[Ranma][Fanfic][Lime] Childhood of a Modern Dynasty - Chapter 10:
Burning of the Past, The Wedding Before the Storm
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Childhood of a Modern Dynasty
Chapter 10: Burning of the Past, The Wedding Before the Storm

Ranma 1/2 characters/situations created and copyright by Rumiko
Takahashi/Shogakukan/Kitty/Fuji/Viz - Used without permission

Childhood of a Modern Dynasty series created, written, and
copyright 1998-1999 by Jim Lazar

An ongoing series set after the end of the Ranma 1/2 manga and anime.

<Speech text in angle brackets is thought by character.>
"Speech text in double quotes is spoken as Japanese."

E-mail comments and/or criticisms to: mailto:jimlazar@earthlink.net

Make sure to check out my Modern Dynasty website for
all released CMD stories, graphics files, and other information:
http://home.earthlink.net/~jimlazar/anime/md
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This chapter has some darker moments, but not as many as the previous
two chapters.
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>From the personal journal of James Davidson:


July 19th, 2057

     I awoke with a naked goddess draped over my chest and smiled. I
slowly ran my hand through Hanaki's hair and realized that she was
right, ceremony or not, we were married. Not legally, but emotionally,
this was what mattered most to us anyway. I realized now that I should
have never left after my research was finished for my first book about
Ranma and Akane's early years. What was it? Almost a year ago? I had
known Hanaki for a year before that. Well, if you want to get technical
it was back in 2050, but we only talked for a few minutes and she was
just a teenager back then. I should have asked her out last year. My
stupid 'can't become involved, have to remain objective for the book'
refrain had cost me at least a year of happiness with Hanaki.

     What was worse, I'd ended up getting too friendly with Akane and
the other Tendo family members anyway. My editor kept having to force me
to remain objective. Therefore, in the finished book I think Akane came
off as being much angrier and more violent that she really was in real
life, but it's hard to tell for sure since I didn't know her back then.
I do know that she had softened during her second year with Ranma, I've
seen the medical bills for Ranma and they dropped off considerably once
Ranma and Akane returned from their first training trip together.
Although they didn't list who injured Ranma, the occurrences of 'mallet
wound' entries vanished. Well... almost vanished.

     I decided I was going to have to live so I could enjoy more nights
with Hanaki. There was no way I could miss more of that.

     I then heard an angel say, "Morning, James."

     "Morning, Wife."

     Hanaki smiled. Then lifted herself from my chest. I blushed as I
saw her in the morning light.

     "You are beautiful."

     "I bet you say that to all your fiancees."

     "Just you."

     "Well, enough about that, let me get my gear together so I can get
going before it gets too hot."

     "All business, as usual," I quipped, earning a sweet smile from
Hanaki. "Are you sure you have to go for help?"

     "Yes," she said simply. She dressed and began to collect her gear.

     I slid over to the flight controls, not an easy task with my broken
leg. I pulled out my palmcard and plugged it into the spacejet's
dataport. I keyed in a few commands.

     "What are you doing?"

     "Downloading my palmcard's data to the spacejet's system. Might as
well review my notes and work on writing the chapters while you're
gone," I explained.

     Hanaki smiled. "All business again." She leaned down and kissed me.
"Well, I expect the first four chapters to be done by the time I get
back."

     "Yes, dear," I agreed, since the first four chapters were in draft
form already. If not for this little trip, I'd have sent them to my
editor already to get him off my back. I pulled the palmcard out from
the dataport and handed it to Hanaki. She'd need the GPS in it for her
trek across the Utah desert our spacejet had crashed in.

     "Good. Now take it easy and get some rest," she said, then kissed
me again. She grabbed her pack and opened the door. She paused, then
looked back at me. "I love you."

     "Me too. Don't take any chances out there," I replied.

     "I won't. Um... by the way... I couldn't turn my implant on without
my wristpad. I thought you should know," Hanaki informed me, then closed
the door behind her.

     I looked at the door for the longest time. Her implant was off. I
guess that made me feel better. At least part of me might continue on,
even if it was just my child.

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     It was mid-day before I felt like looking at my notes; even then,
my heart was only half in the task. I reviewed what Hanaki had gone over
with me the day before. After their first battle with the Buyierfei,
Ranma, Akane, and Ukyo had stopped a hijacking on the way back to Japan.
Akane had to kill one of the hijackers and, after already losing Ranko
and Sanma inside of the monolith, she had some trouble coping. She even
blasted Kuno and Kodachi with a powerful blast. Ranma thought that anger
and depression fueled the blast.

     I'm almost glad that I had the chance to get this information from
Hanaki instead of Akane, since there was one item that Akane had never
admitted to me.


***********************************************************************
March 1999 - Nerima, Japan


     "And that's what happened... I killed the hijacker... no big deal."

     "I think I know you better than that, Akane. You are quite upset
over it."

     "I'm a martial artist. Sometimes a martial artist has to take life
to preserve life."

     "That's Ranma talking, not you."

     "What's one more killing on my hands?"

     "We've been over this before, Akane. Shampoo's death was not your
fault. She made the decision to fight you and she decided to let go."

     "And Ranko, Sanma, and Cologne? They sacrificed themselves for me
too. What does it matter if they die by my hands or sacrifice themselves
for me? I'm still a killer."

     "No you're not."

     "Then why can't I get this blood off my hands?" Akane asked,
desperately rubbing her hands. They looked to be quite raw, as if from
repeated washings and rubbing.

     "Your hands are clean. You just won't admit it to yourself."

     "Five people have died."

     "Yes. That's life. People die."

     "Why?"

     "Why what? Why do people die? We're only human."

     "Why do so many have to die for me?"

     "Don't you want to live?"

     "At the cost of six other lives? No!"

     "Six?"

     Akane looked downward and corrected herself. "Five. I meant five."

     "Shampoo, Ranko, Sanma, Cologne, the hijacker... who else, Akane?"

     "I meant five. Just five."

     "Could the sixth have been your mother?"

     "No. She died, but that was a long time ago."

     "How did your mother die, Akane?"

     "I told you that already... a long time ago."

     "Yes, but I want to hear you say it yourself again."

     "No."

     "Tell me."

     "Damn you," Akane hissed, pulling out her mallet.

     "Put down the mallet. It doesn't solve anything. It's just a
release for your anger. Release you anger by talking about it instead."

     Akane slowly put the mallet down. She looked down at her hands,
then said softly, "She... died."

     "Please describe what happened, Akane. It's the only way you'll get
better."

     "Mother and I were out shopping when I was just a kid. I was
admiring some flowers across the street..." Akane explained softly, then
stopped and looked at her hands.

     "Continue, Akane. All of it."

     Akane sniffled, then said, "I wanted to pick one for my mother...
and..."

     "And..."

     "I... ran across the street to the flowerbed, but I tripped," Akane
said, wiped the tears out of her eyes, then continued, "The next thing I
remembered was that I was thrown out of the road. I looked back and
saw..."

     "And you saw your mother..."

     "And I saw my mother struck down by the car that was going to hit
me!" Akane screamed. "The first death of many... all so that I can
live!"

     "Why do you think she did that?"

     "So that I could live and cause more deaths! It would be better
that I died back then! What's one life compared to five others!"

     "Five? Good, you've accepted that at least one of them wasn't your
fault... why not the others?"

     "You're a bastard... you know that?"

     "Yes, you've told me several times. Now then... five. So which one
wasn't your fault?"

     "The... hijacker. He would have killed Ranma, Ukyo, and everyone
else on that plane."

     "Good. That's a good first step, Akane. You've realized that not
everything is your fault."

     "Maybe."

     "Now, let's look at your mother's death. She was struck by a car,
saving your life, correct?"

     "Yes. All so others could die for me as well."

     "Akane, it was an accident. Your mother saw her child in danger and
reacted like any parent would."

     "That's what I'm saying! She gave her life for me!"

     "Yes... she did. Because?"

     "She loved me..."

     "Yes."

     "So loving me is a death sentence."

     "No, it's not."

     "Three deaths for my love already. How many more?"

