Hi all, this is a fic I've been thinking about for a while, and I finally
decided
to start getting it down on paper, so to speak. I'm a little unsure about a
few places in this so far, so I'd appreciate any comments anyone has, good
or bad. Whether you do or not, I hope you enjoy!
This fic is best read in a fixed pitch font, and is formatted (I hope) to 76
columns. I've been influenced by several things, including fics I've read
from the FFML (Ranma & Akane: A Love Story in particular), movies,
books, games, pretty much anything and everything. I hope I can weave
a decent story out of it all. Chapter 2 should be coming soon.
= = = =
T E N
A Ranma 1/2 Fanfic
By R. E.
(ranma_e@hotmail.com)
= = = =
The ground disappeared from beneath
And all that was solid is air
I tumbled end over end into my nature
And darkness appeared from below
Carrying voices of query, voices of theory
Dark voices, near me
All around and reason is drowned
By the sound of clamour
The pound of the hammer
Is confusion, illusion
Plunged into shadows and mist
I catch my breath, frightened
But I will not face death still unenlightened
~ Salva Mea ~
Faithless
CHAPTER ONE
"Birthright"
= = = = = = = =
Concentration. Focus. Control.
Akane's brow furrowed as she concentrated, keeping an unsteady balance on
the bar. The voices of her classmates floated effortlessly past her,
seeming to come from a thousand miles away.
"I mustn't fall... I mustn't fall..."
She swallowed, trying to ignore the pounding of her heart, which filled her
ears in a deafening rumble. She squinted her eyes, trying to find her
focus amongst the emptiness she found around her. A gust of wind raked
across her back, her skin prickling with goosebumps as an involuntary
shudder coursed down her spine.
"I mustn't fall..."
She was not entirely sure why she was so nervous. All she needed to do was
launch herself into a string of three backflips, then a final somersault to
dismount. Admittedly she wasn't the best gymnast in the school, but the
task at hand was not out of her reach.
Perhaps it was the rows upon rows of fellow Furinkan students watching her
expectantly, waiting for her to make her move. The bar and other gym
equipment was outside rather than in the gym for the exhibition, and she
could feel the whole school waiting for her to move. Whatever the cause,
the nervous sweat that covered her body as a result did not make her feel
any better about staying on the bar.
She struggled, in her desperation, to find something to occupy her mind; to
remember just why she had decided to join the gymnastics team. She would
much rather be at home training with her father. Her father taught her
well about concentration, focus and control. He made her listen carefully
to his lessons on stance and power.
He had often chastised her for her lack of grace and subtlety. Her
approach to the martial arts relied on pure power, he always said to her.
His lectures would invariably end with an exercise in grace and poise.
"Don't sacrifice agility and speed for the sake of strength and power," he
had often said. "You have to keep these things in balance."
Sighing, she closed her eyes and resigned herself to her fate. There was
no turning back. The voices around her fading into silence, she steeled
herself for a moment, and launched herself backwards.
It was an odd sensation that greeted her - opening her eyes, she found
herself hanging weightless, her view one of the bright blue sky. A bird
hung motionless in the air above her, its wings held open in mid-flap. A
strange kind of calm rushed through her body, her back muscles relaxing
as she felt herself drifting endlessly through a single moment.
She could do this. All her doubts were washed away in an instant of
revelation. She knew exactly what to do.
The sky rolled away from her, replaced by the horizon. She noticed the
blurred faces of her friends Yuka and Sayuri in the distance, offset
against the bar which appeared sharply in focus. She felt herself
tilting backwards and extended her hands upward, ready to catch the bar
as it spun toward her head.
It was at that moment that she felt it. She was unsure what it was at
first; it seemed like two hot needles had been jammed into her
shoulderblades. She tried to ignore the feeling, but it burned itself
into her brain and she found herself unable to think of anything else.
She could feel herself... being watched?
It was as though someone was staring at her, standing right behind her,
catching her in a private, secret moment. She felt her face flush with
embarrassment as a surge of adrenaline coursed through her body. She
could not fathom why but she felt profoundly unsettled. All thoughts of
the flip she was in the midst of disappeared into nothing, soaked up
by the dark feeling of paranoia that had suddenly stolen her mind.
A hot flash of fear surged through her muscles and she found herself
twisting to face the unknown threat, to try and catch a glimpse of the
eyes behind her back.
Just as quickly as it had appeared, the feeling vanished, leaving Akane
silently alone for the single moment before her shoulder crashed into
the bar, sending her tumbling down to the mat below.
* * *
Drifting - falling - impact.
Akane awoke slowly, a fuzzy haze hanging over her eyes and seeming
reluctant to leave. Vague memories of grassblades and vomit filled her
mind for a moment then faded, leaving a faint aftertaste of nausea behind.
She tried to sit up, but a searing pain lanced through her shoulder,
forcing her back down. She fell back onto her pillow, swimming in
dizziness and gripped the blanket, trying to stop the ceiling from
spinning quite so fast.
A few moments passed, and the nausea and dizziness faded. Once sure she
was not going to vomit, Akane dared to breathe again.
"Great. Just... great," she thought, staring at the sterile, white
ceiling. She must have made a complete fool of herself, falling off the
bar like she did, in front of the whole school.
How embarrassing.
She turned her head and looked out through the large window near her bed.
It was a sunny day outside, which meant she had not been unconscious for
long. That, or she had been unconscious for the whole night. She wasn't
sure, so she tried to put it out of her mind.
