'd only been married for a few
weeks."
*****
Shortly before the end of the school year, Ranma
and Akane inserted an advertisement
in the paper announcing the summer
classes they would be teaching. Soon, they had
enough responses to
arrange two classes - one for men and one for women - three days
a
week.
A week after school ended, Ranma and Akane were
sweeping out the dojo and preparing
it for the first group of students when
Soun came to the door with a stranger.
"Ranma, Mr. Fujita is
here to see you. He says that your father promised that you
would go to
him when the school year ended."
Ranma turned white.
"Not again!", he thought to himself.
"Um, er . . . I don't
suppose you have a daughter?"
Mr. Fujita looked
blank.
"No, I have a son away
in America."
"Then why am I supposed
to go with you?"
"Last summer you and
your father were training near my farm. Fruit and vegetables
kept
disappearing, and I found your father picking them one
morning."
Ranma held his breath.
He could almost guess what was coming next.
"When I demanded
payment, your father promised me that you would come in the
spring to help me
prepare the fields for planting. I've been waiting for
you!"
Ranma locked gazes with his
wife. It appeared that this was something he was not going
to be able
to refuse to do, and he could tell that she knew it.
"Sir, can you tell me
exactly what my father said?"
"On my honor, a Saotome
will help with the plowing and planting in the spring."
Akane sighed. Her
father-in-law had put Ranma in an impossible situation again.
"Mr. Fujita, how long will this
take?"
"With the two of us, and
my other helpers, about two weeks."
Ranma's expression
hardened.
"There will be one more
person coming along. Akane, please pack some things for me.
I'm going
to get Pop. He's a Saotome too, and he's going to help."
Ranma walked out of the dojo,
and Akane followed him.
"Can't I come with
you?"
Ranma looked like he was in
severe pain.
"I want to take you with
me, Akane, but someone has to stay and teach the classes."
*****
A short time later Ranma
returned with his father. Genma was rather subdued, and had
some fresh
bruises. Evidently it had taken more than words for Ranma to convince
his
father to accompany him.
Akane was in the dojo waiting
for the students, and Ranma went in to say goodbye to
her privately. He
drew his wife into his arms, and kissed her. Akane buried her face
in
Ranma's shoulder, and began to sniffle.
"I'm going to miss you
so much!"
Ranma stroked Akane's hair,
and rocked her gently.
"It could have been
worse, sweetheart. When I first saw Mr. Fujita, I was certain that
I
had another fiancee to deal with."
*****
The assembled students stared
at Akane, disbelief on their faces. Finally, one of them
spoke
up.
"Your husband was called
out of town?"
"Yes, that's
right. He'll be back in a couple of weeks. In the meantime, I'll be
leading the
class."
"A young girl like you
can't teach!"
Akane paused before replying,
trying to find the right approach. There was no point in
starting an
argument.
"My husband and I
planned to teach together, and we will once he returns. I'm
as
qualified as he is."
Before the man could respond,
a voice came from behind Akane.
"If you doubt my
daughter's skills, why not challenge her?"
Seconds later, the man was
staring at the dojo ceiling. A face swam into his range of
vision, and
a hand reached down.
"Need help getting
up?"
Red-faced, the man allowed
Akane to help him to his feet. He took his place with the
class, and
waited for her to begin.
*****
The women's class was over,
and Akane closed the dojo doors and sat down, leaning on
the wall.
She'd been too busy to allow herself to be upset about her husband's
absence,
but now it overwhelmed her. Some time later, Kasumi found her
sitting there sobbing.
She drew her sister into her arms, and held
her.
"I was afraid I'd find
you this way, Akane. Come with me."
Akane wordlessly followed her
sister into the house. Kasumi brought her into the
kitchen, poured her
some juice, and handed Akane her mother's notebook.
"You need something to
do, Akane. Let's make dinner together. Here's a
pen."
Akane stared at the pen
blankly.
"What's the pen
for?"
"Look inside the
notebook, Akane. See? This is Mother's writing, and this is
mine."
Akane had never noticed
before, but while Kasumi was teaching herself from her
mother's book, she had
made notes about her disasters and successes, and had added
hints of her own
as she learned them.
"Write down what you
learn, Akane. Someday a daughter of yours might be reading
your
notes."
*****
That evening, Nabiki looked
suspiciously at a platter of noodles and vegetables, wishing
that Ranma was
there to be the usual "guinea pig".
"Did you make this,
Akane?
"Yes, I did. What
makes you ask?"
"I thought it looked
weird."
Akane struggled to keep her
temper under control.
"I haven't gotten the
hang of cutting things as evenly as Kasumi can, Nabiki, but it does
taste
good. I DID taste it before I put it on the table."
Nabiki looked skeptical, but
served herself and tasted the dish.
"Not bad, Sis!
Some of the veggies are a little hard, but I guess that's because they're
in
big chunks."
Akane smiled. Kasumi
had hovered nearby as she worked, not enough to make her
nervous, and had
allowed Akane to cook with her mother's book as a guide. The only
time
Kasumi had intervened was to take Akane's hand and guide it toward the
plain
sesame oil. Akane had been reaching for the spicy sesame oil,
which would have made
the dish a disaster. Kasumi had laughed gently,
making only one comment:
"Remember, Akane.
Read the label carefully before you put anything into a dish. Then
you
won't mix up the ingredients. Slow down, and relax. After all, we're
in no hurry to
eat."