     "Down to three now... good."

     "Well I doubt Shampoo or Cologne loved me."

     "No, but didn't they die for your love too?"

     "Huh? No... Cologne died because she felt guilty for splitting
Ranma into three people and Shampoo died because of her stupid Amazon
honor."

     "Let's look at Shampoo first. She let go of your hand so that you
and Ranma would live. Correct?"

     "Yes."

     "So that you and Ranma could continue your love. Correct?'

     "Well... yes, but I'm sure that wasn't her intent. It was for her
honor."

     "But in the end she died for you and Ranma to continue loving each
other."

     "Maybe. Just another death for my love."

     "And Cologne too. She died for your love."

     "That old hag? Never."

     "She took Ranma's place so that you could keep one of your lovers."

     Akane flinched. "No, she just felt guilty about splitting them."

     "You told me that she said 'At least one of the Ranmas must
survive'."

     "Yes."

     "Sounds like she wanted you to be able to keep loving Ranma."

     "Well..."

     "Don't you see... people have died, true. They have died for you to
live and love. If you stop living then they died for nothing."

     "You sound like Mousse. 'If you don't live your life to the
fullest, you'll dishonor Shampoo's memory'."

     "He sounds like a nice guy."

     "He's a jerk actually, but he did sometimes make sense. Just like
you."

     "Hmmmm, so how many deaths were your fault?"

     "None of them and all of them. I'll have to live with it... won't
I?"

     "Yes, otherwise..."

     "I'll dishonor their memories."

     "And..."

     "I'll never forgive myself if I dishonor their memories."

     "Well, I think you've made great progress today. I'll see you again
in three days."

     Akane wiped the tears out of her eyes and said, "Thank you,
Doctor."

     "No problem. You've come a long way since we first talked after the
destroyed wedding," Doctor Higawa said.

     "Yes... but at what cost?"

     "Hmmm, you'd better think about the good things that have happened
in the past year on your way home... and you know there have been some
good things."

     "Okay, Doctor," Akane said. She made her way out of the office.

     "Good luck, Akane," Doctor Higawa said, making some notes in
Akane's file. Then she called for someone to replace the roof that Akane
had blown off earlier in the session. <Damn, I used to think it was bad
when she just smashed holes in the walls with her mallet,> she thought,
sadly shaking her head.

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     <Good things... good things. Ranma and me finally admitted our
love, both to ourselves and to each other. Ranma started taking me
serious as a martial artist. He proposed to me. I accepted,> Akane
thought. She fingered the engagement ring on her finger as she walked,
smiled, and then looked up at the blue sky. <We got most of our fiancee
problems off our backs. We had our early honeymoon... >

     A frown crossed her face. <I'll never see Ranma's girl side
again... or kiss those female lips or... > Akane shook her head. "I
still have the man I fell in love with," she declared aloud. <But he's
just half of the person I fell in love with.> She sighed. <Or is that a
third now?>

     Once again, Akane had to remind herself about Sanma. She had split
from Ranko only a couple days before she died in the Monolith, so it was
sometimes hard for Akane to picture her as a separate person. Akane was
worried that she might forget about Ranko in the same way, so she
continually had to remind herself that all three of them were Ranma and
that she loved them all. Time known as separate people didn't matter in
this instance, she had known them all for over two years.

     Akane stopped walking as she reached the canal and stared off into
the distance. After several seconds, she hit a streetlight hard,
knocking it over.

     "I LOVE RANMA!" Akane screamed at the top of her lungs.

     "I love you too, Akane."

     Akane started and looked around for the source of the voice. She
spotted a figure sitting by the canal with his arms wrapped around his
legs. "Ranma?" She slid down the embankment towards him.

     Ranma looked up and smiled as Akane sat down next to him. He slid
his arm around her and gave her a kiss. "What brings you down here?"

     Akane paused for a second. Not wanting to tell him she was just at
her therapist, since only Nodoka knew she was going to one, Akane just
said, "Coming to terms with myself and my life."

     "Oh, deep. I'm part of that life, right?"

     Akane smiled. "You, my sweet perverted idiot, ARE my life."

     "I've been thinking..." Ranma trailed off, as he wasn't sure he
wanted to bring this up.

     "What?"

     "Err... I want you to be happy."

     "I'm happy, with you. I may have lost two people I loved dearly,
but when it comes down to it I still have them all within you." Akane
patted Ranma's chest and cuddled up to it.

     "Akane, I'm going find out if there's any spring of drowned girl
water left anywhere and use it so you can have Ranko and Sanma again."
Akane's eyes went wide at hearing this and she looked up at Ranma. "I
don't think we can spilt without Cologne, but at least..."

     Akane cut off Ranma's offer with a long kiss. She was smiling after
she broke the kiss. "That's okay. I appreciate the offer, but it
wouldn't be the same."

     "No, I want you to be happy... if I have to be cursed for your
happiness, it's okay."

     Akane snuggled into his arms again as tears started to flow from
her eyes. "I am happy. I'll miss your female side, separate or not, but
Ranko and Sanma were unique people when they... died. I can't, and
won't, replace them with copies. It'll take me time, but I won't let
their sacrifice be in vain."

     "Okay, but it wasn't just for you... I sort of miss having Ranko
around. Even Sanma, despite the fact that she was only around for a
couple days." Ranma avoided mentioning his other reason. The fact that
Cologne had knocked him out and taken his place didn't minimize the
guilt he felt at not being able to save them. At least being cursed
again might help him think that he saved something.

     Akane grinned. "I guess I can understand that, you miss your
'sisters'."

     Ranma nodded. "We didn't get along that well, but I had gotten used
to having Ranko around."

     "Well, Nabiki and I used to fight all the time when we were growing
up. That's what siblings do."

     "Not Kasumi?"

     Akane giggled. "Nope, never could get mad at Kasumi for anything.
Not even when Dr. Tofu liked her more than me."

     "The good Doctor doesn't know what he missed out on," Ranma said,
pulling her into a deep kiss. The two lovers held each other and watched
the sun set in the distance.

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     In the weeks that followed their return from Australia, Akane
slowly got better with the help of Doctor Higawa and with the love of
her family and friends. The Tendo and Saotome families had a small wake
for Ranko and Sanma and added their names to the Saotome family grave.
Dr. Tofu and Ukyo, being the only other people who knew about the split,
also attended.

     One night, Akane, Ukyo, and Ranma were studying in Ranma's room.
Ukyo suddenly hit Ranma over the head with a book. "Pay attention or
you'll fail your finals!" she yelled.

     "Geezzzzz... all right already," Ranma muttered. "Adolf Hitler's
bitch."

     Akane checked her book. "Correct. Although, the book just says
female dog."

     "Ranma, it's only a week till our finals. With all the time we lost
in China and Australia we have to cram as much of this stuff into our
brains as we can!" Ukyo insisted.

     "Yes. I'm not going to marry a high school dropout," Akane informed
Ranma.

     "I'm working as hard as I can!" Ranma said, then dropped the
martial arts manga he had hidden behind the textbook he was holding.

     "Baka!"

     Ukyo and Akane chased him around the garden before they managed to
tackle him and force him to learn the entire history of the European War
by heart.

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     That night, Ranma stared up at the ceiling trying to fall asleep.
Something about the reminders that Kasumi or his mother kept writing on
the ceiling panels kept tugging at the back of his mind. <What is it?
The anniversary of my meeting Akane is still two months away. All the
other reminders were further off than that, including Akane's birthday
which is almost a year away... > Ranma sat bolt upright, then exclaimed,
"Akane's eighteenth birthday! We missed it while we were inside the
monolith. Shit!"

     He jumped to his feet, ran up the stairs, and tapped on Akane's
door. There was no answer. He tapped again. Still no answer, so he
opened the door and went over to the sleeping Akane. He looked down at
her and debated if he should wake her or not, but finally decided to let
her sleep. He brushed some red hair out of her eyes, then sat down next
to the bed and fell asleep holding her hand.

