New Beginnings
Chapter 1 - Forging A New Path
Life of Chaos - Journey Part 1
Most of the characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi and Viz Communication,
and some other companies. Used without permission. I'll return them as
soon as I finish my other series, and... well... that might take a
while. I lent Ryoga's mom a copy of story plots and well... she's a
Hibiki... it'll take some time before I see her again and find out what
she did with them.
If you haven't read the prologue, previously known as Part 1: don't
worry. This is a good starting point for new readers. Important events
in the prologue are referred to in this chapter.
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"I'VE HAD ENOUGH!"
Ranma blinked. This wasn't how he expected to be greeted upon entering
the dojo. He expected that Akane would ignore him, yell at him for being
a perverted jerk, inform him of the latest threat, or something like
that. Well, he couldn't rule out the perverted jerk one, but for some
reason he doubted that was it. "Enough of what?"
"Everything!" Akane screeched. "The fiancees, the pointless fighting,
girls fighting over you, the chaos, girls flirting with you and every
other damned thing that happened today."
"Akane, calm down. There ain't much we can do about that stuff. They
aren't going away. Besides, things will settle down in a few days."
"Settle down?!" Akane's fists clenched. "Sure they'll calm down, maybe
even for a week or two, and then something happens to stir it all back
up again."
"You're exaggerating."
"I AM NOT!" Akane seethed. "When was there ANY time last year that we
knew any peace? When wasn't there a week someone hatched some plot to
win your heart or some bizarre incident happen?"
Ranma's brow crinkled in thought. "Um, well.... What do you suggest we
do, Akane? We can't just run away from here."
"Why not?" Akane asked flatly.
Ranma looked blankly at his fiancee. "Ah, because, um, well, we just
can't."
"Give me one good reason?" Akane's eyes stared through him.
"Um, we don't got the money to do that."
Akane extended one finger. "We can go to our parents and get the money.
You know they'd give it to us." She extended another one. "If they don't
give us enough, you know how to live off the road with no money, and can
help me do that same."
"Come on, Akane. It's not that bad here. Why do you want to leave?"
"Where to start?" Akane asked rhetorically. "Do you know what fight
Shampoo was referring to when she asked you to wish her luck?"
Ranma shrugged. "Yeah."
Akane's eyes flatten into a deadly gaze. "And you don't care?!"
Ranma scratched his head. "Should I? Sure, if she had won, it would've
caused some problems."
"Caused problems?! Wait a second, IF SHE HAD WON? You mean someone
else... WON?"
Ranma stared at her, wondering what she was talking about. "Actually,
neither of them did. Konatsu dumped Shampoo into a pool and declared it
a draw to make sure he doesn't have to marry her."
"What are you talking about?!"
"Shampoo's fight with Konatsu."
"Why would they fight?"
"'Cause he cut her hair."
Akane walked over to a wall and punched it. "I don't think that's the
fight she was 'wishing luck for.'"
Ranma was starting to worry. "What do you mean?"
"I think she wants more than luck to help you win your little challenge
with Ryoga and Mousse."
"C-challenge? What challenge?" Ranma gulped nervously.
Akane turned toward Ranma with a look that'd freeze water. "The one to
see who'd score first. Who were you planning on attempting to win with,
anyway?"
Ranma edged backwards. "Um, it was all Mousse's idea. He got me upset
and made that challenge. I, ah, wasn't thinking straight when I agreed.
I don't plan to follow through with it."
Akane's eyebrow twitched. "Oh, really?"
"Yes, really. I have NO desire to have sex with an uncute girl like you
or anyone else for that matter."
Akane screamed in rage and launched a kick at the wall taking out part
it. "DON'T GIVE ME THAT BULLSHIT!!!"
"A-Akane, calm down, please." Ranma froze at the door. Akane's angry
glare told him he'd wish he were dead if he ran.
Akane's fists opened and closed several times. "You do realize Shampoo
is planning on paying you a visit tonight to help you win."
Ranma hadn't but he nodded anyway.
"What do you intend to do about that?"
"Ah, um, sleep as a girl, and reject her when she wakes me up?" Ranma
meant it to be a firm statement, but it sounded like he was asking for
his fiancee's approval.
Akane nodded firmly. <I'd better keep an eye on him to make sure.> She
turned away from Ranma. "How many fights were there today?"
"Um, you verses the twins, Akari and Azusa, Kumon and Dan, and Konatsu
against Shampoo." Ranma looked at his outstretched fingers. "Four."
