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The FFML Refugee List


Miss/Fortune

Part II

Disclaimer: Takahashi created the paints, I used my own easel. And maybe
diluted some of the colors...


Ukyou took a deep breath, then shook her head. Collecting herself, she
said, "You know... I don't think that's your fault. Remember, _Ryouga_
is the one that... took advantage of you."

Akane stated at the tile before her, disconsolate. She had betrayed
Ranma. And the memories... there was always a small part in the back of
her mind that insisted that it wasn't true, wasn't right, wasn't...
_real_... and now that she was in control of herself, she knew that
small part was correct. She sighed, staring at the ceiling with moist
eyes. She had shed enough tears, and hit rock bottom.

Acting childish about the situation wouldn't help matters. Steeling her
resolve, she forced back the urge to crawl away and run from her
problems. She regained her composure somewhat, still shaken by her
remembered actions, and returned Ukyou's level gaze unsteadily. "I
suppose you're right... I... want to train."

Wearing a pensive expression, Ukyou nodded. "Alright. I think you should
train with Ranchan, though... he's going to be training with Ryu-chan,
later today, so it's going to have to wait... but more about that
later."

Despite herself, Akane blinked. Ranma had labeled some of his scars as
being from Kumon Ryu... was it the same Ryu? Ukyou caught the question
in Akane's gaze, and smiled bleakly. "Yeah, he and Ranchan got into a
mutual ass-kicking contest when they met... but they managed to find out
that they have a lot of similarities afterwards, and... well, Ranchan
could use another friend."

Akane blinked in spite of herself a second time, then rose to her feet
unsteadily. Ukyou frowned at the girl, then clicked her tongue. "I bet
you haven't been eating too well recently, have you?"

Akane shook her head slowly, trying to remember the last time she had
eaten. "I... don't remember very well."

Ukyou raised an eyebrow. "Haven't been able to keep much down?"

She shook her head, looking up at the other girl as Ukyou stood. "Not...
much," she admitted.

The brown-haired girl winked, displaying the friendly smile that had
previously seemed to be reserved just for Ranma. "Let's get you fed,
then. And get your mind off of... that, for a bit."

Weakly protesting, Akane allowed herself to be dragged to the dining
room, where Kasumi had already set up a tray for her. Kasumi hummed to
herself, sitting nearby and sewing up the holes in one of Ranma's spare
shirts. Akane was nearly overwhelmed by the sense of tranquility, and
found herself finishing the meal before she had realized she had
started.

Ukyou smirked, patting Akane's shoulder companionably. "Feeling better?"

She nodded, restored to some degree. Staring at her hands, she asked,
"Where... what happened to Ryouga?"

All of the softness leaked out of Ukyou's eyes instantly, leaving her to
glower at nothing. "Ranma," she enunciated carefully, obviously focusing
on keeping her voice in control. "Said that he got away. Apparently
Herb's back in Japan, and wants to take Ranma down. Herb saved
Ryouga..."

Akane blinked, remembering the story. Shaking her head, she asked, "Why?
Didn't Ranma beat Herb, and send him back to China?"

Ukyou winced at that, smiling weakly. "Actually... heh... it turned out
that Ranma did a lot more to piss of Herb than you probably thought..."

Akane listened closely, as Ukyou explained, "You see, Herb had this
magic ladle that locks Jusenkyou victims in their cursed forms... And
Herb accidentally used it on himself, or something. So he was in Japan
looking for this kettle, that would cure him..."

Staring at the cup of tea that had appeared before her in dismay, Akane
looked over her shoulder towards Kasumi. The eldest sister hadn't seemed
to move, but... shaking her head to dismiss the thought, Akane sipped at
her tea, noting an odd flavor. She peered back into the teacup for a
moment, murmuring, "Ginger..." Pulling her attention away, she looked
back at Ukyou, who was staring at the cup in front of _her_ with frank
suspicion. "What does that have to do with anything? Ranma's not stuck
in his cursed form."

Ukyou smirked at that, briefly. "Well, it turns out that Cologne didn't
want Ranma to fight Herb without proper training... so she taught him a
few more tricks. He learned the Breaking Point before he faced off with
Herb again." Pausing to sip her tea, she sobered. "It's a damn good
thing he learned the Breaking Point. He made Cologne take twice as long
to teach it to him, just so he could get twice as tough."

Akane flinched at that, remembering Ryouga's own training... while she
no longer felt pity for the damage Ryouga had taken, if Ranma had taken
worse... "Oh... that must have been painful."

The okonomiyaki chef's expression soured at that. "How else do you think
Ranchan managed to live through being _bit_ by the Orochi?" She
grimaced, and shook her head. "Sorry. Getting sidetracked. Back to
Herb... I was there... almost all of us were. At that point, Ranchan was
looking for a fight. He wanted to always be in battle. He seemed to
enjoy hurting himself." She shook her head again, in irritation. "But
that's not the point... when Ranchan finally caught up with Herb,
Shampoo and I were with him... Those Musk warriors are pretty tough, but
me an' Shampoo got 'em... Ranchan was having a tough time with Herb, and
in the fight, Ranchan used the Breaking Point on Herb's magic kettle."

Groaning, Akane rubbed her head. "That's stupid! Why did Ranma do
that!?"

Ukyou chided Akane, "At this point, we all still thought that you had
left of your own free will. Nabiki's investigations hadn't turned up
anything yet. Ranchan wanted to piss Herb off... At any rate, there was
still some magical hot water, which Herb got splashed with before it all
poured away. Then Herb had to destroy the ladle, too." Akane frowned,
and Ukyou added, "My guess is that he didn't want to run the risk of
having the ladle around if the kettle didn't exist to stop it anymore."

Relaxing somewhat, Akane nodded. "I guess that makes sense."