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     Akane woke up and stretched. She slipped out of her bed and tripped
over the still sleeping Ranma. "Huh?" she muttered as she looked around
and saw Ranma. "Ranma? Ranma, wake up," she said while shaking him.

     Ranma opened his eyes, saw Akane, and smiled. "Happy birthday,
Akane!"

     "Birthday? That was back in February... it's March."

     "Nope. Today is February seventeenth! You deserve a happy day!"

     Akane smiled weekly. "That's sweet, but we missed my birthday... no
big deal."

     "Yes, it is," Ranma insisted, then pulled Akane into a big kiss.
"That's one. You get seventeen more kisses today."

     "Thank you, Ranma." Akane smiled, then glanced at her calendar.
<March fourteenth,> she thought, pondered the date a second, then said
aloud, "March fourteenth is YOUR birthday."

     Ranma frowned slightly as he realized that he was so worried about
Akane's birthday that he had completely forgotten about his own. "That
can wait, ladies first."

     Akane smiled and then gave Ranma a deep kiss. "That's one for you.
You also get seventeen more kisses today."

     "Thirty-four total, huh? Sounds good," Ranma declared.

     "Need to work on your math homework some more. It would be
thirty-six total," Akane smugly corrected him.

     "Um... I meant thirty-four more to go," Ranma insisted, trying to
cover up his blunder.

     "Right. Well then, today is both our birthdays. Time to wash our
birthday suits," Akane said, winked, then dragged Ranma downstairs to
the bathroom. He didn't resist.

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     Ranma scratched his head. He looked at all of the jewelry in front
of him. "Ummm... which one do you think Akane would like?" he asked.

     Nabiki looked at the case Ranma was examining and said, "None of
that cheap garbage. I'm lending you the money for this gift, it should
at least be something good."

     "Thanks again, Nabiki."

     "Well, just be glad that the reward from the airline for you
dealing with those hijackers covered your old debt with me."

     "Yeah, but I never saw any of it," Ranma muttered.

     "You still have the free plane tickets," Nabiki reminded him, as
she guided Ranma over to the real diamonds.

     "Yeah, whatever. Hmmmm, what about that bracelet?" Ranma asked,
pointing out an elaborate diamond studded bracelet.

     "Your credit with me isn't that good," Nabiki commented, looking at
the extremely high price tag. <Even with the discount I'll force out of
the saleswoman, that is way too much for him ever to repay. Unless he
ends up saving twenty more planeloads of passengers, that is.>

     "Oh. Um.. Wait... that one." Ranma pointed to a simple, but
beautiful, bracelet with four small diamonds on it.

     <Well, it's not cheap, but I think he'll be able to repay that
one... eventually,> Nabiki thought. "Looks nice. Miss, can we see that
bracelet with the four diamonds?" Nabiki said. The saleswoman took the
bracelet out and handed it to Nabiki. Nabiki took out a jeweler's
eyepiece and examined the bracelet closely.

     The saleswoman scowled when she saw the eyepiece, since she knew
she wasn't going to be able to get the list price now.

     "Miss, can we see a similar one without flawed diamonds?" Nabiki
handing the bracelet back. The sales woman nervously dug out another
bracelet from under the counter and handed it to Nabiki, who again
examined the diamonds with the eyepiece. "Why this one?" Nabiki asked.

     "Four diamonds. One for Akane and one each for her three lovers,"
Ranma replied. The saleswoman looked confused.

     "You're getting pretty good at this sappy romance stuff, you know?"

     "Really? Well, I know she'll miss Ranko and Sanma," Ranma said,
looking sadly at the ground.

     "Doesn't it bother you that she's so upset about losing two girls
when she still has you?" Nabiki asked. The saleswoman looked really
confused now.

     "Nope. I know she loves me and I miss my girl side, too."

     "Really?"

     "Yes. I never thought I could, but a part of me misses her, err...
them."

     "Well, big brother, I have some great nude photos of them," Nabiki
commented, winking. The saleswoman's head was spinning trying to keep up
with the conversation.

     "I wish we had a group shot of the four of us, but there was never
time before..." Ranma said, trailing off before mentioning the monolith.

     Nabiki nodded her understanding, then started to haggle with the
dizzy saleswoman over the price of the bracelet. In the end, she got it
for a third of the list price.

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     The table was on fire.

     Well, that was what it looked like. There were two cakes on the
table, each of which had eighteen lit candles on them. Akane and Ranma
looked at the two cakes and smiled. Then as one, they blew the candles
out. It looked like they got them all, but then the candles flared back
to life. They blew them out again. They lit up again.

     After a couple more tries, Ranma grabbed the edge of his
rectangular cake and spun it around. "Hiryu Shoten Ha!" he yelled and
trust a cool arm into the swirling hot air surrounding the cake. The
cake was smashed by a small whirlwind and sent into orbit.

     The candles were still lit when the cake landed on the Kuno mansion
and set the roof on fire. As Satsuke fought the flames, Kuno realized
that he should have spent the extra money and bought fire-resistant roof
tiles.

     At the same time, Akane pulled out her mallet and smashed her cake
flat. She smiled at the flattened cake in triumph, but then noticed that
the candles were embedded in the mallet and still lit. With a defeated
sigh, she looked at Ranma just in time to see the tornado sending his
cake away. "You know, you're really going to have to teach me how to do
that."

     Ranma grinned and nodded.

     The assembled Tendo and Saotome family members all looked around
confused and then wiped off the frosting that had spattered over them.

     "Um... whose idea was it to use trick candles?" Ukyo asked, glaring
around the table.

     "That would be my brilliant husband," Nodoka informed them all.

     Seconds latter, a panda was seen soaring through the skies of
Nerima.

     Akane and Ranma looked at each other and started laughing. They
playfully wiped the frosting off each other, ignoring the other people
at the table.

     Nodoka smiled. She was glad to see Akane in such high spirits. She
had been very worried about Akane's condition for the first two weeks
after they had returned from their trip to Australia. The therapy was
helping Akane cope immensely.

     Soun started crying. "Oh, my little Akane is all grown up and is
almost a married woman now."

     Kasumi had gone to the kitchen and returned with another cake.
"Here we go."

     Ranma finished licking the frosting off Akane's lips then looked at
the new cake. "Why did you have another cake?"

     Nabiki answered for Kasumi. "Are you kidding? With this family
something was bound to happen to at least one of them."

     Everyone laughed, then dug into the cake.

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     "Here, Akane," Ranma said, handing a small gift bag out to Akane.
They both sat on the roof of the Tendo house, enjoying the night air.

     "Thank you, Ranma," Akane said, opening the bag. She gasped, then
smiled as she pulled the bracelet out and put it on. "It's beautiful."
She kissed Ranma deeply.

     After the kiss, Ranma adjusted the new Chinese shirt that Akane had
gotten him. It was a very fancy silk shirt with a red background and a
three-headed dragon on it. Ranma didn't have to ask what the
three-headed dragon represented.

     They spent an hour or so making out on the roof before they made
their way down into the house and to their respective rooms.

     Akane looked at the bracelet again and smiled, then she glanced at
the picture that Nabiki had given to her. It showed Ranma and Akane
posing together. Ranko and Sanma were at their sides as well. Akane was
shocked when Nabiki had given it to her, because there is no way for
that photo to exist. Nabiki explained that it was a computer composite
of various photos. The pain was still there, but Akane now had a picture
of all three of her lovers to remember them by. She touched the photo
softly, then smiled as another thought crossed her mind.

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     Ranma took off his shirt and pants then lay out the futon on the
floor. He was about to lie down, when Akane opened the door to his room.
Ranma looked over to the doorway. "Akane?"

     Akane smiled seductively. "I thought we could practice for the
honeymoon." She let her robe slip off her shoulders, revealing the
skimpy black lace teddie that she had borrowed from Nabiki's collection.

     Ranma gasped as he saw the teddie that Akane was wearing, barely.
He smiled and drew Akane into his arms and kissed her deeply. "Our
parents will freak if they find out," he said after they broke the kiss.

     "Let them. They are the ones who pushed us together in the first
place."

     "No. We found our love despite their pushing."