Between the two of them,
Kasumi and Akane had produced a dinner that everyone
approved of. Akane
only wished that Ranma had been there to share it with her.
*****
Ranma turned over, trying to
find a comfortable position. He missed Akane's presence,
and his
snoring father wasn't making it very easy for him to relax. He finally
gave up,
picked up his bag, and went downstairs. Taking out paper and
pen, he began a letter to
Akane.
Akane lay in bed, looking at
the stars through the window. Ranma had phoned to say
he'd arrived at
his destination, and she hadn't wanted to let him hang up. She
was
afraid that the next two weeks would last forever.
Akane was wrong. Teaching kept her busy,
and gave her something to focus on, and
Kasumi did her share of distracting
Akane, by continuing with her cooking lessons.
*****
Akane reread Ranma's letter for the hundredth
time, kissed it, and tucked it into her
pocket. Two more days, and he
would be home.
Akane cleared her mind, and went back to
work. She was trying hard to master a new
recipe. There had been
so many culinary disasters over the past few days that she'd
waited until the
family was away to try anything new. Better to poison herself than
her
father and sisters. Besides, she had a new tool to work with, one
that made her feel
confident.
*****
Ranma got off the train, and
started running toward the dojo. It was two days before he
was
expected, and he couldn't wait to surprise Akane. He entered the house
quietly. No
one was in the living room, and he could smell something
delicious coming from the
vicinity of the kitchen. Ranma grinned.
He'd missed Kasumi's cooking.
Ranma went upstairs, and left
his bag in the bedroom. Akane was not there, and he
headed back down to
the kitchen to ask Kasumi where she was.
When Ranma stuck his head
through the doorway, he was surprised to see Akane
standing before the stove
rather than Kasumi. She was concentrating on what she was
doing, and
totally unaware of his presence. Ranma was about to speak when he
noticed
her picking up a book, and checking something in it. He caught
sight of the cover, and
suppressed a laugh. Ranma had seen books with
similar covers, yellow with black print,
in the local bookshop, but they'd
always referred to technical things like computers.
There was a
Dummies book for cooking?
Akane stiffened. She
had the distinct feeling that she was being watched. Then she
heard a
welcome voice.
"It's me, Akane."
Akane whirled, and threw herself into Ranma's
arms, hugging him hard.
"Hey, loosen up,
Akane! You're going to break my ribs!"
"I'm sorry. I
can't believe you're here!"
"Mr. Fujita told me to go home, Akane. He said I'd done enough work,
and Pop could
finish the rest."
Akane started to respond, but
found it impossible to speak when Ranma was kissing
her. He finally
paused to catch his breath, and Akane took his face in her hands,
looking
into his eyes. Ranma looked tired and sunburned. Akane
withdrew from his embrace,
and nodded toward the stove.
"Hungry?"
Ranma pulled Akane back into his arms, and
kissed her again.
"For more than food, love, but I
guess I can let you feed me. . . first"
*****
Ranma slept on, and Akane rested her
voice. She'd grown stiff from sitting, and walked
around his bed,
looking at her husband from all angles.
Ranma was pale and still, unlike the way she
remembered him from the story she'd been
telling. Akane recalled
watching Ranma sleep that afternoon after they'd made love.
She had spent a
long time studying his face, and looking at the tan he'd developed
while
working outdoors, and noting that his sunburned nose was peeling.
At once point she
thought she'd get up to wash the lunch dishes, but Ranma's
grip on her became tighter,
and he murmured something unintelligible.
Finally, she'd given up, and gone to sleep
herself.
The contrast between the remembered Ranma and
the one before her was too much for
Akane. She sat down again, put her
face in her hands, and wept.
"Breaking Free, part 11", a Ranma
« fan fiction, by KaraOhki, May, 1998
Ranma « and its characters
were created by Rumiko Takahashi, and are used here with
apologies to her,
and without permission.
This fiction was written for my enjoyment, and for
the enjoyment of others who love
Ranma 1/2."
Breaking Free
Chapter 11
Standing Firm
Akane stood to one side as Ranma's parents
held his hands, and spoke to him. They
alternated between imploring and
ordering him to awaken, and she firmly resisted the
urge to ask them to
leave. After a couple of minutes, Genma turned around.
"Akane, I owe you an apology. This
wouldn't have happened if Soun and I hadn't
insisted on trying to control
your lives. I think I can safely promise that we won't
interfere
again."
Akane didn't respond immediately. What if
the promise had been made too late? She
quickly pushed that fear to the
back of her mind.
"Wait until Ranma wakes up, Father
Saotome. Then you can repeat that promise to
both of
us."
Nodoka got up and crossed the room to her
daughter-in-law.
"We're going home for a little while, dear,
to get some sleep. Won't you come with us?
You look so
tired."
"Thank you, but no. Ranma needs me,
and I won't leave him."
To Akane's amazement, Nodoka simply nodded, took
her husband's hand, and left.
Akane took the chair her mother-in-law had
vacated, picked up Ranma's hand, and
continued talking. She coughed,
and got some water. All this storytelling was giving her
a raw
throat.
Akane skipped ahead, to a part of the summer
she'd rather put behind her.
*****
A couple of weeks later, Akane noticed that her
father was grinning broadly at the
morning paper. He saw her looking,
and handed it to her.
"They finally printed the wedding
announcement, Akane."