"Anyway... Ranchan won the fight by pulling some kind of reversed hiryuu
shouten ha, which smashed into Herb and knocked him out. Ranchan figured
it was over at that point, and Herb's flunkies didn't seem like much of
a match for him, so they grabbed Herb and ran." Ukyou leveled her gaze
at Akane across the teacup as she lifted it for another sip. "Which is
why Herb hates Ranchan. "

Akane nodded, asking hesitantly, "Do... do you think that he could train
me... so I could fight Ryouga?"

Ukyou bobbed her head vigorously. "Oh, I'm sure he can train you." She
smirked, waggling a finger towards the timid girl. "Ranma has an amazing
gift, Akane. When he wants to be, he's a better teacher than you would
ever imagine possible."

"So what was the Orochi, then? I saw the scar, but... how did that
happen?"

Face falling once more, Ukyou began, "It was the hardest thing I've ever
had to watch someone do... He... used the breaking point on the teeth
that had torn into him."

Akane blanched at that. She had no idea of the scale of the Orochi, but
if Ranma had fit in it's mouth, and it had nearly bit him in half...

*****************************

Genma gawked for a single moment before being galvanized into action.
Seeing his son get beat up was one thing, but watching his son get
chewed on was another thing entirely.

The girls huddled near Shinnosuke, as he gave another weak spasm.
Ignoring them for the moment, Genma grabbed a rock -- more like a
boulder -- and leapt into the fray. The monster blinked at him as he
flung, with all of his might, a stone weighing easily twice his own
weight, right into the gap that Ranma's weakening grip was maintaining.

The redhead unleashed a feral snarl, one hand gripping the base of a
tooth on the upper part of the Orochi's mouth, the other pressed firmly
into the gums on the lower part, trying to ignore the pointed tooth
goring her. The stone flew true, gagging the monster and making it open
its mouth a fraction while it choked.

Wasting no more time, Ranma screamed, "Bakusai-ten-ketsu!" And stabbed
into the upper tooth with the hand that had been gripping the tooth
previously. At that, the tooth that stabbed into her belly exploded,
sending serrated disks of dragon bone ripping through her in a line that
should have torn her completely in half.

Falling free of its mouth, she gave a grim smile of victory, as blood
from the dragon's own wound spilled out of it's howling mouth,
spattering on her and the surroundings.

She blacked out before Shampoo caught her, but the intense Breaking
Point training gave her enough strength to survive until Genma returned
shortly after, with enough moss to heal her, and Shinnosuke.

*****************************

Ukyou shook her head, continuing, "The scars disappeared from his girl
side, but stay on his male side. Oddly enough, his female side doesn't
get any new scars, either. Cologne thinks it has something to do with
the Orochi's blood..."

Akane blinked at that. "How the heck did you stop that thing, then?"

Ukyou shrugged. "Nabiki said she found a whistle in your room, with an
old pamphlet from Ryugenzawa... she blames herself for not showing up
sooner... but for whatever reason, there was a whistle that put the
thing to sleep, even with one of it's teeth blown up."

"Ranma fought a dragon..." The admiration in Akane's voice was apparent.

"Yep. You ever seen a boy like Ranchan punch a dragon out? It's pretty
weird. One of the heads is dozens of times his size, but he just jumps
up and -- whack! -- knocks it out."

Akane managed a giggle at that. "That does sound kind of weird. Is Ranma
still here?"

Ukyou rolled her eyes. "I don't see him, so I'm pretty sure he's
sparring with Ryu-chan."

Savoring a moment of peace, Akane falteringly said, "Ukyou... I... thank
you."

Ukyou smiled warmly. "It's good to have you around. Try and be more
cheerful. Konatsu's watching the restaurant for me, so don't worry too
much about me missing work." Her expression turned thoughtful for a
moment. "Tell you what. Being cooped up in here isn't much fun. Let's go
out, do a little shopping, and have some fun, eh?"

Akane nodded hesitantly, already having absorbed too much information to
ask who 'Konatsu' was. "O...kay... what if we run into..."

Ukyou waved a hand dismissively, saying, "No-one we run into can give us
trouble. If you're worried, we can grab Shampoo on the way. Ranchan and
Ryu-chan are nearby, and I'm sure that we can hold anything off until
they reach us."

Confused, Akane asked, "How would they know to reach us?"

Ukyou shrugged, and handed a scrap of paper to Akane. "This is Nabiki's
cell phone number. If there's a problem, call her."

Akane stared at the paper, not bothering to ask how Nabiki would contact
Ranma. "Oh. That's... good... let's go, then."

***

The weather was slightly chill for spring. Other than that, once she was
away from the oppressiveness of home, it might have been the day after
she... Ryouga... they... Akane forcibly focused her attention on the
building in front of her.

She never would have imagined it, but it was appropriate, somehow. With
the restaurant destroyed by Ranma and Herb's battle (gas leak, according
to the insurance company), the new building was neater, cleaner... but
most notably, it wasn't a restaurant.

Akane resisted the urge to laugh, as Ukyou walked towards the door.
"'The Cat Bookstore'?"

Ukyou snorted, "I get more customers, so I'm not going to complain. I
guess Cologne wanted a change of pace, or something. Come on. You can
ask her, if you want."

Once inside, Akane browsed briefly though the store. There were a number
of cozy nooks set aside where a group of three or so could squeeze in,
and leaf through their books. The atmosphere was soothing, with the
majority of the lighting being dimmed, unless you were sitting down.

Cologne herself sat on a big chair behind a counter near the door,
nodding absently as they walked in. Ukyou knocked on the counter to get
the old woman's attention. "Hey! Where's Shampoo?"

The old woman looked up from a book, then smiled somewhat when she saw
Akane. "Ah. I see you've returned. Shampoo mentioned that." Glancing to
Ukyou briefly, she said, "She's in the back." Turning back to Akane, she
climbed to her feet, and slid a small box across the counter. "This is
something that Ranma requested... if you could give it to him, I'd be
grateful." Ukyou disappeared into the back of the store, leaving Akane
alone with the old woman.