     Akane smiled then slipped her hands under Ranma's T-shirt. She
rubbed his chest for a moment, then pulled the T-shirt off. She stroked
and nibbled his chest for a while and then slid her hands down his
stomach.

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     Akane awoke in her lover's arms and realized how much she had
missed that feeling. After the incident with the monolith, they had
slept in the same bed several times, but had never made love. At first,
it was too painful for Akane to even consider being intimate with Ranma,
but she knew she couldn't close off her heart to the man she loved
forever. She missed Ranko and Sanma, but in a certain way they were
still a part of Ranma. So, when she was making love to Ranma, she was
making love to all three of them. Without the breasts and other bits, of
course. "Good morning, Ranma," she said to him, as he awoke.

     "Morning, Akane," Ranma replied and gave Akane a long kiss.

     Akane got up and collected her discarded teddie, then slipped her
robe on. She kissed Ranma again, and slipped out to go to the bathroom.
She wasn't paying attention and walked right into Nodoka. "Err... um..."

     "Good morning, Akane. Nice to see you're so energetic this
morning," Nodoka commented, then walked into the kitchen.

     Akane looked at Nodoka's back. <She must have seen me come out of
Ranma's room... why isn't she upset?> she thought, walking to the
bathroom.

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     When she finished cleaning up, Akane walked upstairs and into her
room. She was shocked to find it almost empty. "Huh? Where did my stuff
go to?" she asked to no one in particular.

     "We moved it all downstairs to your new room," Nodoka's voice said
from behind Akane.

     Akane turned around. "Huh?"

     "I can't say I approve of you spending the night with Ranma before
you are married, but I can't say it's a surprise," Nodoka said. "If the
wedding wasn't already planned for next Saturday, I'd insist you get
married today." Truth be told, Nodoka suspected that Akane and her son
had become intimate already, but hadn't wanted to press the issue while
they were dealing with the problems caused by the split. Without that
problem, Nodoka probably would have had them married back in January.

     "I'm sorry if my actions have caused my family any shame," Akane
said, bowing her head.

     "Not at all, but there is no need to sneak around anymore. You and
my son are in love. No need to hide anything from the family that loves
you."

     "Yes, Auntie."

     "Akane, I'll understand if you don't want to, but could you call me
Mother?"

     Akane smiled. "I would be honored... Mother."

     "Good," Nodoka said, then lowered her voice and whispered to Akane,
"And, Akane dear? You might want to try being a little more quiet. My
husband and I are right above Ranma's room you know."

     Akane blushed from head to toe. "Yes, Mom." Up until then, Akane
had assumed that Nodoka had found out when she bumped into her earlier.
She exhaled in relief, at the calm conclusion to the confrontation over
last night and at being able to call Nodoka 'Mother'. It had taken
several sessions with Doctor Higawa for Akane to prepare herself for
that step.

     She went back downstairs to Ranma's room. <No... Ranma's and my
room,> she corrected herself. When she walked in, Kasumi and Nabiki were
putting her stuff into the closet. "Thanks guys."

     "It's our pleasure, Akane," Kasumi said, while hanging up some
dresses. "By the way, I have a present for you on the dresser."

     Akane looked over and saw the box of condoms on the dresser. She
blushed deeply. "Err... thanks." She quickly slipped the box into a
dresser drawer.

     "Kasumi, I'm sure the super-large economy pack she already has will
last her for a long time," Nabiki casually mentioned.

     Akane gasped. "You found that?"

     Nabiki almost choked on her tongue. "Err... I was kidding, Akane."

     Akane looked nervously around. "Yeah.... so was I."

     Nabiki wasn't convinced and smirked, while Kasumi just blissfully
continued folding clothes. Nabiki approached her younger sister and held
up a cassette tape. "Here's an early wedding present from me."

     Akane took the audiotape and looked at it oddly. "What is it?"

     "Something I recorded last night. I'd never have guessed that you
were a screamer," Nabiki whispered. She winked and left the room.

     Akane blushed, then thought about adding some soundproofing to the
room.

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     The final day of Ranma and Akane's Junior year had arrived,
although they were more nervous about their wedding that was to take
place the next day than about their classes. Ranma had done well so far
on his finals, but they wouldn't know the final results for a few days.

     The final bell rang and the students all swarmed out of the
classrooms and then out of the school. Ranma and Akane strolled slowly
out of the school and were sharing a quick kiss when they were suddenly
doused with cold water. "C... c... cold," Ranma said, a shiver flowing
down his spine.

     "Pigtailed girl! I must talk to you!" Kuno cried out and separated
Ranma and Akane. He pulled Ranma into a tight embrace. Suddenly, he
frowned and pushed Ranma back from his embrace. "What has thou done with
my lovely pigtailed goddess?" He felt Ranma's chest with his palm to
make sure there were no breasts there. He was very disappointed to find
none.

     Akane's eye twitched, and she held back the scream that was forming
in her throat.

     "Kuno! You are supposed to keep your distance! Get the hell away
from us!" Ranma shouted, swatting Kuno's hand away.

     "I only wanted to gaze upon my pigtailed goddess once more before I
went to university. What has thou done with her?" Kuno punctuated his
question by putting his bokken to Ranma's throat.

     Ranma shook his head sadly. "She's gone forever and you should have
realized that after Akane blasted you a few weeks ago that you will
never be a match for us. If you value your life, go now!!"

     "So all this time it was a trick to keep me from my pigtailed
goddess! This so called 'curse' you deceived us with was a clever ruse
to part us from our wealth. Agreement or not, I shall smite thee for
your misdeeds!"

     Ranma prepared for the bokken strike, but it never came. Before he
could react, Akane shouted, "Aikizuna Mokoutsu!!!" She held her hands in
front of her forming an upside down heart with her fingers.

     Ranma looked at Akane quizzically, since he had never heard of this
technique before.

     A blast of red chi energy flowed from Akane's outstretched hands in
an oscillating wave pattern. The wave of energy hit Kuno in the chest.

     And nothing happened. The energy just seemed to wash across his
chest without causing any noticeable damage or reaction from Kuno.

     "What?" Akane and Ranma gasped at the same time.

     Akane followed her gasp by muttering, "Knew I shouldn't have gotten
over my depression."

     "Ha! Nothing can hurt the mighty Blue Thunder of Waseda
University!" Kuno declared.

     Nabiki walked up behind Kuno and smacked him on the back of the
head with her bag. He crumpled to the ground. "Damn, I was afraid he
might end up going to the same college as me," she said.

     "What did you hit him with?" Ranma asked, kicking Kuno to make sure
he was unconscious.

     "A wad of cash that I picked up from his lawyers this morning."

     "What for?"

     "For breaking the agreement to stay away from you two. This
incident will cost them some more. You're not the only ones in this
family with special attacks, you know," Nabiki informed them, winking.
She turned and made her way out of the schoolyard. Before leaving their
earshot, she turned around and said, "Don't forget the bonfire tonight."

     "We wouldn't miss it. We'll be back after we have dinner with the
gang," Ranma said, putting his arm around Akane's shoulders and leading
her away from the fallen Kuno. "You okay, Akane?"

     "Why didn't it work?" Akane asked softly.

     "Huh? You mean that Alkaseltzer Mokosake thing? That was pretty
neat."

     "Aikizuna Mokoutsu. But it didn't hurt him. I practiced that after
Doc... I decided not to use anger or depression as attacks anymore."

     "That's good, it isn't good to draw on those feelings. We can work
on that attack some more, you should have told me you were trying to
develop a new chi blast."

     "I wanted to surprise you. When I blasted Kuno and Kodachi a while
back, I felt something click in my mind. I did some practicing and found
that concentrating on my love for you-not just my confidence in the
love, but my actual feelings of love-allowed me to focus my chi better
than before with the Moko Takabisha. It seemed to cause damage when I
tried it on some dummies."

     "When did you try it on me?" Ranma quipped.

     Akane smiled at the joke. "Silly."

     "We'll work on it. Have all that time in Hawaii for our honeymoon,
don't we?"

     "I'm not planning on doing too much training on that trip," Akane
insisted, then pulled Ranma down into a kiss.