Akane held the paper so Ranma could see it too,
and they read the short announcement
of their marriage. Soun had also
included a picture of them from the reception he'd
thrown for
them.
Across town, Tatewaki Kuno stared at the paper,
his breakfast forgotten. He cursed
himself for his cowardice in not
informing his sister of Ranma's marriage. She was not
going to take the
news well.
A few minutes later, an ear-splitting screech
came from Kodachi's bedroom, followed by
a crash as her breakfast tray hit
the floor. Kuno braced himself, and within seconds she
was standing
before him, waving the newspaper in his face.
"You knew, brother, didn't you? You
knew, and you didn't tell me!"
Kuno couldn't think of a thing to say. It
wouldn't have made a difference, since his
sister was beyond
reason.
"That . . . that husband thief! She
will pay!"
*****
Akane poured tea for her in-laws, trying hard to
maintain a calm expression. The
Saotomes had been invited for lunch,
and had arrived quite early. The rest of the family
had gone out to give
Akane a chance to cook for her in-laws, and having no one to talk
to,
Genma had wandered into the dojo to watch Ranma and Akane teach. He
had
interrupted several times with comments and suggestions. Afterward,
he had spent
quite a long time telling them what they were doing wrong (and
in his opinion, nearly
everything was wrong). He and Ranma had gotten
into a shouting match, and now were
barely speaking to one
another.
Nodoka and Akane were trying to salvage the
situation by making quiet, friendly
conversation, but watching their husbands
glare at one another was making them
uncomfortable.
"This soup is delicious, Akane. Did
Kasumi teach you to make it?"
"No, Mother Saotome. I used my new
cookbook. I'm glad you like it."
"Akane's cooking has really improved,
hasn't it Ranma?"
Ranma took his eyes from his father long enough
to smile at his mother, and his wife.
"She sure has, Mom. I'm not too
afraid of being poisoned any more."
Akane turned red, and was about to yell at
Ranma, when he grinned at her, and gave her
a small hug.
"C'mon, Akane. It was a
compliment."
Akane hesitated, and smiled. In a way, it
was.
Nodoka smiled at Akane.
"You're doing very well, dear. If you
keep up like this, you'll be able to make your family
wonderful
meals."
Genma finally opened his mouth, and put his foot
in it.
"Speaking of families, Son, when are the
two of you going to give us a grandchild?"
"Not for a while, Pop."
"Why not? The sooner the better, I
say."
Ranma lost his temper again.
"Pop! Mind your business! Akane
and I have another year of school yet, and having a
baby now is out of the
question."
Genma glared at his son, and opened his mouth to
yell back at him, but Nodoka spoke
first.
"They're right, dear. Remember,
you're thinking from a man's point of view. Do you
remember how sick I
was with Ranma? How could Akane go to school if she was
afflicted with
morning sickness as badly as I was?"
Nodoka then got up, and began to clear the
table.
*****
Akane and Nodoka stood in the kitchen, washing
the dishes. Akane had been very quiet
since lunch, barely speaking at
all.
"What's wrong, dear? You look so
worried."
Akane hesitated, but the kind look on Nodoka's
face encouraged her to speak.
"It's hard, Mother Saotome. Ranma and
I want to be independent, but everyone keeps
trying to run our lives.
When are you all going to realize that we're not children
any
more?"
Nodoka patted Akane's hand, and smiled.
"Yes Akane, I understand what you
mean. But you must remember that you and Ranma
are still very
young. Guidance from older people isn't that bad, is it?
"You're missing the point, Mom. You
or Father Saotome or Daddy may give advice, but
you don't have to worry about
the consequences. Ranma and I have to live with any
decisions we make,
and we don't want to look back and regret that we let others push us
into
what we didn't want."
Nodoka looked thoughtful for a minute, and then
nodded.
"I can understand your feelings,
Akane. If I have anything to say, it will be a suggestion
only,
okay? This way you can choose whether or not to listen to
it."
*****
It was a calmer Akane that sat back down at the
table once the kitchen was cleaned up.
Genma and Ranma made an effort to
keep from arguing, but Akane couldn't wait until
the rest of her family came
home. There was too much friction between father and son.
It was with
a sense of relief that she heard the doorbell ring.
Ranma got up first, and came back with his hands
full.
"It was the mailman, Akane. This
package came for you, and it's too big to fit in the
box."
Akane looked curiously at the box, which had no
return address.
"I wonder what it is?"
Since the wedding announcement had appeared in
the paper some days ago, several
wedding presents had been sent to them, and
Akane suspected that this was another.
She quickly tore the paper off the
box, and lifted the lid. In a nest of tissue paper was a
lovely silk
robe. She lifted it up, looking for a card.
"It must be a wedding present, Ranma, but
there's no card. And the silk is so nice and
soft."
Akane held the silk to her cheek, enjoying the
smoothness of it. She suddenly felt dizzy,
and the robe dropped from
her hands.
"Ranma . . I feel sort of strange .
."
"Akane?"
Akane could hear Ranma, but her vision blurred,
and she felt herself falling.
Nodoka screamed as Akane slumped over into
Ranma's arms.
*****
Several hours later, Ranma held onto Akane's
hand as she rested in their room. She still
looked a little pale, but
insisted on sitting up in bed.
"I'm fine, Ranma, really. The doctor
said I didn't handle the silk long enough for the
poison to do any permanent
harm."
Ranma released Akane's hand and held her tight,
shuddering. The thought that he
could have lost her was too much for
him to handle.