Akane accepted the box, not much larger than a jewelry case, and slipped
it into a pocket without opening it. "Um... thank you. And... thank you
for helping Ranma..."

Cologne sighed, shaking her head. "I wish I could see how little good I
was doing earlier." She clicked her tongue suddenly. "Still, there's
hope. Ranma has the most potential of any fighter of any generation that
I've ever seen..." Smiling softly, she said, "I wish I could have added
him to our tribe... it was awfully hard to convince Shampoo to leave him
alone. You're a very lucky young lady, you know."

Akane flushed, embarrassed, and momentarily shamed by her memory of
betraying him. "I... uh... don't know about that. Um. Ranma... I...
he..." she stammered, trailing off and uncertain of what to say.

Cologne raised an eyebrow at the display, then shook her head. "I
consider Ranma an ally to our tribe. But all great fighters need
something, Akane. Do you know what they all need?"

Akane shook her head, suspecting, but not knowing.

Leaning back into her chair, the old woman said, "Something to fight
for." She nodded once, giving Akane a knowing look. "Or some_one_."

The feeling of shame returned, leaving Akane to wonder if she was worthy
of Ranma. He had done so much... He had fought a dragon with his bare
hands, he had mastered a technique that must have caused him horrid,
staggering amounts of pain to learn, made a mortal enemy out of the
prince of some obscure Chinese tribe... And after all that, his reward
was some... girl who had spent the last seven months of her life with
another man?

This brought Akane to a worried realization. She was used goods. She
didn't even know him that well -- at least, what he had become was
foreign to her. He was... he was more than she deserved, that was
certain. But what could she do? She wasn't good enough for him, and he
wouldn't accept anyone who was. He still wanted her... but he didn't
know that she had... slept with Ryouga.

Would he still accept her if he knew that? She wasn't certain, but she
realized something else that frightened her more. Defying any pretence
of logic, or rationality... she loved him. And what did he feel for her?

Even if he loved her... could she burden him with someone like her?
Unclean, used... not even a good cook, and a lousy martial artist...
hell, she wasn't even cute, and she knew it. Ranma had told her that
repeatedly before she left. The only people who told her that she was
attractive were Kuno, who she didn't care about, and Ryouga, who she had
even less regard for.

Cologne tapped the end of her stick against Akane's head, jarring her
out of her reverie. "Something wrong, dear?"

Akane shivered, then shook her head, wondering if the woman could see
through her. "No... nothing wrong..." Changing the subject quickly, she
asked, "Why do you have a bookstore now?"

Cologne cackled, shaking her head. "You know," she commented. "Few
people understood why I had a restaurant in the first place."

Akane nodded, though she wasn't really surprised. Cologne was Chinese,
after all. It was only natural... she cut that line of thought off.

Leaning back in her chair, the old woman explained, "Most Japanese
expect us to run a restaurant, or a barber shop, or some simple shop
that sells oddities... And I wanted to present a facet of out lives that
wouldn't jar with Ranma's own too roughly. In addition, it served mostly
as a training facility."

Blinking, Akane stared incredulously. "Training... how?"

Cologne shrugged, drawling on, "Oh, you know. Teaching Shampoo to be a
good cook, how to act around men, and how to be attractive to Ranma...
we hoped." She shook her head sadly. "Once I saw Ranma gone, I realized
that I was grooming Shampoo to be something that had no more purpose...
I wasn't going to capture Ranma, and there was no reason to train her to
be a sex object. Heh. Ranma never seemed to be lured in by that anyway."

Waving a hand, Cologne indicated her surroundings. "So I changed our
image. The restaurant was destroyed anyway. I wanted to present a place
where Ranma could come to learn, or be alone with his thoughts... And a
place where I could train Shampoo to be a leader. Not a waitress."

Ukyou and Shampoo emerged from the depths of the bookstore, now seeming
ominously gloomy instead of cozy. The young Amazon's eyes flickered
across Akane only a moment before she picked up her pace -- not quite
rushing, but certainly moving faster -- and led the other girls out of
the former restaurant.

Once on the street, Akane resolved that, no matter what, before she made
any permanent decisions, she would at least try to pretend to have fun.
That was what the other girls wanted, after all.

***

Her attempts came across as weak, even to her. Ukyou sighed, stepping
out of an ice-cream parlor. "This isn't good, you know. What's bothering
you, Akane?"

Akane shifted her feet, uncomfortable at being outside, and exposed to
so many people, now. "Well... um... I... don't want to talk about it
here."

Shampoo frowned worriedly. "I think that maybe we should go watch Ranma.
Would that cheer you up?"

How could it? "Yeah, that'd be nice, Shampoo. I have to give something
from Cologne to Ranma, anyway." She managed to keep the bitterness out
of her voice well enough that the other girls didn't comment. Seeing
him... she knew she couldn't possibly deserve him, now.

Ukyou hummed to herself quietly, then began marching towards a nearby
temple, on the outskirts of Nerima. "Ranchan and Ryu-chan like to
practice up here, since it's got lots of room." Akane wordlessly
followed the other girls to the temple, noting a small crowd at the top
of the steps.

Shampoo was unsubtle in her method, simply elbowing her way through the
small knot of people, but they parted around her, leaving the three
girls room to peek in and watch the commotion.

Akane peered around confused, while Ukyou and Shampoo scanned back and
forth across the temple grounds repeatedly. There was a noise not unlike
a particularly heavy sigh of wind, then two figures revealed themselves,
flinging cloths over their shoulders to billow like great capes in the
wind.

Her gaze flickered across the newcomer for a moment. He was about
Ranma's size, and had a similar build, dressed in American combat
fatigues and a tank top, black gloves and close-cropped hair, completing
his image as some rough-and-tumble street fighter.