     "Break it up you two, your wedding is tomorrow," Ukyo's voice
interrupted their kiss.

     Ranma and Akane looked up to see Ukyo and the gang from school
standing in front of the restaurant they had picked to have their
celebration dinner at. "Hi guys, give us a second," Ranma said and
returned to the interrupted kiss.

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     A fierce bonfire blazed away in the Furinkan High schoolyard. The
students all gathered around it and watched it burn. Every now and then,
a student would throw his or her Hawaiian school uniform into the fire.
The cheep uniforms that they had been forced to wear for the past year
turned out to be VERY flammable and had caused the bonfire to burn hot
and bright.

     Gosunkugi was dressed only in his underwear since he had forgotten
to bring a spare set of clothes like most of the other students had. He
was roasting marshmallows on the fire. Actually, upon closer inspection
they were actually straw dolls of Ranma. The impending marriage of Ranma
and Akane had become common knowledge; some were taking it better than
others were.

     Ukyo tossed her Hawaiian girls uniform into the fire along with a
picture of her and her 'Ran-chan' as kids. <Time to let that dream go,>
she thought, shivering despite the hot fire in front of her.

     "Here you go, Ukyo," Ranma said, offering a blanket to Ukyo.

     "Thanks Ran... ma," Ukyo said, avoiding using 'Ran-chan'. She had
decided it was too painful to keep calling him that. After she had
finally given up on Ranma after she and Ryoga tried to break them up
that last time in the mountains, she had come to terms with the fact
that she would never be more than friend to him. Then after the split,
she had gone right back to her old ways and tried to convince herself
that she'd end up with one of the Ranmas. Despite her insistence to
Akane that she would abide by her decision, she was devastated when
Akane announced she would marry both Ranma and Ranko. It had taken all
her willpower not to challenge Akane at that moment. Only the Buyierfei
attack and then Ranko and Sanma's deaths stopped another confrontation
about a third Ranma being available. She was determined not to repeat
her past mistakes, so Ranma was her friend. Nothing more.

     "No problem," Ukyo's friend Ranma said.

     A well suntanned man in an incredibly ugly Hawaiian shirt drove a
fire truck into the schoolyard. "No... no! Bad boys and girls must not
burn beautiful Hawaiian uniforms I bought for them to study hard in!"
the Principal yelled. He turned on the water and then aimed a
high-pressure water cannon at the bonfire.

     "Oh... no you don't!" Ranma cried out. He jumped in front of the
water and deflected it away from the fire. He advanced against the
pressure of the water and grabbed the end of the water cannon. He
squeezed and the end was sealed up.

     The Principal tried to turn on another water cannon, but Ukyo
intercepted him with a well-timed swing of her spatula. The Principal
was squashed between the rungs of a ladder. "Jerk! The school board
promised us new uniforms next year that don't make us want to throw up!"
Ukyo yelled.

     The Principal yelled, "Bad, very bad! Now you all fail your
finals!"

     Ranma sighed, considered tossing the Principal into the bonfire,
then thought better of it and asked, "Unless we find or do what?"

     "Ah, smart boy...  unless you can knock me off the top of dis here
fire truck!" the Principal declared, then handcuffed himself to the
truck's ladder.

     "Oh, is that all?" Ranma said, smiling. He turned around and walked
away. He pulled Ukyo and Akane with him.

     "What ta' matter, bad student? Scared to take me on?" the Principal
taunted Ranma.

     Ranma smiled and turned around. "Nope. Three... two... one."

     The fire truck suddenly exploded as the water feeding into the
clogged water cannon reached critical pressure and all the hoses and
pipes in the truck broke. The Principal was thrown off the fire truck
and landed in the bonfire. The truck was reduced to a pile of scrap
metal.

     Fortunately, the Principal was water logged so he burned slowly. He
hopped out of the fire and went screaming away into the night. He left a
trail of smoke and burned uniforms, since he had tried to save some of
the uniforms by dragging them out of the fire with him. This guy REALLY
liked Hawaiian clothing.

     The students all cheered at the retreating figure.

     Ranma smiled and then tossed his Chinese shirt with the Hawaiian
pattern on it into the fire. He sighed, then tossed a paper figure
representing his girl side into the fire.

     Akane watched it burn with Ranma. She added her own Hawaiian
uniform and five paper figures representing her mother, Ranko, Sanma,
Shampoo, and Cologne. She cried softly as the figures burned... as her
past burned.

     Ranma put his arm around her, and held her tight. "Ranko and Sanma
will be at the wedding, Akane... in spirit," he commented.

     "Yes, because they are within you," Akane said, looking up at her
soon-to-be husband. They kissed.

    They stepped apart, nodded, and then performed the tribute they had
practiced after dinner. In unison they thrust their arms upward, spread
them wide, formed a chi ball in each hand, and both called out,
"Aikizuna Mokoutsu!!" They twisted their hands quickly and four beams of
wavy red chi blasted upwards, one from each of their hands. The beams
spiraled upwards and circled each other until they slowly formed one
single beam.

     "Four hearts, beating as one." Ranma said, softly. He had picked up
the trick to the technique in only a few tries, much to Akane's chagrin.

     "Maybe that's the best use for that technique. Not as an attack,
but as a symbol of our love," Akane said, as she cuddled into Ranma's
arms again and watched the red beam continue, unaided, up into the night
sky.

     Ranma and Akane held each other until the fire burned itself out.
The other students had gone home long ago, but they didn't care. They
had each other. That was all they needed.

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     Ranma tried for the tenth time to get the tie on straight. "Damn
it! Why can't I use a clip on!" he shouted.

     "Oh, that would look great next to Akane's beautiful gown," Nabiki
said from his doorway. She was dressed in a very beautiful kimono.

     Ranma looked over to the doorway. "Well, I did see her in it during
the last wedding. Remember?"

     "Yes, I remember all too well. The guests took back all the gifts
since there wasn't an actual wedding. Well that's not going to happen
this time!"

     "I noticed that the invitations said 'all gifts are non-returnable,
regardless of the outcome of the wedding' this time," Ranma mentioned,
smirking at his future sister-in-law.

     "Well, that aside-" Nabiki brushed off Ranma's comment and then
continued, "-I've made sure there won't be any interruptions this time.
To start with, I've got the Kuno's under surveillance, so we'll know if
they are up to anything."

     "Why didn't you just use that back-up plan and have them
institutionalized?" Ranma asked, remembering the psychologist that
Nabiki had on hand when Kuno and Kodachi had agreed to stay away from
him and Akane.

     "Well, the doctor I have on retainer said Akane's little blast
could be used to show that she attacked them. So, we'll bide our time
and keep an eye on them. Hopefully they'll do something so crazy that
we'll be able to send them to the funny farm forever," Nabiki explained.

     "That LITTLE blast destroyed the back wall and several nearby
roofs," Ranma dryly commented.

     "Yes, and our neighbors are starting to get really pissed at all
the property damage. Anyway... hopefully Happosai is still at the South
Pole. Ukyo is a bridesmaid. Ryoga is... lost somewhere. And of
course..."

     "Yes, the Amazons...  I'm sorry about Mousse, Nabiki," Ranma said,
as Nabiki helped him with his bow tie.

     "Well, maybe it wasn't meant to be. There will be lots of cute guys
at college," Nabiki said, trying to sound happy.

     Ranma could hear the sadness behind the words. "The other women at
that college will be have to be content with the mighty Nabiki Tendo's
leftovers," Ranma declared.

     "Thanks, Ranma. Maybe I shouldn't have pushed you off on Akane,"
Nabiki said, then kissed Ranma on his cheek.

     "You never stood a chance against Akane in the race for my heart.
None of them did," Ranma said.

     "Damn, you've matured in the past two years. Just take good care of
my little sister or you'll feel my wrath."

     "I will."

     "That goes double for me, Ranma."

     Ranma and Nabiki looked around to see Kasumi in the doorway. She
looked radiant in her kimono. If not for the sweet smile on her face,
Ranma might have assumed that her threat was serious.