"What about the girls' gym class, Mousse verses Kuno or the pervert
horde against me? That's at least seven fights, Ranma, SEVEN! That was
just today. We're suppose to be going to school, not a freestyle martial
arts tournament."
"But, Akane...."
"What about all those girls hounding you? There has been so much crap
going on about your relationships that some of the girls think you're
available. Can't forget the freshmen who don't know better."
Ranma's shoulders slumped.
"Then there's all the other craziness going on! Konatsu scaring Tsubasa.
Taro doing a kata in the swimming pool. Shampoo's haircut. The fact too
much shit happened to even have a math class. Ms. Hinako losing her
shirt. One of our teachers going AWOL. And you know Kodachi is planning
something; why else would she practically ignore you?"
"Akane...."
Akane wheeled towards Ranma. Her eyes brimming with tears and yet were
set with determination. "I can accept some chaos and insanity. I know
you attract it, and I'll have to deal with that. But... but Furinkan is
way too much. I don't want to go another day dealing with that level of
weirdness or having to watch my fiance being hounded by half the school
for a date! I can't take it, Ranma. I can't. I'm leaving tomorrow, with
or without you. Please... please come with me."
"I, ah, okay." Ranma let out a long breath. "We'll leave, but Akane what
are we going to do about girls that we meet? I mean, they're going to
flirt with me."
Akane suddenly found her feet very interesting. "They'll stop flirting
once they know you're married."
"Huh? Akane, we aren't married."
Akane's face turned beet red. "Not yet, but if we elope before
leaving...."
Ranma's legs gave out and he fell on his ass. "WHAT?!"
"Well, if we're married, they'd have to stop flirting with you."
"Akane, that'd only work if they know of it."
"Which you would tell them if they start flirting."
"You know that won't stop all the girls."
"It should." Akane stood firmly.
Ranma shook his head. "There's no reason we have to get married."
Akane nodded. "No reason we _have_ to, but I, ah, well... want to."
"Why?" Ranma asked wide-eyed.
"Because you love me."
Ranma hoped to his feet. "I never said that."
"You might not have, but there is no way you can tell me you don't love
me after what you did at Jusendo."
Ranma's legs wobbled. "B-but... Akane, why do you want to marry me?"
"I already told you."
"No, you told me why _I_ might want to marry you. Why do _you_ want to
marry me."
Akane paused for a moment. Her hand's clenched. She knew she had to give
him a good reason or he wouldn't go through with it. There was only one
she could come up with. Why couldn't she just say it, even when she knew
it to be true? She wanted to say, but part of her made her think she
would be losing something if she did. But losing Ranma to someone else
wasn't something she wanted to risk and she didn't want to lose her
chance to make him hers forever. Akane looked at Ranma with firm
determination. "I want to marry you because I love you."
Ranma fell to the ground. "Y-you what?"
"I love you." Akane was amazed how much easier it was to say the second
time.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Ranma asked not believing his own
voice.
Akane nodded. "Yes, Ranma, this is what I want."
"Do you have any idea of how we go about this or where we're going?"
"I have a few ideas, but you have more experience at this."
---------------------
Soun carefully placed his shogi piece. "It's been quite in the dojo for
a while now. Think they're done with their argument yet?"
[Maybe.] The panda held up a sign. [Better to wait. Less hazardous.]
"Quite true, Saotome-kun. I do believe it's my turn."
[Didn't you just move a piece?]
"I don't think so."
Nodoka shook her head. She hoped nothing had happened to interfere in
her son's relationship with Akane. The girl had been quite willing to
marry Ranma, but she had to wonder if that was still the case consider
how upset Akane had been right after school.
Ranma scuffed his way into the main room, looking like a beat dog. While
he showed no signs of being hit, Soun and Genma assumed Akane had struck
him at least a couple times. Ranma plopped against the far wall from the
room's entrance. He muttered something, balled his fist, and slammed it
against the wall.
---------------------
Akane stood in the hall and gulped hearing the thump. That was Ranma's
signal that it was safe to talk to Kasumi. She tried to calm her nerves
as she entered the kitchen.
Kasumi smiled at her younger sister. Noticing her nervousness, she
thought of a probable reason as to why. "Akane, do you want to help cook
as a way to make up with Ranma?"
Akane briefly considered taking Kasumi up on the offer. But she
remembered how often she had botched the attempt. If she tried to cook
now and messed it up, there was no way Ranma would elope with her
tomorrow. The idea of losing Ranma over a plate of food had gripped her
in fear. "Me cook! Are you out of you're mind?!"
"Akane!" Kasumi gasped at her outburst.