The real point of interest for Akane was Ranma. His Chinese pants a
marked contrast to the American fatigues of the other, with his pigtail
seeming to mock Ryu's short hair. His features were set in a somehow
serenely grim smile, matching the one Ryu leveled at him, his scars
prominently showing where his skin was exposed.

Akane felt her knees grow weak, watching him stand there, one hand
holding the large cloth over his shoulder as the wind tugged at it
playfully. Ranma looked like some anime hero... and Akane was beginning
to realize that he was just as far beyond her undeserving reach.

Tensing briefly, both men wrapped their cloaks about themselves, then
seemed... to fade... mottled transparent patches swept over them to
leave nothing visible to her. She blinked, as Shampoo shook her head in
admiration. The Amazon sighed, "Ranma's father created that technique.
It's amazing, really."

Akane watched, stunned. The courtyard appeared to be empty, but... at
the edges of her perception, something seemed somehow off. Much like her
misplaced memories, which were still trickling in. She fought down the
urge to choke, as a particularly intense recollection overwhelmed her.

*****************************

Ryouga's painstaking attention to detail when assembling his portable
stove was obvious, even to a casual observer.

Akane was not a casual observer. She watched him intently, drinking in
every aspect of him and storing the images away to review later, as he
carefully fitted the small pieces together. Smiling at the boy, she
studied his hands as he ignited the stove, then smiled brightly, like a
child with a new toy.

His smile faded into a look of concentration, as he rummaged around for
the small pot of water he had filled earlier. Finding it after a long
moment, he set it on the stove, the adjusted the flame higher. Nodding
in satisfaction, he turned to face Akane, grinning brightly when he saw
her watching him.

Relaxing against a tree, Akane continued observing him, as he prepared a
simple meal. She wasn't sure where Ryouga came up with the money to buy
the supplies he did, but she enjoyed spending time with him... even if
he never let her cook.

Smiling to herself, she decided to thank him again for his kindness
later than night.

And yet... there was that odd, nagging voice in the back of her head
that insisted that this wasn't right... that it should have been someone
else... not Ryouga.

*****************************

Shuddering, Akane glanced around, as Ranma and Ryu both uncloaked
themselves again, then bowed to one another. Ukyou shook her head
slowly, sighing, "Ranchan is such a great teacher... he taught Ryu-chan
the Umisen-ken in just a month."

Shampoo turned to study Akane for a moment, before turning back to the
pair of fighters, as they trudged towards the crowd side-by-side. "Ranma
trains. A lot. He's always sparring against someone, and if they aren't
good enough... or don't keep him busy enough... then he will go to fight
the mirror clone."

Akane couldn't tear her eyes from Ranma, as his met hers briefly, and he
smiled. A warm, gentle smile. It seemed almost foreign on his face, they
appeared with such rarity the last few days... "What..." Akane licked
her lips, finding them suddenly dry. "What is the mirror clone?"

Ukyou shook her head. "I'll explain in a moment." Ryu stepped in front
of Ukyou, and they hugged briefly before she pushed him away and
wrinkled her nose, stating, "Bath. Now."

Ryu grinned, and ran a hand through his hair, winking as he responded,
"With you? No problem!"

The okonomiyaki chef flushed, swatting Ryu on the shoulder, then handing
him a large towel-wrapped bundle. "Go on," she chided. "Get cleaned up,
will you?"

The boy walked away, while Ranma snorted, and fell into step beside him,
calling over his shoulder, "We'll meet with you at the cafe."

Akane found her tongue, once Ranma and Ryu were moving down the stairs
in tandem, seeming almost like brothers. Then she realized. Comrades.
Brothers in arms. What was Ranma preparing for that he trained himself
that intensely? Trained an ally that closely? Ryouga hadn't gotten much
practice, and in her estimation, Ranma could probably tear Ryouga into
little pieces with a minimum effort. Whoever Herb was, he must be
incredibly strong to push Ranma that far.

Ukyou sighed longingly, watching them depart. Shaking herself back to
attention, she turned to Akane. "Anyway... Ranchan was on a training
trip when he found a cursed mirror... a copy Ranma came out of the
mirror, but it was his girl side. He wasn't amused, but one thing led to
another, and he ended up with a copy of his boy side, too. So he agreed
to let them stay out of the mirror as long as they would help him
train... for a while, at least. They had to go back into the mirror
anyway, after a while. We were afraid he was going to keep bringing them
back just to spar... but Ryu agreed to train with Ranchan."

Shampoo nodded, moving down the stairs as the crowd began to disperse.
"We trained with Ranma, too... Ranma has a powerful enemy, so he needs
powerful allies. Great-grandmother taught Ranma a lot of our techniques,
to help him. It's a good thing, too... the Orochi would have killed him,
otherwise."

Stumbling down the steps, Akane winced. "Ukyou told me about that,
actually." She slowed, regaining her footing. "Ranma's expecting to have
to fight Herb? What about... Ryouga?"

Ukyou snorted, indignantly. "That worthless... Ranma could probably have
killed him, if Herb hadn't shown up. But yeah, Herb's going to come here
at some point; it's inevitable. That's why Ryu-chan came back to
Nerima... I asked him to stay with me for a while, so Ranma would have
allies nearby."

Akane frowned, focusing on that. "So... do you think Ryouga's coming
with them?"

Shampoo nodded, scowling. "Yes. And... We're all going to do whatever it
takes to keep him from you."

Nabiki wordlessly joined the trio at the bottom of the steps. Shampoo's
eyes flickered over the girl for a moment, before returning to her
passive scan of their surroundings. Akane shook her head. "Um... where's
Mousse? I thought he'd be ecstatic now that you weren't..." she trailed
off lamely, giving the Amazon an apologetic smile.

Shampoo's demeanor changed in a heartbeat, and she smirked, obviously
holding back laughter. Ukyou giggled, explaining, "Mousse beat up some
girl's pig, thinking it was Ranma, and then the girl insisted that he
had to marry her. She hauled him off, with Cologne's help. She said that
the girl was using Amazon law, and Mousse was an outsider to her
culture. Haven't seen him since, but Cologne seems to think that he's
probably happy."