     "Is it time?" Nabiki asked. Kasumi nodded. Nabiki took one last
look at the groom. "Well, let's get our little brother into the dojo so
he can marry the woman who he's been sleeping with for the past few
months."

     "Nabiki! That's not proper talk," Kasumi scolded.

     "Sorry."

     "'The woman who he has been making love to' would be more proper,"
Kasumi informed Nabiki, then turned and made her way to the dojo.

     Ranma and Nabiki's jaws dropped. "Well, that was unexpected," Ranma
commented.

     "What was?" Nabiki replied, after picking up her jaw.

     "Hearing that from Kasumi. Do you think that she and Dr. Tofu..."

     "They did go out last night, but I doubt..." Nabiki tailed off then
smirked. <No, not Kasumi. She wouldn't do that before marriage. Would
she? It's bad enough my little sister is ahead of me in that department,
but Kasumi too?>

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     "Akane, stop crying or I'll never get this makeup on cleanly," Ukyo
insisted, dabbing the tears out of Akane's eyes.

     "I'm sorry. They just won't stop," Akane said, sniffling. "Worse
thing is I'm not sure if they are tears of joy or tears of sadness."

     "Probably both, sadness over what it took to get to this point and
happiness over the wonderful future you'll have with Ranma," Ukyo
explained, applying some more mascara to Akane's eyelid.

     "Thank you, Ukyo."

     "I'm just glad I didn't mess up our friendship and could be by your
side for this event," Ukyo said, while touching up Akane's lipstick.

     "Am I supposed to be this nervous?" Akane asked.

     "Beats me... I've never been married," Ukyo said. "Blot." As Akane
placed her lips on the offered tissue, Ukyo wondered if she ever would
get married.

     "Yes, you are," a voice said from behind Akane.

     Akane looked around and saw Nodoka standing in the doorway. "Au...
Mother."

     "Akane, it's natural to be nervous and scared on your wedding day.
It's a big step, but you love my son and he loves you," Nodoka said,
helping Ukyo put the veil on Akane.

     "Thanks... Mom."

     "Now then, your groom is waiting in the dojo. The Kunos and
assorted other problems are under surveillance and accounted for, so
let's hit the dojo and get you married already," Nodoka declared,
adjusting her katana instinctively.

     "My wedding sounds like a military operation," Akane said, smiling.

     "It is."

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     "Kuno One, report," Nabiki commanded into the headset she wore.

     "Kuno One reporting. Kuno and Kodachi are confirmed at their
mansion. No activity, although there was talk earlier that they would
stop the wedding tomorrow," a voice reported over her headset.

     "Good, the fake invite worked," Nabiki commented to no one in
particular. She made sure Ranma's bow tie was still on straight and then
positioned him next to Dr. Tofu, who was the best man since Ryoga was
missing in action.

     "Okay, father and mother of the groom: Check. Father of the groom
not a panda: Check. Groom and best man: Check. Both insane Kuno's are at
their mansion: Check. Minister: Check." Nabiki looked around at the
assembled guests. A lot of school kids, some Tendo and Saotome family
friends, and a duck. <A duck?> Nabiki tore a path to the little white
duck sitting next to an old woman. "Mousse!" she cried out and started
kissing the duck.

     "Excuse me, but what are you doing with my purse?" the old woman
asked.

     "What?" Nabiki gasped, then looked closely at the duck. It was
indeed a duck shaped purse. "Err... Sorry."

     Ranma came up behind her and put his hand on her shoulder. "Sorry,
Nabiki. I'll save a dance for you at the reception... you can pretend
I'm Mousse," Ranma said.

     "Thanks, Ranma. Try not to step on my feet," Nabiki quipped.

     "No promises," Ranma said, walking her back to the front of the
dojo.

     Nabiki made sure everything in the dojo was all set, then walked to
the back. "Okay, final sentry check. Count off," she said into the
headset. The sentries all returned 'go' conditions. Nabiki gave Ranma a
thumbs-up signal, then left the dojo to get the bride.

     Ranma swallowed hard. This was it. He knew it was going to happen
this time. <I hope.>

     The music started.

     Ranma swallowed hard.

     Kasumi appeared in the dojo's doors and started walking down the
aisle. She dropped carnation petals along the aisle. Since Carnations
were the favorite flowers of Akane's mother, it was a way to have her
here for the wedding.

     Ranma swallowed hard.

     Ukyo was next. She was wearing her giant spatula on her back...
just in case.

     Ranma swallowed hard.

     Nabiki came in, looked around for problems one last time, and then
made her way down the aisle.

     Ranma swallowed hard.

     Akane, on Soun's arm, appeared in the doorway.

     Ranma swallowed hard and choked on his tongue.

     Dr. Tofu applied a finger to Ranma's neck and Ranma's tongue
relaxed. He handed Ranma a glass of water, which Ranma gulped down.

     Akane smiled at Ranma's nervousness. She knew the feeling, since
her stomach was doing cartwheels at that moment. She looked at her
father, who for some reason was not crying. "Thanks, Dad," she said
softly, then continued walking.

     The doors were closed by two big guys. They locked the doors,
nailed two big boards over them, and strung some chains over them. A
padlock completed the barricade.

     As she approached the front, Kasumi smiled sweetly at Ranma, then
smiled lovingly at Dr. Tofu and blew him a kiss. She took her place by
the altar.

     Ukyo smiled at Ranma, mouthed 'congratulations' with her lips, and
then took her place.

     Nabiki finished her walk down the aisle and took her place. Her
headset crackled and she said softly, "Keep me posted, Air One."

     Ukyo leaned over to Nabiki and whispered, "Anything wrong?"

     "No... just an explosion over in Shinjuku. Probably nothing,"
Nabiki whispered back, hoping it was true. She gave the thumbs-up signal
again.

     Akane was almost to the front of the dojo, when her shoe caught the
helm of her gown and she toppled over and ended up falling onto a female
guest, in the process she heard the woman's dress rip. "Oh my... I'm
sorry," Akane said while trying to get up.

     The woman Akane had fallen on jumped to her feet. ""How dare you!
Tis a crime that you have forsaken me, but then to ruin my lovely dress!
Akane Tendo, I shall smite the cur Ranma Saotome and marry you so we may
both know true happiness!"

     "Kuno!" Ranma shouted, he jumped into the aisle and landed a hard
kick to the disguised Kuno's stomach. He followed this with a series of
fast chestnut punches. Then as one, he and Akane punched Kuno in the
chin and he was sent soaring into the sky through a newly created
skylight.

     The new skylight let in a beam of light that enveloped Akane and
Ranma and bathed them in a heavenly glow.

     Kasumi went into action and had the roof debris cleaned up in less
than five seconds. She brushed Akane's gown off, then asked, "Are you
okay, Akane?"

     "Yes, I guess I'm just a klutz," Akane said.

     Ranma breathed a sigh of relief and then had to open his big mouth.
"You are as graceful as an angel, Akane." Ranma was amazed at not
screwing up when saying that. So were all the guests, who gasped in
surprise. "How did Kuno get in here, anyway?" He ignored the amazed
gasps and snide comments from the peanut gallery.

     "Someone must have slipped up at the security checkpoint," Nabiki
cursed, then spoke into her headset, "Kuno One, confirm that Kodachi is
actually at the mansion. The Kuno there is a fake."

     After several seconds, a weak female voice replied over her
headset, "Kuno... Unit One reporting. Urk... it really is Kodachi. The
Kuno here was Sasuke. Argh!!! No... don't do that!" Then static filled
the headset.

     <How on earth could she have mistaken Sasuke for Kuno?> Nabiki
thought, then cursed, "Damn, what a time to screw up." Then she again
addressed her headset, "Air One, report of location of airborne Kuno."

     "Air One reporting. Kuno landed in alligator pit at the zoo. He
appears to be unconscious. Alligators appear hungry."

     "Okay, Air One, return to air patrol. All other units report
status," Nabiki said, listened to the reports, then said, "We're clear
again. Let's continue." She took lingering looks at all the other
guests, but didn't see anyone she didn't recognize from the pre-wedding
security interviews. She considered checking their wedding ID cards, but
decided it was better to get the wedding moving again.