When Akane had collapsed, Ranma had immediately
concluded that the robe was the
cause, and used the tissue paper to tuck it
back into the box. Akane had been taken to
the hospital, where it was
determined that the robe had been treated with some sort of
contact
poison.
"It's plant-derived, Mr. Saotome", the
doctor had said. "This is something made by an
expert in poisonous
plants."
Ranma knew only one person with that sort of
knowledge, and notified the authorities.
*****
There was a knock on the doorframe, and Ranma
released Akane to slide the door open.
Nabiki stood there, Kuno beside
her. Kuno bowed deeply, and hesitated, unsure if he
should enter the
room or not.
"Excuse the intrusion, Saotome. I am
here to see Saotome Akane, and to apologize."
Ranma was surprised to see him so subdued, and
let him in. Kuno hesitated again, and
then walked to Akane's
bed.
"Saotome Akane, I am sorry. If I had
informed my sister of your marriage at the time it
occurred, perhaps this
would not have happened. Kodachi appears to have . . snapped.
I have
arranged to have her properly cared for, and I can assure you that she will not
be
able to harm you again. I do not like to beg favors from anyone, but
I have one to ask of
you."
Akane looked from Ranma to Kuno, and responded
softly.
"What is that?"
"Please do not make any charges against
her. My sister is sick, and needs help."
"I agree, under one
condition."
"Anything, just name it."
Akane squeezed Ranma's hand. This
opportunity was too good to pass up.
"Renounce all claims to the pigtailed
girl."
"Breaking Free, part 12", a Ranma
« fan fiction, by KaraOhki, May, 1998
Ranma « and its characters
were created by Rumiko Takahashi, and are used here with
apologies to her,
and without permission.
This fiction was written for my enjoyment, and for
the enjoyment of others who love
Ranma 1/2.
Breaking Free
Chapter 12
Where Do We Go From Here?
Akane sipped her tea, and toyed with her
sandwich. She'd slept about two hours out of
the last twenty-four, but
did not feel all that tired. Her entire world had shrunk to the
size of
this small room, and she would stay here until her task was done, and she
could
bring Ranma home.
He'd grown a little restless the past couple of
hours, moving his head and hands. Akane
had noted that when she spoke
he seemed to lean his head in her direction, as if trying
to listen to
her. The doctor had taken that as a good sign, and she'd continued with
her
story.
*****
Ranma wandered through the haze. He
couldn't see where he was going, and couldn't
feel anything around him, no
matter how far he stretched his arms. He was truly lost.
Ranma chuckled, feeling a little amused.
Now he knew how Ryoga felt. But he had one
advantage over Ryoga.
He was following Akane's voice. Sooner or later, it would lead
him out
of the fog.
Akane heard Ranma's chuckle, and leaned forward,
holding onto him.
"Ranma? I know you're in there!
Please wake up."
The smile on Ranma's lips faded, and he slept
on.
"You hear me, I know you do. Just
keep listening, Ranma."
*****
"Our senior year was so much better than we
expected, Ranma. The school had been a
battleground for us for such a
long time that it was strange that no one there wanted to
fight you, or grab
at me. After a while, it actually became a haven for us, since we
were
under such pressure at home . . ."
*****
Ranma waited outside the computer lab, watching
Akane through the window. She and
her teacher huddled before the
screen, discussing something. Finally, Akane nodded,
picked up her
things, and left.
"What were you doing,
Akane?"
"Learning how to use the new software we
just got in, Ranma. I think I understand it
now."
"When we can afford it, I'll get a computer
for the house, Akane. If we can keep our own
records, then your sister
won't be able to charge us outrageous rates to do our books
for
us."
Akane thought of how disappointing that would be
to Nabiki, and giggled. She and
Ranma were doing their best to keep
their records organized while Nabiki was away at
college, and hoped to avoid
asking for her help.
They left the school, heading toward home.
As the couple passed Dr. Tofu's clinic, he
stepped outside.
"Hello, you two. I was hoping you'd
pass by. Do you have a minute?"
"Sure, Doc, what's up?"
Tofu waved them inside, and made some
tea.
"Had you heard that Mrs. Kasahara is
retiring?"
Akane was sad, but not too surprised. Mrs.
Kasahara had worked for Dr. Tofu, keeping
his office organized, as long as
Akane could remember.
"You'll miss her, won't
you?"
"Yes, I will. I know you're taking
classes in office work, Akane. Do you think you would
like to come work
for me?"
"Me?"
Akane looked at Ranma, and smiled. He'd
decided to go on teaching the men's group
three afternoons a week, but there
had not been enough interest for the women's group
to continue. This
would give her a chance to make her own contribution to
their
finances.
"I'd love to."
*****
It was a couple of months before Mrs. Kasahara
retired, and during that time Akane
worked hard bringing her skills up to the
level needed for the job. She was excited about
it, and Ranma shared
her enthusiasm.
The same could not be said for her father,
though, as they found out once Akane had
started her job.
*****
Ranma walked along the top of the fence, looking
down at his wife. Usually, he walked
beside her to school, but Akane
was so keep in thought that Ranma didn't think she
even realized he wasn't
there.
This was the third day of Akane's strange
behavior, and Ranma didn't know what to
make of it. She was too quiet,
and too polite, and too - Ranma couldn't find the right
word - unlike
Akane.