The Amazon nodded quick agreement, while Akane fought down the urge to
snicker. The totally alien situation was bewildering, and she was torn,
not knowing if she should laugh, or cry. Finally giving in, she loosed a
giggle, wiping at her eyes. "He beat up a pig? And she wanted to marry
him for it?"

Nabiki remarked, "Oh, I've heard of weirder things. Not many, but I
have." Shaking her head, she gestured to a small cafe on the side of the
road. "Let's have something to eat while we're waiting for the boys to
finish cleaning up."

Ukyou shrugged, and flung herself into a chair at a vacant table. She
gestured vaguely to the building on the other side of the street.
"That's the bathhouse they use." A loud yell rang out from the
aforementioned building, followed shortly by several more distressed
cries. Ukyou simply rolled her eyes. "Ranchan seems to not pay attention
to using cold water in the public bath. I think he gets a kick out of
it."

Akane smiled softly, then shook her head, concentrating. The girls at
the table knew Ranma better than anyone else, most likely. Time to test
the waters... Ukyou knew, so... "Um..." she began, hesitantly. "Do you
think that Ranma would accept me after... being... with Ryouga?"

Nabiki stared over Akane's shoulder, towards the bathhouse. "I don't see
why he wouldn't... why do you ask?"

Ukyou flinched, remembering Akane's revelation earlier. Clearing her
throat, she leveled a stern glare at Nabiki, and spoke concisely, "Not
that, Nabiki. After Akane had _been_ with Ryouga." The stress on that
word was unmistakable.

Nabiki's composure cracked, and her eyes bulged as she stared at her
younger sister. After a few minutes, she smacked herself on the
forehead, clenching her eyes shut. "Of course. It was stupid of me to
think that it _wouldn't_ have happened," she grumbled. As a waiter
meandered in range, she snapped, "Tea. Now," sending him scurrying away
to do her bidding. Collecting herself somewhat, she mumbled, "Well. I
don't know... and Akane... I don't know that he needs to know, anyway."

Shampoo frowned, looking between Ukyou and Nabiki with suspicion.
Pulling her attention to Akane, she opined, "Ranma probably wouldn't
care. He might already have guessed. And lying to him would be bad."

Akane flushed, staring at the table in miserable frustration. "I... I
should tell him, but..." she trailed off nervously, raising her head to
shoot a pleading glance at Ukyou.

Ukyou shook her head, glancing behind Akane to check for Ranma's
presence. "I gotta agree with Shampoo on that one, sugar. Not telling
him is a bad idea, and we all know that it's Ryouga's fault anyway. I...
yeah, it's bad, but I can't see him holding it against you."

Head bowed, Akane managed a slight nod. "Then... I'll... tell him
tonight. Do... Am I good enough for him?"

Nabiki flinched visibly, and rested her face in her hands. Voice
muffled, she whimpered, "Kami... I'm... Akane, you're my sister. I'm
sorry about... how I've been, but this has been a really messy situation
for all of us. I... I want Ranma to be happy, more than anything else in
the world... and I think it takes you to make him happy. I shouldn't
have lashed out at you when you came back. I'm sorry... It's just..."
She lowered her hands, ignoring the waiter as he set a tea service on
the table and scuttled away again. Unmindful of the public atmosphere,
she wiped at her eyes, saying, "Ryouga's gone and fucked up
everything... he did a damn good job of screwing up our lives... I can
only think that if he hadn't gotten you with his love spell, that
everything would be so much better right now.

Shaking her head, she finished, "I want Ranma to be happy, and... It's
hard, because it wasn't _you_ hurting us; it was what Ryouga did to
you... I want you to be happy, too. If you and Ranma can... get
together... then I would be really happy."

Moved, Ukyou released a sniffle, and slipped from her chair to give
Nabiki a reassuring hug. Akane choked back a sob at the sight, moved by
Nabiki's words, and more that Nabiki, of all people, was reacting this
emotional in public. Gathering her confidence, she croaked out, "Thank
you, Big Sister."

Nabiki sniffled, smiling, and pushed Ukyou away gently. Ukyou reclaimed
her seat, while everyone concentrated on ignoring the stares they were
slowly accumulating. Ranma and Ryu arrived then, prompting everyone one
in the cafe to find something more interested to study. Ranma had a
reputation in the area, and it was best not to be on his bad side.

Ranma took a seat between Akane and Shampoo, while Ryu found a chair and
dragged it over between Nabiki and Ukyou. Akane fought back the urge to
scoot over the few inches separating her from Ranma. Something to fight
for, or some_one_, Cologne had said. Was she the one for Ranma? Her
fears flatly told her 'no way in hell,' while her hopes whispered...
'maybe...'

Would Ranma be upset when he found out? What could she do to make
herself worthy of Ranma?

A hand settled on her shoulder in a comforting manner, and she relaxed,
noting that it was Ranma, the hardness seeming to disappear from his
persona for the moment. She belatedly noted that a waiter was waiting
for her to say something, and mumbled, "Um... I'm fine, thanks." The
waiter nodded, eyeing Nabiki worriedly as Ranma declined anything aside
from tea.

Gathering her courage again, she turned to Ranma, and managed to
whisper, "Can you take me home?"

Ranma looked to her, then nodded. "No problem." Turning back to the
table, he smiled softly. "Akane and I are going home. We'll see you
later, okay?"

There was a general murmur of agreement, broken only by Ukyou's squeal
as Ryu goosed her. She glared at Ryu balefully, growling, "Try that
again, mister..." She let it trail off there, but everyone could see the
smile playing at the corner of her mouth.

Akane hurried a short distance down the street, unsure if the display
was for her benefit or not. Ranma exchanged a few words with Ryu, then
joined Akane, walking towards the Tendo home.