     "Are you okay, Akane?" Ranma said.

     Akane smiled. "I'm fine. Let's do this," Akane said, taking her
place at the front of the dojo.

     Her father kissed her on her cheek and put her arm on Ranma's. He
sat down next to Ms. Hinako in her adult form and her fishbowl. <She
sure does love her fish. I wonder why she takes them everywhere?>

     Soun blushed when Ms. Hinako gave him a very alluring smile and
took his hand in hers.

     Akane looked into Ranma's eyes and smiled. He smiled back.

     The minister looked at the couple, then said, "We are gathered here
today to join this man, and this woman, in holy matrimony. Marriage is
not to be taken lightly, obstacles must be overcome to find the one you
love and arrive at this point."

     "You have no idea," Ranma muttered.

     Akane chuckled.

     The minister cleared his throat, then continued, "Two hearts come
here today to join into one by the strength of their love for each
other. If there is anyone present here today who knows why..."

     "Skip that part. We don't have all day," Akane said.

     Ranma chuckled.

     "Err... of course. Ranma Saotome, do you take this woman, Akane
Tendo, to be your lawfully wedded wife; to love, honor, and cherish till
death do you pa-"

     Nabiki's headset cracked, then she snapped her head towards the
doors. "Incoming! Ten to twenty targets, through the doors!!!!" she
yelled, pointing at the barricaded doors.

     "Shit!" Ranma cursed. He spun around quickly, extended his arms out
in front of him, and built up a chi ball.

     Akane did likewise, holding her hands in an upside down heart.
Sparks of wavy red chi flickered between her fingers.

     Ms. Hinako, Soun, Genma, and Dr. Tofu all snapped into their ready
positions. Ukyo drew her spatula and stood by Akane's side. Nodoka drew
her katana and held it shakily in front of her.

     Most of the other guests either took shelter in the corners, or
fled the dojo through a newly created hole made by Daisuke and Hiroshi.
Ranma's two friends had bolted at the first sign of trouble, not even
bothering to see if their dates were with them. Yuka and Sayuri were not
pleased to be ditched like that, but followed the two fleeing boys
through the hole.

     Suddenly, the doors exploded, taking most of the back wall with
them and knocking out the two big guards Nabiki had hired. Everyone
looked away and ducked the flying debris. Two figures flew through the
smoke and tackled Ranma and Akane. The two blasts that Ranma and Akane
were building up went off and blasted two large holes in the roof.

     Akane punched the figure that had fallen on her in the side, rolled
over, and pinned her attacker under her body. She looked down to see who
her attacker was. Akane gasped.

     Ranma punched the figure that had fallen on him in the side, rolled
over, and pinned his attacker under his body. He looked down to see who
his attacker was. Ranma gasped.

     As one, Ranma and Akane said, "Ranko? Sanma?"

     "Hi, Akane! Miss me?" the red headed girl under Akane said.

     "Hi, big brother! Could you do us a favor and blast the horde of
Amazons who are after us? Ranko and me are kind of out of juice right
now," the red headed girl under Ranma said.

     Ranma and Akane looked behind them and saw about fifteen angry
Amazon women standing in the remains of the doorway. At their center was
Shampoo's father, Aftershave. He was not bearing a gift for the wedding.
Unless he was planning to give the large sword he was carrying as a
gift, that is.

     "Shit."


***********************************************************************
>From the personal journal of James Davidson:


July 21, 2057

     I finished reviewing the last of the information Hanaki had given
me; I still couldn't believe all the problems Akane had whenever she
tried to get married. This time she was even thwarted by two people she
loved deeply, but she was happy to see them, nonetheless.

     I had watched the sun come up twice since Hanaki left. I knew that
it would probably take her at least two or three more days to find help
and get back here. Unfortunately, I didn't think my leg was going to
last that long. The bruise wasn't getting darker, so the internal
bleeding had stopped, but gangrene would probably set in soon. Ah well,
I hear they are doing wonders with prosthetics these days. My only wish
was to see my beautiful Hanaki again.

     "Hi, honey, I'm home!"

     I looked around to see that my wish had been granted. "Hanaki?"

     "Ran into a little trouble, so we're going to plan 'B'."

     I noticed her torn blouse and asked, "What happened?"

     "Ran into a nest of Buyierfei... very persistent Buyierfei, since
they are climbing up the mesa behind me. We have about fifteen minutes
to jury-rig the spacejet."

     "Did they hurt you?"

     "One torn blouse, some scrapes, and bruises versus a nest of dead
shadows. Let's just say they messed with the wrong Ono," Hanaki quickly
explained. She made a fist to show off her bicep and then smiled.

     These Tendo women do get headstrong when they fight. "So what do we
do now?"

     "Well, there is a way to get the ramjets started, but it's risky.
We don't have any other choice with the Buyierfei on their way. I'll
need your help."

     "I'll do whatever I can."

     "Good, let's get you in the co-pilot's seat." She helped me into
the seat and then handed me a checklist. "Go over each item listed and
make sure the screen displays a green condition. If you get a red, stop
and wait for me. Stop at the 'Ignition Primer Power Cycle' item. Don't
do that one-" she explained, paused, then finished, "-or you'll kill
me."

     I grinned at her joke. "Okay. What are you going to do?"

     "I've got to finish rigging the quad-aerodyne ramjets for an air
start."

     "I thought you said the primers were shot."

    Hanaki ran her hands over the controls and made some adjustments.
"They are, but if we can get enough air pressure into the manifolds we
can force them to start. We can do that by driving off the top of the
mesa." Then she grabbed a tool bag and left the spacejet.

     I gulped. Drive off the top of the mesa? She was kidding, right?
"You're kidding, right?!" I yelled out.

     "Nope," Hanaki yelled back from outside.

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     I finished the checklist, which was all voice controlled. A monkey
could have done it. Well... a talking monkey. Guess I was the closest
one available.

     Hanaki came in, covered with grease and dirt. "They are getting
close to the top. I sent a couple more Moko Takabisha blasts down at
them to slow them down, but we only have a few minutes."

     "The checklist is done. Everything showed green."

     "Good," Hanaki said, then sat down in the pilot's chair. I was
amazed at how deftly she handled the controls. She had a good teacher
apparently.

     "You're really going to drive us off the top of the mesa?"

     "Yup, the air flowing into the manifolds should start the ramjets
and hopefully we can pull up in time."

     "Anything I can do?"

     "I'm glad you asked." She smiled, then hit a button next to her
control stick. Another stick rose to my right. "When I tell you, I need
you to push that stick all the way to the front. Hold it until you feel
the wheels leave the mesa, then pull it all the way back."

     I gulped. "Are you sure you want me to do this?"

     "Yes, I'll be busy trying to get the ramjets started and trying to
balance them if they do... once they do."

     "Okay." Hanaki was being unusually blunt, I assume because she was
as scared as I was.

     She referred to my palmcard's map display to make sure we had
enough room to drop once we left the mesa.

     She scanned all the controls once more, then said, "Okay, here we
go. I'm going to shout 'forward' when I want you to push the stick
forward." She hit some switches and I heard some hydraulics from the
back of the spacejet. What I wanted to hear was the engines, but I
didn't.

     She pushed her stick forward a bit and we started to move forward,
gaining speed as we headed towards the edge of the mesa.

     I gulped.

     She yelled, "Forward!"

     I pushed my stick full forward as she ran her hands over the
controls. The spacejet was moving extremely fast now. I felt a lurch,
which must have been the wheels leaving the mesa, so I pulled my stick
back hard. I still heard no engines.

     "Come on... start already!" Hanaki screamed.

     Whether it was her scream or just chance, the engines whined to
life. Then Hanaki really went into action and adjusted controls in a
frenzy of action. I looked at the canyon floor we were about to hit.

     "Let go!!!!" Hanaki screamed.

     I let go of the stick, then saw her trying to pull us out of the
dive we were in. Just as it appeared that we would hit the floor of the
canyon, the engines strained louder, and we skimmed the bottom of the
long canyon floor. Hanaki still wrestled with the stick and adjusted
some slider controls.