That evening, Akane sat at dinner, looking down
at her food, and totally ignoring the
conversation around her, even if some
of it was directed at her. Soun was going on, as
usual, about his
objections to her having a job outside the house, rather than helping
Ranma
teach, and instead of arguing with him, as she usually did, she was
simply
letting him talk.
Ranma had tried to change the subject, and draw
Akane into the conversation, but she
wasn't responding at all. He
wondered whether she was angry with him, but they hadn't
had an argument in
weeks . . .
*****
Ranma was stretched out on the floor after his
bath, watching television with Akane,
when she got up to bathe. He
expected her to rejoin him afterward, but instead she
walked past him and
went upstairs. Ranma turned off the television, and went up.
Akane was already in bed, and Ranma joined her,
turning off the lights. He gathered
her into his arms, and settled her
into her usual position, head on his shoulder.
"You smell so good,
Akane."
Ranma buried his face in Akane's freshly-washed
hair, breathing in the fragrance. He
kissed the top of her head, and
then moved down to her forehead, her cheekbones, and
her lips. Akane's
arms came up to hold him, but she held him almost casually,
returning his
kisses half-heartedly. Ranma suddenly tasted salt, and switched on
the
light.
"Akane, why are you
crying?"
"I don't know."
Ranma sat up, and looked down at his wife.
She was rubbing her eyes, trying to stop the
sobs that were now tearing her
apart.
"You haven't been yourself for days,
Akane. When are you gonna tell me what's wrong?"
Finally, as Akane calmed herself, the words
came.
"We made a mistake, Ranma. We were
too young to get married."
"WHAT!!!"
Ranma turned away, hurt. He took a couple
of deep, slow breaths, and turned back to
his wife.
"You're not happy with
me?"
Akane flew into a sitting position, and grabbed
Ranma.
"No, it's not you! It's everyone
else. Maybe if we'd waited until we were older, they
wouldn't try to
rule our lives. But they think that we're just kids who can't do
anything
right. Daddy won't let up, neither will your father, and even
Kasumi . ."
"Kasumi? She doesn't boss you around,
sweetheart."
"No Ranma, she doesn't. But she's
constantly forgetting to stop doing the things for you
that I want to
do. I'll get home from school to find out that she's collected all of
our
laundry out of our room and washed it. When I point out that I was
going to do it she'll
tell me that it was no bother, she was doing wash
already."
"Or I'll dust the furniture and polish the
floor in here, and find her doing it again. Not
that she didn't think I
did a good job, but that it's a habit for her to do the whole
house."
Ranma nodded. He was beginning to
understand.
"Is it always going to be this way? I
don't want to be mothered by Kasumi forever."
"Maybe she'll get married,
Akane."
Akane laughed bitterly.
"Right. Dr. Tofu can't even say good
morning to her without tying himself in knots. I
can't even say her
name in the office for fear that all the patients will run out the
door."
Akane hesitated, looking down, and then lifted
her eyes to Ranma's face.
"Do you understand what I mean,
Ranma? Doesn't this situation bother you a little?"
Ranma nodded.
"It does, Akane. I feel like we're
living under a microscope. We can't even disagree with
each other
without your father accusing me of 'not treating his little girl right'.
And
when Pop and your father watch me teach, I feel like they're waiting for
me to say or do
something wrong. I've been thinking about it, and I can
only see two ways to go."
"What are they, Ranma?"
"We can put up with it, but that means
we're both going to be unhappy. Or we can fight
back, but that might
make things even worse."
"There is a third option,
Ranma."
"Which is?"
"We could move out."
Ranma couldn't help laughing.
"How? We're both working part
time. We could never afford our own place."
Akane's face fell. She lay back down, and
turned over, away from Ranma.
"Forget I said anything. It was a
dumb idea anyway."
Ranma got out of bed, walked around it, and
knelt down so he could look at Akane's
face.
"No, it wasn't a dumb idea. It was a
good one. Let's sleep on it, Akane, and maybe we
can come up with
something tomorrow."
Ranma kissed Akane, walked back around the bed,
and lay down, turning out the lamp.
After a minute, Akane turned over and
cuddled up next to him. She was soon asleep.
Ranma was as far from sleep as he could
be. His wife was unhappy, and he'd promised
himself on their wedding
day that she would never be that way. Although Ranma knew
it was an
unrealistic promise, he was determined to do his best. "Breaking Free, part
13", a Ranma « fan fiction, by KaraOhki, May, 1998
Ranma «
and its characters were created by Rumiko Takahashi, and are used here
with
apologies to her, and without permission.
This fiction was written
for my enjoyment, and for the enjoyment of others who love
Ranma
1/2.
BREAKING FREE
Chapter 13
Unexpected Help
Akane pushed her plate away, and started to
stand up.
"Oh no you don't, Sis. Sit down and
finish."
Nabiki's tone was enough for Akane to know that
her sister was serious, and she sat
down and finished her meal. Akane's
sisters had joined her in Ranma's room, and
helped her to give him a
massage. Then they had taken her by the arms and dragged her
downstairs
for lunch. Akane had tried to protest, but Kasumi's words were enough
to
make her listen.
"Ranma needs you, Akane. If you
collapse, you won't be able to help him."
*****
Akane opened Ranma's door, and found that he
wasn't alone. Kasumi's fianc‚ was
sitting beside him, talking
softly.
"Tofu!"
Dr. Tofu stood, and hugged Akane.