There was a brief, companionable silence, before Akane asked, "Ah...
Ranma?"

He glanced towards her, only a few steps to her side. "Yes?"

"Can you..." She faltered briefly, then restarted. 'Can you... ever
bring yourself to forgive me?' "Can you... train me?"

His eyes stayed on her for a moment, seeming to peer deep into her,
before he replied, "Yes. I'd be pleased to train you. When would you
like to start?"

She swallowed, cursing herself for not saying the words she wanted to.
"Whenever... you think I'm ready."

He nodded quickly, patting the bundled length of cloth hanging at his
waist. "Then tomorrow, I think. When you wake up, come to join me."

Akane nodded, then something occurred to her. "Ranma?"

"Yes?"

"What about school?"

His step faltered momentarily, then resumed. "Well, you've missed the
last seven months. I'd imagine that there's going to be a problem with
that. I suppose we'll have to find a tutor, or something."

Akane smiled at that. He had said 'we' and that counted for something.
It was just a matter of how _much_ it counted, and if that amount was
_enough_.

The rest of the walk was in silence, straining at Akane's willpower. She
again battled the constant indecision. Should she run? Should she try
and reach out to Ranma? She had to tell him... he needed to know.

Resolving herself, she made the decision. She would tell him.

Tomorrow.

***

Again, Akane woke to a feeling of nausea, and fled to the bathroom.
Kneeling over the toilet, she gasped a few times, heaving, as her body
reluctantly came to grips with the fact that it had nothing to give up.

She whimpered, after cleaning herself off. Was she sick? She didn't feel
ill. Chalking it up to waking to another unpleasant memory, she allowed
herself a brief soak before seeking Ranma in the dojo.

The redhead was meditating, seemingly calm and unaware of the outside
world. Akane knelt on the wooden floor in silent contemplation of the
person she would have as her lover, and an answer to one of her
questions came to her.

She could do something for Ranma -- maybe -- that would help restore the
balance between them. Maybe it would even be enough to overcome her
betrayal of her love... And Ranma _was_ her love, no single part of her
mind or heart nagging or doubting otherwise, as it had with Ryouga.

Shuddering, she pushed the thought of Ryouga away, not wanting to deal
with it at the moment. She wanted to think about the girl in front of
her. Come to think of it, why was Ranma a girl? She opened her mouth to
ask, then hesitated, deciding instead to simply enjoy her presence.

Ranma sighed softly, her eyes slowly opening, then stood, leveling a
stern gaze at Akane. "Eat. Then train. Come on, Akane."

Akane accepted Ranma's hand to her feet, and obediently followed the
smaller girl into the house. Akane's heart threatened to stop, as she
saw someone she hadn't seen since... her return. Ranma sat at the table,
unconcerned, while Akane tried to decide how best to approach the
situation. Finding her voice, she unsteadily warbled, "Ah... hi, Auntie
Saotome..."

Nodoka's perfect, serene smile twitched slightly, threatening to slip,
before it reasserted itself. "Hello, Akane." Akane. Not Akane-chan. The
young girl dimly noted several alarm bells shrieking in the back of her
head, shrill warning that things were, once again, going to get worse.
"Have a seat, I suspect that we have a lot to talk about."

Ranma's gaze hardened slightly, as she looked at her mother. She said
nothing, instead serving a healthy portion of Kasumi's cooking onto a
plate, and handing it to Akane.

Swallowing nervously, Akane took a seat, as close to Ranma as she could.
"Um... what did you want to talk about, Auntie?"

Nodoka's smile remained, mask-like, as she spoke, "So, where have you
been for the last few months? Ranma didn't tell me much."

Akane blinked at that, looking at Ranma for guidance. The redhead
squeezed one of Akane's hands beneath the table gently, reassuring her.
She faced her mother, seemingly impassive. "Mom, I don't think that we
need to have this conversation right now. Akane's recovering. I think
that's enough."

Her mask failing her, Nodoka stared at Ranma blankly. "What?"

Ranma said nothing for a long minute, slowly taking a sip from her
teacup. After taking a moment to sigh contentedly, she peered over the
rim of the cup at her mother, and pointedly stated, "I said, 'we don't
need to talk about this now.'"

Nodoka glowered briefly before recovering herself. Setting a small
compact on the table, she stood. "I see. Your father promises me that
you've become a man... but I'm afraid I don't see that in you right
now."

The girl smiled serenely, setting her teacup down. "I'm sorry to hear
that. Too bad you've already decided I've fulfilled the contract."

Nodoka's expression darkened in irritation, and she snatched for her
katana -- which was not there, Akane was relieved to note -- before
stomping towards the door. Pausing in the doorway briefly, she looked
back over her shoulder and shot back, "I expect you to respect your
mother more, Ranma."

Ranma snorted in response, serving herself breakfast as Kasumi's voice
wafted in, too indistinct to make out. Akane could make out Nodoka's
muffled and annoyed responses to Kasumi's voice before the elder Saotome
woman began to calm, but not the words of their conversation. Staring at
Ranma in confusion, Akane hesitantly asked, "What was that?"

Waving a hand dismissively, Ranma said, "Nothing to worry about right
now." She stretched across the table, snatching the compact up and
opening it with one hand. Akane watched, confused, as Ranma shook it a
few times, then nodded in satisfaction and snapped it shut.

"Um... sorry for repeating myself, but... What was that?"

Ranma smirked, then pocketed the compact and began eating. "Finish your
breakfast, and then I'll tell you."

***

Akane stood in the dojo in a ready stance, while Ranma walked around her
in a slow circle. Nodding decisively, he explained, "I don't want to
teach you how to fight... we simply don't have enough time for that.
No... your strength is decent, but we can't train your speed up enough."
He clicked his tongue, stopping to stand still in front of Akane. "I'll
train you properly later, if you'd like. What I'm going to teach you for
now is actually pretty simple. How to produce a ki attack."