     "Come on already! Climb!"

     I knew better than to interrupt her. The view out the window showed
us skimming the floor of the canyon, Hanaki moving us back and forth to
avoid tree and rock outcroppings.

     For the next several minutes, Hanaki avoided the obstacles, but
could not seem to gain any altitude. She racked her brain for options.
"What am I forgetting?"

     "Landing gear?" I suggested.

     "Shit," Hanaki swore and hit a button. We slowly started to climb,
but not much and very slowly. Seeing that the canyon ended ahead, she
fought desperately with the stick to gain altitude. "Double shit." She
pulled back hard on her stick and we shot over the edge of the canyon
wall, just barely missing it. In fact, the spacejet rocked back and
forth, so we may have actually hit part of it.

     Suddenly, we were racing across open land and Hanaki continued to
wrestle with the controls for several minutes, apparently having trouble
gaining altitude or even changing our heading. As she dodged
obstructions, I saw some signs of civilization in the distance.
Apparently, we had already covered quite a distance from our secluded
crash site.

     Hanki turned and looked out her window at the back of the spacejet
then turned to me. "Can you look back at the engines on your side and
see what you can see? I'm not getting enough power..."

     I looked out my window towards the back of the spacejet. "Huh?
Um..."

     "What is it?"

     "I'm not sure... I thought I saw a person... or something, on the
engine cowling for a second, but there isn't anything there," I said,
straining my neck while trying to see it again.

     "Damn, a Buyierfei!" Hanaki snapped. Then she reached over and
moved some thrust controls, causing the engine noise to increase in
pitch. Suddenly the spacejet shook and did a few barrel rolls. Somehow,
Hanaki managed to stabilize us and get us flying level again.

     "It's dead," I said, trying not to vomit. As soon as the Buyierfei
had hit the intake manifold it became visible and I saw my first
Buyierfei, well bits of one at least. The engine was still covered by a
think black liquid. I looked forward again and gasped when I saw that we
seemed to be headed right for a large rock formation. "Hanaki!"

     "I see it. She's still not handling right..."

     Now I could see than the rock formation had a hole in it. It was an
arch.

     "RETRACT WINGS!" Hanaki shouted to the onboard systems.

     I heard some hydraulics come to life, most probably the spacejet's
swept-back wings retracting. Then we shot right through, yes through,
the arch.

     "Damn!" Hanaki swore and yanked her stick hard to the left.

     I felt the whole spacejet tilt to the left and then noticed another
arch ahead of us, but it was tall and narrow. Hanaki couldn't be
thinking of going through it at an angle, could she?

     She was and she did.

     "That was too close," Hanaki said, letting out a long held breath.
She touched some controls and frowned. "Damn, no wonder. Something was
jamming the elevator, but must have came lose in that last maneuver."
She pulled back on the stick and we finally started to rise. She reached
over and zoomed the map display on my palmcard out. "Let's see... we're
headed west, so the best place to head for is Las Vegas."

     "Shouldn't we just set down near the closest city?"

     "I want someplace with crash facilities. One of the landing gears
didn't fully retract. It may not support another landing."

     "I love you," I felt the urge to say.

     "You're just saying that because I saved your life."

     "You are my life."

     "Remind me to kiss you after I land this flying pile of crap."

     "I will. By the way, your language has gotten very colorful."

     "I guess I'm a potty mouth when I'm under stress."

     "Understandable, under the circumstances."

     "Did you see those tourists scramble when we went through those
arches?" Hanaki asked, now that she had us level and bound for Las
Vegas.

     "Yeah, you scared the shit out of them."

     "Now who's the potty mouth?"

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     After a half-hour, Hanaki had managed to raise someone on the radio
and get a direct flight path into the Las Vegas airport. As we neared
the city, we could see all the tacky casinos in the distance.

     "Hanaki, want to get married?" I asked, coming to a decision.
Remembering our declaration in the desert, I added, "I mean legally?"

     "Yes, silly... I already said yes to you in San Francisco." She
gave me that beautiful smile of hers that just made my legs go numb.

     "No, I mean in Las Vegas after we land. It may be a bit tacky to
get married there, but..."

     Hanki interrupted me by leaning over and giving me a deep kiss.
I'll take that as a yes, I guess. "My grandmother and aunt will be mad
at missing the wedding."

     "Considering how Akane's weddings went, I'm sure they'll understand
if we want to avoid anything else getting in our way."

     "Then, of course, I'll marry you as soon as we get your leg fixed
up," Hanaki said with a big grin on her face.

     I smiled back. Suddenly, the cabin erupted in a torrent of wind. I
looked back and saw that the cabin door had been ripped out of the hull,
along with a large section of the hull. "Oh... shit."

     Hanaki held the control stick tightly and then followed my gaze. In
the opening where the door used to be, there stood a figure. It was hard
to make out clearly, but what you could see was covered with a black
oily substance. Normally you can't see them directly, but when they bled
you can see the black blood as it flowed across their bodies.

     "Buyierfei," both of us said at the same time. At that moment, we
both realized what must have been jamming the elevators.


[End - Chapter 10]

Coming soon: Chapter 11: Battle for the Amazon Way
=======================================================================

The real author's (Jim Lazar) notes/ramblings:

How about that? Two cliffhangers for the price of one. Then again, this
didn't cost you anything. I'll send Nabiki around to collect.

Shame on anyone who thought I'd go though the trouble of splitting Ranma
into three people and then sacrificing them in the monolith. As for the
evil Ranma on the cliff top from chapter 8, you'll have to wait a little
longer to find out more about what he/she/it is.

Akane's therapy session was mostly common sense mixed with watching some
old Bob Newheart and Fraiser shows. I'm not a psychiatrist, although
some people have said I could use therapy. I doubt she'd have been able
to come through this sane without some professional help. The fact that
she had been seeing Doctor Higawa since the failed manga wedding, also
helps explain why she started to control her anger and accept Ranma's
girl side. Although I didn't have her therapy sessions in mind from the
very start, by the time I was writing chapter 3 it became obvious to me
that she had to be receiving help. She just never mentioned it to James.

Akane's 'Aikizuna Mokoutsu' technique is translated as follows: AI=love,
KIZUNA=bond (tie between people), MOKO=ferocious tiger, UTSU=strike.
Utsu can also mean to touch the heart, so it works for both the attack
and the tribute use of the Aikizuna Mokoutsu.

If anyone thinks that Nodoka would be more upset at Ranma and Akane
having a little premarital fun, then I have to refer you to volume 34,
part 8 of the manga. In it, Nodoka comments that since Ranma and Akane
are engaged they can do anything they want and it's okay with her.

Although, modern ramjets require you to be moving at mach one to work,
the quad-aerodyne ramjets in use in 2057 use a combination jet engine
that allow for slower speeds as well as super sonic speeds. Ain't 21st
century technology great?

The arches described actually exist in Arches National Park in Utah. And
I swear I wrote the arch scene before seeing the trailer for the new
Star Wars movie (which has some landspeeders zooming through arches). My
arch scene was actually written back in June of 1998 in Arches National
Park. Onsite research for a fanfic, am I dedicated or what?

I'd like to thank my pre-readers Jonathan Ng, Arnold Callwood, Ryan
Erik, Johan Holmberg, and David Johnson for helping me find and fix
problems with this story. FFML members David A. Tatum, Harold Ancell,
and Michael A. Chase were also helpful in fine tuning this story. Thank
you all. Of course in the end, any mistakes and botched characters are
my fault.


Revision 0.0 - Rough draft (July 22,  1998)
Revision 0.2 - Pre-reader draft (November 27, 1998)
Revision 0.3 - FFML draft (December 30, 1998)
Revision 1.0 - First RAAC posting (January 14, 1998)

-=-
Jim Lazar

E-Mail - mailto:jimlazar@earthlink.net
Home - http://home.earthlink.net/~jimlazar
FanFiction - http://home.earthlink.net/~jimlazar/anime
-=-