The youngest Tendo shook her head to clear her thoughts. "Sorry. I'm
really nervous about something. I'd like to talk to you about it."
Kasumi stared at Akane in growing shock. <Fight with Ranma... nervous...
refuses to cook....> "You're not pregnant, are you?"
Akane kissed the floor. "What?! No! I've never even been with him! How
could you think that?!"
"Well, it just that you're acting strange and I thought that maybe....
Silly me."
"Right, anyway...." Akane was interrupted by the sound of two strong
thumps against the outside wall. "I... I'll tell you later."
"Is everything all right in here?" Soun asked from the door.
"Oh, everything is find. Kasumi is letting me help cook." Akane smiled
at her father. If he noticed her lips quiver he didn't show it.
"C-cook? Ah... um... are you sure that's wise so soon after a fight with
Ranma?"
Kasumi looked confused, but decided to go along with Akane. She seemed
to have something to say that she didn't want their father to know
about. "I thought it'd be a good idea to teach her something simple to
make. It would help Ranma and Akane to make up."
"But if she messes it up?" Soun was on the verge of tears.
Akane glared at her father. "I'll taste it before serving it, Daddy. If
I can't eat it, we'll throw it out."
"Really? Then by all means." Soun started to cry tears of joy. <She's
finally learning.>
Kasumi looked over at Akane. "Do you want the lesson?"
Ranma stood at the outside window. "Akane, I'd suggest you take it. If
for no other reason than to keep our fathers away from you talking to
Kasumi and give me a chance to talk to Mom. Besides, you need the
lesson."
<Don't hurt the man you plan to marry tomorrow.> Akane hated having her
cooking ridiculed even if she could, very grudgingly, admit that it was
sometimes bad. "Who's going to watch out for them eavesdropping while
you talk?"
Ranma frowned. "I have an idea." He then jumped on top of the roof and
then down to the yard next to the koi pond. <Just hope Mom doesn't kill
me before I can explain anything.>
"Ranma, is there something I can help you with?" Nodoka asked, pulling
down one of Nabiki's shirts off the clothesline.
"Um, yeah, well, you see...."
"Does this have anything to do with your fight with Akane?"
Ranma shook his head. "Not really. I wanted to go to Akane to talk about
this since you've put so much importance on being manly, but I've got to
know something. But I can't go to Akane 'cause she's still upset at me."
His checks were blazing red.
"It has something to do with your curse?"
Ranma nodded.
"Well, if it's your curse, you can't really control it, can you?"
"R-right. You see, I've, well, been b-b-bleeding...." Ranma couldn't
believe how much his cheeks were burning.
Nodoka dropped the shirt and her eyes bulged out of her sockets. "You've
been menstruating?!"
Soun and Genma fell off the porch.
[Bar?] the panda asked.
"Bar," Soun confirmed.
The two fathers were gone before the shogi board, which they had knocked
over, hit the ground.
Ranma let out a long sigh. "Well, y-yes... but that's not what I want to
talk to you about. I just didn't want Pop or Mr. Tendo to listen in."
"H-how long have you been...."
"About a month after I got the curse. Kasumi helped me a lot."
Nodoka's head swam with the notion that her son has had periods. It
sounded so unmanly, but the curse wasn't something he could control. She
clamped down on her thoughts and shelved that information deep into her
mind, hopefully to never see the light of day. "What is it that you
wanted to talk about?"
Ranma gulped. He wondered where the momentary courage to let his mother
know about his somewhat monthly visits had gone. He could use all he
could muster to tell his mother that he was leaving her again. "Well,
it's about what me and Akane, well, fought over. You see, um, well,
Akane wants to leave. She doesn't want to stay here with all the girls
chasing after me."
"Akane is leaving you?" Nodoka frowned.
Ranma shook his head. "She wants me to go with her, and well, I agreed.
But we need money to start off with."
"Y-you're leaving me... with Akane." Nodoka's legs shook. The last time
Ranma left it had been for ten years. How long would it be this time?
"Y-yeah. It'll only be for a few months to a couple years. At worst
after college, if we go to college that is."
Six years. Ranma might be leaving her again for up to six years. He
would be twenty-three then. To have a twenty-three year old son and to
have only been a part of his life for less than five years; she didn't
want that. She didn't want to lose him again. "Do you have to go?"
"Mom, Akane made it clear how she felt about school. And she's right
that it was insane. Coming from me, that says a lot. I might be able to
convince her to try staying a bit longer, but another day remotely like
today and she will leave, with or without me."
"Maybe Akane should go for a few weeks. You know, as a vacation, so she
could better handle bad days."