"I'm sorry I couldn't get here sooner,
Akane, but I couldn't leave Mrs. Kuwabara."
"I understand, Tofu."
Dr. Tofu pulled another chair close to Ranma,
and they sat together. Akane held her
husband's hand and leaned on the
side of the bed, her eyes half closed. She felt relieved
that it wasn't
necessary to hold a conversation with Tofu just because he was there.
He
wouldn't expect it of her.
After about a half hour, Tofu stood, and moved
closer to Ranma.
"I want to try something, if you don't
mind."
"Go ahead."
Dr. Tofu examined Ranma carefully, pressing his
fingers gently against many parts of
his body. After a few minutes, he
began concentrating on certain pressure points.
"There was some pressure that needed to be
relieved, Akane, and I did what I could. It's
funny, you know. At
times like this I miss Cologne. She was the true
expert."
Tofu tucked the blanket back around Ranma, and
gave Akane a kiss on the cheek.
"I'm going to take Kasumi and Nabiki back
to the house. They look exhausted. I'll come
back as soon as I
can. Keep talking to Ranma, Akane. When I spoke to him I'm sure
he
heard me."
*****
Akane moved back to Ranma's side, picking up his
hand. While she'd been out, the
nurses had bathed him, and shaved
him. Now it didn't tickle when she kissed him.
"Tofu has been such a good friend to us,
Ranma. He helped us when we thought our
situation was
hopeless."
*****
Akane lifted her head from the rental listings,
and sighed. They'd lowered their target
from an apartment to a room,
but even the rooms were too expensive. Ranma saw her
look, and tried to
be encouraging.
"Don't give up, Akane. We've just
started looking."
*****
At work that afternoon, Akane finished the last
of her tasks, and went into Dr. Tofu's
office.
"Is there anything else I can
do?"
Dr. Tofu smiled.
"No, Akane, nothing. Isn't Ranma
waiting for you?"
"He's teaching tonight. I can stay a
little longer if you need me for anything."
Tofu folded his arms, and frowned at
Akane.
"Why don't you want to go
home?"
"Excuse me?"
"Don't try to fool me, Akane. I've
known you since you were a little girl. Why don't you
want to go
home?"
*****
Half an hour and a couple of cups of tea later,
Akane had finished telling Dr. Tofu about
the dilemma she and Ranma found
themselves in. When Akane stopped talking and
looked at the floor, Dr.
Tofu just sat there for a minute, deep in thought. Akane finally
looked
up, and found that he was smiling at her.
"I may be able to help, Akane. Follow
me."
Akane followed Dr. Tofu outside, where he
unlocked the door next to the clinic. He led
her upstairs, and unlocked
a second door.
"This is where Mrs. Kasahara lived,
Akane. When she retired, she went to live with her
son. I haven't
rented the room yet."
Akane held her breath. She was looking at
a very small room. Against one wall was a
refrigerator, sink and stove,
and directly opposite were three large windows. There was
a small
closet, and one door which she opened to find a tiny bathroom, with a
shower
stall. Akane turned to Dr. Tofu, and began to
stammer.
"B-but, we don't have that much money,
and"
"Did I say anything about money,
Akane?"
Akane drew herself up to her full height (which
was not very high), and glared at her
friend.
"Don't you dare!"
Then her face softened.
"Please. I appreciate the offer, but
if Ranma and I lived here, we'd want to pay rent."
"All right, Akane. I
understand. But it wouldn't be more than you could afford.
You
need to be on your own, even if it's just a temporary arrangement.
Talk to Ranma about
it when you get home."
*****
Akane laughed.
"I still remember the look in your eyes
when I told you, Ranma. You wanted the place
so
badly."
*****
Ranma and Akane stopped at Tofu's on their way
home the next day, so that Ranma
could see the room. After looking it over,
he told Tofu that he would think about it, and
they continued
home.
"What did you think,
Ranma?"
"Well, it is a very small room,
Akane. You've always lived in a big house. Would that
bother
you?"
Akane squeezed Ranma's hand.
"Not as long as you're with
me."
Ranma was quiet after that, until they neared
the house.
"We'll talk more about it tonight,
Akane. It's a big decision, and I don't want to rush
it."
*****
In the end, the decision they made was rushed,
and caused by an outside source. That
evening, Ranma was downstairs
getting a bedtime snack when he heard a shriek come
from his bedroom.
He dropped what he was eating, and flew up the stairs.
The sight that greeted Ranma when he slid the
door aside and switched on the light
made him livid. Akane was standing
in the middle of the room, her nightgown soaking
wet, trying to pry Happosai
off her chest. An empty bucket lay on the floor.
"Let go of me, you
pervert!"
Happosai picked up his head, and looked at Akane
in confusion.
"Akane? I thought you were
Ranma-chan!"
Ranma immediately understood the
situation. Happosai had come in through the
window and soaked Akane,
who had been in bed, thinking that she was Ranma. He
reached for
Happosai just as Akane, who looked more furious than he'd ever seen
her,
succeeded in loosening his grip.
"Do I look like Ranma to
you?"
She was going to clobber him, but Ranma held out
his hands, and Akane handed him
over. Ranma was beginning
to glow, and Akane caught her breath. Was he going to
use a chi attack
against Happosai? Then the glow faded, as Ranma controlled
his
temper. He walked to the window, and turned the old man around to
look into his eyes.
"I'm only going to tell you this once, you
old freak, so listen carefully. If you ever lay a
finger on my wife
again you will live just long enough to regret it. Then you won't
live
any longer. Get it?"