The young Tendo blinked at that, surprised. Ranma was thinking that it
would be easier to teach her _that_ than to teach her how to fight? He
thought it was simple? "O...okay," she quavered. "What do I do?"

Ranma walked to Akane's side, and examined her critically. "Well, the
first thing we'll need to do is get somewhere were we don't have to
worry about structural damage. Come on, we're going for a bit of a
walk." Akane obediently walked behind her one-time -- and maybe
once-again -- fiance, studying the pigtailed martial artist intently.

***

After they reached a secluded wood, not far outside of Tokyo, Ranma
vaulted up to a tree limb at the edge of a small clearing, and peered
down at Akane. "First things first. Close your eyes, and concentrate."

Akane nodded, turning to one side, and doing as she was told. "Okay."

"Now," explained Ranma. "Gather your strongest, most driving emotion,
think of it as... floating around inside you. You want to gather it all
into a single point, and focus in at that point, between your hands. Can
you do that?"

Akane concentrated, focusing. Her most driving emotion? What was it? Was
there any one emotion that drove her? She searched, confused, then found
her answer, and drew on that emotion, gathering it as she was told.

"Okay," Ranma's voice called down to her. "Now concentrate, and squeeze
that force into as small a space as you can, then... when you think
you're ready, give it a name, and throw it out. It'll probably take a
few tries, but let's see how much of it you can get on your first try."

Beads of sweat slowly working down her face, Akane nodded. Give it a
name... focus... concentrate, and name...

There. She felt it, tingling on the edge of some inner sense. Her ki.
Now, focus... Focus on what? On the emotion that drove her. It crawled
through her, flowing like contaminated molasses through her veins. She
shuddered in revulsion, and lost her grip on it.

She opened her eyes, and turned a pleading stare on Ranma, who smiled
encouragingly at her. "C'mon Akane, you can do it. I know you can."

Gulping nervously, Akane took a deep breath to steady herself, and
squared off against a tree, readying herself again. Her hands rose
before her cupped around an empty point of space. The feeling came to
her with less resistance this time, seeming to seep through her like
some congealed taint, which she focused, trying to draw out of herself
and push into her hands. She felt it coalesce, like some tangible,
filthy substance.

Shuddering, she released her control. Relief flooded through her when
the sensation faded, and she looked up to Ranma nervously. His smile had
faded somewhat, and he studied her intently, motioning her to try again
with one hand.

Reaffirming her resolve, Akane turned back to the tree, and focused
again. This time it came easily, though the sensations made her flesh
crawl. Holding the feeling in her hands, she focused, concentrating the
sensation. She could feel it, but knew, somehow, that for all its
intensity, it wasn't _enough_.

She had to focus harder, reach deeper... fuel the power that seemed to
contaminate the space between her hands.

Ryouga.

Ryouga and Akane... together. What Ryouga had done to her. Her pathetic,
hopeless inability to fight back. Her weakness. She hurt everyone around
her, even the ones she loved. And she couldn't even tell Ranma that she
loved him, because of her betrayal...

The power and the sensation of uncleanness built, threatening to make
her reel and vomit.

She couldn't even handle the simple feat of focusing her strength. She
was pathetic...

Gritting her teeth she clutched at her control, trying desperately to
contain the force before her, seeming to seep into and taint her skin.

She gave herself to a man she didn't love. And Ranma was still there for
her. And she wasn't good enough for him.

A tear trickled across her skin, threatening her concentration as its
salty tang touched one corner of her mouth.

She was a failure, and couldn't even get this right. She wasn't even
able to tell Ranma the truth.

The building power before her was released suddenly, a cry flying from
her lips, seemingly of it's own volition, "Shishi houkodan!"

Knocked back by the force from the projectile, Akane dizzily noted
Ranma's arms supporting her, as he stared at the tree that had been her
target. Blinking, Ranma shook his head slowly. "Well. You picked that up
a hell of a lot faster than I would have thought possible." Smiling down
at the girl in his arms, he remarked, "I thought we'd have to try for a
couple of days before you got it."

Dazedly, Akane pulled herself to her feet, seeing the twisted,
splintered remnants of the tree, several shattered chunks of wood laying
on the ground about it... and the sense that flooded through her on her
success was not joy, or elation, but depression. She had proven herself
adept at the most pathetic ki attack she knew of, the one _Ryouga_, of
all people, used...

Lowering her head in shame, Akane pushed herself away from Ranma. "I...
I need to go home, Ranma. I'm done for now."

Ranma shook his head once more, eyeing the destruction. "Yes... I
suppose that would be a good idea."

***

Ranma closed the door behind him, glancing over his shoulder as a sudden
downpour managed to just miss him. He frowned thoughtfully, listening to
the rain, then shook his head and turned to face Akane, a bemused smile
playing across his face. She returned the smile weakly, noting that --
for once -- Ranma had managed to beat the rain.

Turning again, Akane felt her worries begin to return, and plodded up
the stairs to her room, deep in thought.

Akane's room was oddly comfortable, to her. Somehow it felt insulated
from the rest of the world, and the worries that the rest of the world
held. Ranma followed her, watching as Akane sat on her bed slowly.
Swallowing, she turned to Ranma, as he hovered in the doorway. "Ranma...
there's something you need to know..." She stared at her hands in
confusion, wondering idly why they were trembling so violently. Her
voice sounded oddly unstable in her own ears, barely louder than the
patter of rain against the roof beneath her window. "When... When I was
with Ryouga..."

Her voice suddenly disappeared, leaving her too weak to do anything
other than wheeze unsteadily. Ranma carefully closed the door, his
expression shifting to neutrality again. Sliding across the floor, he
sat on the bed next to her, and put a comforting hand on hers.

Swallowing, she found her voice, which was only a high-pitched, unsteady
whimper at that point. "I s-s-s-s-slept w-w-with him."