Ranma shook his head. "I doubt that'd work."
"Ranma...." A tear streaked down Nodoka's cheek. Ranma was a man and
could decide his own future. She knew there were a lot of problems for
him here, but she didn't want to lose him again. Maybe if she made a
large, but reasonable, demand they might delay going away. "If you leave
with Akane, you will marry her first."
Ranma slouched. He had hoped to talk Akane out of that later tonight,
but it'd be harder if his mother was also pushing for it. "Yeah, we
already planned to do that."
Nodoka took Ranma into a fierce hug, tears streaming down her face. "Oh,
I'll miss you so much! You will write every week or call, won't you?"
"I'll try."
"I'll have to make sure Akane reminds you." Nodoka sniffed while pulling
back from her son to get a good look at him. "I love you, son. Please
don't be gone too long and come back safe."
"I will, and we aren't leaving until tomorrow."
---------------------
Akane's tongue curled over her upper lip. The knife in her hand slowly
lowering into the carrot making another, somewhat, evenly cut piece.
Kasumi would comment that Akane didn't have to be that careful, but past
experiences with her little sister's cooking told her otherwise. "Now,
Akane, what is it you wanted to talk to me about."
Akane gulped while the knife was pressed deeply into the cutting board.
"It's, um, well, Ranma and I are eloping tomorrow and we're going to
wander around Japan for a couple years as our honeymoon. But in order to
do that, we need some money to get started."
Kasumi blinked a few times and then Akane had to catch her as she
fainted.
"Are you okay?" Akane's voice shook nervously.
"Akane?" Kasumi stared at her little sister in shock. She wondered if
Akane was joking, if Nabiki had said anything remotely like that, she'd
know it was a joke. "Are you really going to elope with Ranma and leave
us?"
Akane nodded.
"Why?"
Akane began to cut the carrot into another piece. "I can't take being
here any longer. All those girls chasing after Ranma are driving me
crazy. They either ignore that I'm his fiancee or they attack me to get
me out of the way. Not to mention all the insanity."
"Akane, are you sure? What about school? How will you survive? What are
you going to do?"
Akane sighed. "Yes, I'm sure. We'll transfer to the local schools and
work at odd jobs to pay our bills."
"You just can't leave all of us. What about Father, Nabiki, me, your
friends, and everybody else?"
Tears started to form in Akane's eyes. "I'll miss all of you, but I
can't stay. You have no idea how hard today was for me. Watching Ranma
being surrounded by girls. Shampoo shamelessly flirting with him. Got
into trouble for keeping Ranma awake. Fought with Double Trouble. My gym
teacher is a certified nutcase who attacked me. And that just what has
happened to me. I can't begin to go on about what happened in class!"
"Just take a few days. I'm sure you'll find that it's not so bad."
Akane shook her head. "No. I can't stay. I'm leaving and I want you to
be there to witness my wedding. Please don't make me shut you out. I
want to be able to contact you and tell you how I'm doing and find out
from you how things are going on here."
Kasumi looked down at her stubborn sister. She didn't know how to talk
her baby sister out of this. Tears tumbled down her cheeks. "Oh,
Akane.... If you have to go, I can't stop you. I wish you all the luck
in the world."
"I'm really going to miss you, oneechan." Akane hugged her sister.
"I'll miss you, too. Don't be gone too long."
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Author's Notes:
Well, Akane's last straw was placed in prologue chapter 8 and now we
have seen the result. She has gotten Ranma to agree to leave with her.
This is where things take a left and a right turn at Albuquerque. LoC -
Journey will follow Ranma and Akane's adventures away from home, while
LoC - Furinkan follows the Nerima crew as they continue on without Ranma
and Akane.
In case you want to know, this is my answer to the fanfict cliche 'Ranma
gets fed up and leaves.' While one can make an argument about anime
Ranma splitting town, Ranma from the manga series wouldn't leave since
he has worked to maintained the status quo and seems to enjoy it to a
degree. He has even gone out of his way to keep some of the more insane
parts of his life. However, Akane is a different matter- she has been
shown to get stressed out from some of the insanity and has attempted to
gain control of the chaos around her. If the stress from her daily life
got too bad, like it had in the prologue, then not even having family
support would be enough to keep her from leaving. Besides, Akane hasn't
recovered emotionally from her failed wedding that happened only the
week before.
Not counting the Konatsu/Ranma sparring match, there were technically
eight fights. One of the first fights was the twins verses Katsunishiki.
Some incidences may be considered fighting by some and would raise the
total number.