Happosai looked from Ranma to Akane, and back
again.
"Surely you wouldn't treat your master so
badly, Ranma. Nobody told me you were
married. It was only a
little mistake, and ..."
The rest of Happosai's speech was lost as Ranma
punted him through the window, and
out of sight.
"What on earth happened?'
Ranma turned around, to find Kasumi and Soun at
the door.
"Happosai happened."
Soun turned pale.
"The Master was here? We haven't seen
him in months! I hope you weren't rude to
him,
Ranma."
"Rude? You've gotta be kidding!
He threw water on Akane, and grabbed her. Should I
have been
polite?"
Soun burst into tears.
"You know what he's like when he's angry,
Ranma! Couldn't you have overlooked it?"
Akane completely lost it.
"Daddy! Are you trying to say that it
was ok for that pervert to grope me? You're so
afraid of him that
you'll let him get away with that? Do me a favor, and go back to
bed!"
Akane turned her back on her father, and didn't
turn around until she heard him going
back downstairs, still weeping.
Kasumi was still in the doorway, and Akane spoke to her
in a milder tone of
voice.
"Go back to bed, Kasumi. I'm sorry we
woke you."
Kasumi nodded, and closed the door. Akane
went to the bed, and pulled the sheets off.
The mattress was
soaked.
"We can't sleep in here, Ranma. I
guess we could use my old room."
*****
A short time later Ranma and Akane were crowded
together in Akane's old bed. Ranma
held Akane close, and kissed the tip
of her nose.
"Not too much room in here, is
there?"
"Nope, none at all."
Ranma chuckled.
"If we take Tofu's room, we'd be able to
put a small futon in it, but our bed would never
make it."
"You're right. But I think you'd
better switch the "if" to "when". It's time to go ,
Ranma.
I don't care about what we take with us, or leave
behind."
"Then we go, Akane. As soon as we
can."
Akane responded with a kiss, which Ranma was
only too happy to return.
*****
"The list of names our parents called us
was so long, Ranma. Ungrateful, disloyal,
stubborn, foolish . . .
I can't even list them all. And it was so unfair of them to treat
Tofu
so badly, when all he was trying to do was help."
*****
Akane and Kasumi sat in the attic, packing a
box.
"I'm glad I saved all of Grandmother's
things, Akane. I thought I was just being
sentimental, but now you can
use them."
Kasumi had unearthed their grandmother's dishes,
pots and pans from the attic, where
they had been stored for many
years. She was the only family member who supported
the young couple in
their decision. Nabiki had yet to be heard from.
"I'm sure there are other things here that
you could use, Akane. I'll bring them to you if
I find
them."
Akane laughed.
"Don't overdo it, Kasumi. We don't
have a lot of room."
Kasumi helped Ranma and Akane carry the boxes to
Tofu's waiting car. To give him
credit, Tofu had been making a great
effort to control his reaction to Kasumi's presence,
and was acting almost
normally. When she put her hand on his arm, though, he began
to lose
his control.
"Tofu, I must ask you a great
favor."
"Y-y-yes, K-kasumi?"
"Watch over Ranma and Akane for me, would
you?"
Tofu shook his head, trying to clear
it.
"They don't need it, Kasumi. Don't
you understand? They can take care of themselves."
Kasumi's eyes opened wide. She wasn't
accustomed to hearing Tofu speak coherently to
her.
"That's what I've been telling
Father. You'd think I'd be able to take my own advice."
"Breaking Free, part 14", a
Ranma « fan fiction, by KaraOhki, May, 1998
Ranma « and its
characters were created by Rumiko Takahashi, and are used here with
apologies
to her, and without permission.
This fiction was written for my enjoyment,
and for the enjoyment of others who love
Ranma 1/2.
BREAKING FREE
Chapter 14
Happy
"That was the beginning of a good time
for us, Ranma. It wasn't easy for us to deal with
our parents' anger,
but we did. We did what we'd agreed to do on the train - support
each
other - and that made us strong."
*****
The class was over at the dojo, and one student
stayed behind. He was having difficulty
with what he was learning, and
Ranma was giving him some individual instruction.
Ranma had learned something about himself.
Teaching was giving him more patience.
At first, the patience was directed
only toward his students, but it soon carried over into
other aspects of his
life. He was learning to be more patient with his parents, his
father-
in-law, and his wife.
Ranma's quick tongue had been getting him in
trouble for years, but over the past few
weeks it had been happening less
often.
Ranma's student left, and he shut the lights and
locked up the dojo. Soun was standing
outside.
"Akane didn't come with you tonight,
Ranma? Why is she avoiding me?"
Ranma opened his mouth, closed it again, and
thought for a moment before he replied.
"She's working tonight, Father Tendo.
We'll both come next time."
Kasumi appeared at the door.
"Ranma, won't you stay and eat with
us?"
"I can't, Kasumi. Akane should be
making dinner now."
Soun shuddered, and looked at his son-in-law
sympathetically. Ranma caught the look,
and laughed.
"Don't look that way, Father Tendo.
Akane's cooking is improving all the time."
As he walked home, Ranma grinned. He
hadn't been lying to his father-in-law. Akane
was improving, but that
didn't mean that everything she made was edible. He
laughed,
remembering the state he'd found her in a few nights ago when he
came home from
teaching . . .