Ranma blinked, seemingly unaffected by the admission. After a long
moment of simply staring he stood, releasing Akane, and strode to the
center of her room. One hand came up slowly, palm facing the ceiling,
and he inspected it closely. "It's funny," he said, voice quavering. "I
guess I shouldn't be surprised. He probably didn't even wait long before
he took advantage of you, huh?"

Akane curled up into a little ball on her bed, sobbing, "I, g-g-g-gave
myself... I'm s-s-s-sorry, Ranma... I'm not... c-c-c-clean."

The man in the room, back still turned to her, seemed to convulse, as
though an invisible hand was striking him. Akane's mind dimly noted that
he was sobbing himself, and her unsteady hand found its way to her
nightstand. "I h-h-h-have some cold water..." she trailed off, hiccuping
into another sob.

The glass of water found its way into Ranma's hands, and he quickly
splashed himself, before dropping the then-empty container.

Akane found herself wrapped in a firm embrace, the redheaded girl
shedding tears enough to match her own. "It's... not your fault, Akane.
It's not your fault. I won't let that come between us." She repeated it,
soothingly, into Akane's ear, until she calmed slightly, comforted by
Ranma's refusal to abandon her.

Clinging desperately to the smaller girl, Akane hiccuped, "Ranma... I
l-l-love you."

Ranma's arms tightened around Akane, and the redhead seemed to sag, as
the tension holding her together drained. "Akane... Akane-chan. I love
you, too. And I'm never going to let something like that come between
us. I swear it."

Akane shifted herself until the embrace was more comfortable, with
Ranma's chin resting on Akane's shoulder, her mouth near Akane's ear.
Whispering, Akane pleaded, "Ranma... I don't ever want to lose you. I
don't... I don't even care about your curse anymore... Ranma, would
you... will you make love to me?"

Ranma's breath against Akane's ear suddenly stopped, and with it,
Akane's heart. Both began a moment later, equally unsteady. The redhead
pulled away, looking into Akane's eyes, as she stuttered, "A...
Akane-chan... are you sure? I mean... like this? Right now?"

Akane nodded, then leaned in to kiss Ranma's lips, tasting the salt of
her shed tears. Ranma kissed back, tentatively at first, then more
intensely as Akane encouraged her.

Pausing to consider, Ranma pushed away, and held Akane in her arms,
studying the girl before her intently. Akane's eyes stared into her own,
pleading desperately, and promising to return every feeling that Ranma
had fully, and more. The small, moist tracks on Akane's face shone under
the light, giving her an odd, almost ethereal beauty, as Ranma's vision
distorted from another tear of her own.

But was this something that was a good idea? And... like this? But...
Akane wanted it; wanted _her_... and more than that, wanted Ranma to
want her.

Ranma balked, wondering what damage would be done by continuing, but
then froze, seeing the wild, frightened light in the depths of Akane's
eyes. What damage would be done by abandoning her?

Gulping nervously, the last remnants of Ranma's angry mask crumbled
away, leaving her to squeak out, "Yeah, sure Akane. If you want it-"
Akane leapt into the redhead's arms, silencing any further words with an
exuberant kiss.

Breaking away from the kiss for a moment, Akane cursed her fumbling
hands, and their inability to remove her clothing fast enough. Her skin
burned with a need for Ranma's touch, craving that contact to wash away
memories of tainted sex with a purer and truer love. "I... need this,
Ranma. I need you."

Ranma nodded, not knowing how her skin seared the unclean feelings from
Akane, leaving her to soak in the achingly sweet luxury of Ranma's
touch. She whimpered softly, needing more, and touching Ranma back,
guiding her hands in a hesitant exploration of this new territory.

An agonizing eternity later, Ranma's top was completely removed and
Akane's own shirt was opened, leaving her free to taste of Ranma's lips
again, as they fell to the bed in a tangled heap, warm flesh lying
against warm flesh. Akane felt the signs of Ranma's arousal press into
her own chest, perversely exciting her, and bringing more urgency to
their kisses.

She was not able to drink deeply enough of her lover, and they broke
apart again, Ranma kneeling next to her, face flushed and eyes shining.

Ranma stared down at the girl -- woman, truly -- of her dreams. The one
she truly loved, was offering herself to Ranma, and promising to accept
her both as her and as a him. Accepting the curse without reservation,
willing to go this far...

She swallowed, seeing the raw, barely restrained passion in her lover's
eyes, as Akane's shallow gasping breaths caused her chest to heave.
Ranma pulled away from Akane, causing the fire in Akane's gaze to turn
to panic briefly.

After a moment of fumbling, Ranma managed to undo the ties of Akane's
pants, then slid them down -- too slowly for Akane's tastes. The larger
girl sat up, kicked off her pants and panties, then pulled Ranma down to
her, while the redhead slowly wriggled free of her own last articles of
clothing. Once completely unclad, Ranma again lay against Akane, kissing
away the salty remnants of her tears of worry.

As the two loved one another, Akane felt something deep inside her --
nothing as base as a sexual orgasm, but something deeper, fuller... more
meaningful. It welled up, seeming to fill her to capacity. She arched
her back, pressing herself into Ranma as completely as she could. Her
body's memories rebelled, as the unclean, dirty part of her mind was
busy indicating that this was _wrong_ and that she already knew the
right way to do it.

She reveled in replacing those memories with her current actions. And it
was lovemaking, not anything shallow, like mere physical pleasure. It
was _love_.

After a time that seemed without end... it was over. Exhausted, and
wholly sated, they collapsed into each other's arms, and slept
blissfully.

***

Akane woke, this time not to a feeling of nausea, but a feeling of
contentment. The redhead draped across her muttered something in her
sleep, and reflexively pulled Akane into a tighter embrace before she
fell back asleep.

---------


--
Haiku of my lament:

Forgive my spelling,
my U.S. education,
is the source of blame.


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