*****
Ranma opened the door at the street level, and
smelled smoke. He flew up the stairs,
and found all three windows open
in their room, and Akane desperately trying to wave
the smoke out the
window.
"What happened?"
Akane had tears running down her face, and she
threw herself into Ranma's arms.
"I ruined our dinner, Ranma. I'm so
sorry!"
"How did you do that?"
Akane handed Ranma her mother's
notebook.
"I put all the spices on the fish, and put
it in the oven, and sat down to look at my
homework. The next thing I
knew, all this smoke was coming out of the oven, and the
fish was
black!"
Akane kept sniffling, as Ranma read the
notebook. He went over to the stove, and
looked at the
settings.
"Here's what you did wrong, Akane.
You set the oven on broil instead of bake."
Akane just continued to sniffle, while Ranma
wrapped the remains of the cremated fish
and took it downstairs to throw it
away. He then got out Akane's coat, and handed it to
her.
"C'mon, Akane. When's the last time
we had pizza?"
*****
"We had our disasters, Ranma, and we had
our fights. But mostly, we were very happy.
At least once a week
either you or I had to explain to Daddy that we would come back
home when we
were ready to, but after a while he stopped asking. I think the fact
that
we tried so hard to be nice to him finally convinced him that we didn't
hate him. I don't
know where he had gotten that idea in the first
place."
"Remember when Nabiki came home for a
visit? I think that was the first time she ever
complimented my
cooking. And she made it so clear to Daddy that she supported us in
our
decision to be on our own."
"It was just after her visit that Kasumi
came to us with the letter from Cologne. I
remember your face changing
as you read it, and then you handed it to me so I could . . "
*****
"Dear Ranma,
I'm sure that you did not expect to hear
from me, but I felt it necessary to
write to you at this time, as it
will soon be impossible for me to do so again.
Shampoo, Mousse and I have returned to
Joketsuzoku, and much has happened
since then.
When our people found that Shampoo had
failed to follow Amazon law, many of
them treated her as
outcast. It was very difficult for her the first few weeks after
our return.
One person who did not treat her badly
was the village carpenter. He and
Shampoo had been playmates
when they were children, and he seemed happy to
have her back.
Shampoo spent quite a bit of time watching him building
furniture,
which he had become quite skilled at since our departure for Japan.
What she did not realize was that he was waiting for her arm to
heal.
As soon as Shampoo was able to fight
again, he challenged and defeated her.
Shampoo did not argue when he
insisted that they marry immediately.
They are happy, Ranma, and therefore I am
happy also. Shampoo is once more
accepted as an Amazon,
and I can leave her knowing that she will be all right.
For I am dying. My age has finally
caught up with me, and I will probably be
gone by the time you receive
this letter. I apologize for all of the pain I have
caused you
and your wife, and wish you nothing but happiness in your lives.
In closing, Ranma, I must tell you that
we visited Jusenkyo as soon as we came
back to China. The
springs have not been restored, and the guide was not there.
I did
see his daughter, though, and Plum tells me that her father has a plan
to
restore the springs, and that he is confident that he will be
successful. She has
promised to contact you should that
happen.
Please forgive me for the past, and may
your future be a happy one.
Cologne"
*****
Akane looked up from the letter, to find tears
in her husband's eyes. Ranma wiped away
the tears, looking somewhat
embarrassed.
"It's funny, Akane. After all the old
ghou. . .Cologne, did to us, I didn't think I would feel
this - this
bad."
Akane was also crying, and Kasumi stayed with
them, offering what comfort she could.
Kasumi had been making it a habit to
visit regularly. She missed her sisters, and while
Nabiki was too far
away to visit, Akane was nearby.
Kasumi's regular visits were having an effect on
Dr. Tofu. He no longer walked into
walls when he saw her, and was up to
the point where he could manage an entire
sentence when speaking to
her. Akane had been observing them, and was very
encouraged.
She'd made up her mind that Kasumi and Tofu belonged together, and
wanted to
see them married, or at least engaged, before she and Ranma returned
home.
*****
"The weeks went so quickly, Ranma, and
before we knew it spring had come, and Nabiki
was home. Our
families gave us a wonderful first anniversary party, and then it was
time
for our senior prom."
*****
Nabiki and Kasumi insisted that they should
dress Akane for her prom, the way Kasumi
and Akane had done for Nabiki.
Akane gave in, and Ranma took her home and gave her
into the hands of her
sisters. After dressing, he went downstairs to wait for her, and
sat
with their parents.
Ranma endured several uncomfortable minutes with
Mr. Tendo, who had come to the
conclusion that Ranma and Akane would be
moving back to the house once they
graduated. Ranma wondered where the
idea had come from, and was about to ask
when footsteps on the stairs made
them all turn around.
Akane looked lovely. Her father took one
look, and burst into tears.
"Akane, you look just like your dear
mother! Oh, if only she could see you!"
Akane was afraid that her father was going to
cry all over her gown, but Genma had the
presence of mind to hold onto his
friend's arm, and prevent him from hanging all over
his
daughter.
*****
"The prom was perfect, Ranma. Everyone had
a wonderful time, and we danced every
dance."
Akane paused, and kissed Ranma's
cheek.
"I believe, Ranma, that our daughter was
conceived the night of the prom."
Comments welcome! (Please be
gentle)
karaohki@snet.net
the next installment will conclude the story
It and the first part can be found at
http:/www.fortunecity.com/victorian/rothko/228