The thought suddenly crossed her mind that she was not in her bedroom. A
cold flash ran through her body as her addled mind tried to calculate the
implications of this fact. If she was not in her own bed, she was probably
in a hospital bed. If she was in a hospital bed, she was probably
seriously hurt.
If she was seriously hurt, she might not be able to compete in the
tournament.
She brought one hand to her forehead and closed her eyes, letting out a
long sigh. She would not get angry. She would not get angry.
Seeking a distraction, she turned her head as far as her angrily protesting
shoulder would allow, and tried to take in her surroundings. There was an
abundance of white - on the walls, the ceilings, the floor - and a faint
pine scent of disinfectant hung in the air. Ever since breaking a leg as a
child, Akane had disliked hospitals. Being in a hospital meant being in
pain, and this time was no exception.
A small table stood beside the bed, with a small lamp on it. A curtain
lay beyond that, pulled back to show the next bed was empty. Faint voices
caught her ears, and everpresent footsteps echoed up and down the hallway
outside her room.
She wondered idly if her father knew she was here. Probably not, she
reasoned, or he would be sitting by the bed already.
Letting out a sigh, she looked back up at the ceiling, and -- there it was
again. She glanced back over at the door nervously as once again she felt
a dark paranoia take her. She was being watched, she could feel it in her
bones.
She noticed a darkness out of the corner of her eye, and jerked her head
to look at it. Her shoulder protested loudly, but she ignored the pain,
her eyes coming to rest on a person standing in front of the window.
"Who are you?" Akane asked, squinting to make out details. The figure
stepped closer, revealing the face of a young girl. It was a soft face,
despite a long scar that ran down from one eye, across the cheek, and
halfway down the neck. Two blue eyes, piercing in their intensity,
stared back at her from beneath bright red hair.
The girl was shrouded in a thick black cloak that obscured her entire
body. Frigid air seemed to escape from beneath the black fabric and
brought a chill to the room, sending a painful shiver down Akane's spine.
The temperature in the room seemed to drop sharply, and Akane saw her
breath condense upon the chilled air as she let out a shaky breath.
"Who are you?" she repeated, watching the girl who seemed to be staring so
intently at her.
"You've dislocated your shoulder," the girl said at length, "The doctors
have re-set it, but you're still in pain."
"How do you--" Akane began, but stopped as she saw the girl step toward
her. "What are you doing...?"
The girl raised an arm, a small hand emerging from the cloak and moving
toward Akane's shoulder. Like her face, the girl's hand bore a scar. It
drew near Akane's arm, and Akane felt coldness spread through her.
Akane felt a tingling in her fingers as her arm went numb. She tried to
move, to stop this girl from doing whatever she was doing, but she found
she could not. Silent and motionless, she had little choice but to watch
the girl take hold of her shoulder and squeeze it.
A wave of tiredness overcame Akane as she felt an incredible pleasure,
a sensual warmth that radiated from her shoulder even as the rest of her
body turned cold. She looked up at the girl, trying to fathom her intent,
but could see only a gentle smile.
Her eyes closed, Akane curled her toes as a whisper of exquisite pleasure
swam through her body, washing away pain and leaving blissful relaxation
in its wake.
"You may feel a little weak," the girl's voice floated into her mind,
muffled as if spoken with a mouth full of cotton wool. "But your pain
is gone. Get some rest.
"After you wake up, your father will arrive to take you home. Don't tell
him about me; I'll find you tonight and answer your questions."
Akane tried to force herself awake, to reach out and grab this girl, to
make her explain what she had done, and who she was, but she could not
will herself to move. Her eyelids stayed closed, as if a great weight
were holding them down.
"You want to know who I am, I know," came the girl's voice, echoing through
Akane's consciousness. "My name is Ranma, and I'm here to protect you.
Get some sleep."
* * *
Little was said by father or daughter as they made their way back from the
hospital.
Akane awoke a few hours later and, just as Ranma had said, Soun arrived
shortly afterwards. He was worried sick, of course, but Akane's
reassurance that she was fine calmed him down.
What interested Akane was the fact that she wasn't just saying she was fine
for her father's sake - she genuinely felt fine. Better than she had felt
for a while, in fact.
She was not sure whether she had dreamed about her visitor, but the fact
remained that her shoulder did not hurt at all. The doctor had been most
surprised by this fact, apparently, when he checked on her before
discharging her. She could not explain it to him any more than she could
to herself.
All she knew was, she felt great, and that she should not tell her father
about it.
The sun cast a lazy orange hue across the path as they walked, their
shadows stretching out beside them across the path and partway up the wall
on the far side. Its rays infused all they touched with a gentle warmth,
holding off for a few minutes more the chill of the night to come.
"I'll have to make some tea," said Soun as they eventually neared the
Tendo dojo. "I don't know about you, but I'd love a nice warm drink."
"Thanks, Dad," Akane smiled at him as he opened the front door for her.
"I could have done that myself, you know."
"I don't want you straining yourself, Akane. You're still my little girl,
remember."
"I'll be straining myself in the tournament, Dad," Akane smiled, "I don't
think you'll be doing that for me too, will you?"
"You're still entering?" Soun asked, surprised, as he closed the door
behind them.
"Of course, Daddy. I'm not going to let something like this stop me."
"I just thought, with your injury and all..."
"I know how much this tournament means to you, Daddy," Akane said, turning
to look at him, "and you know how much it means to me. I'll be there, and
I'll prove how good our dojo really is."
Soun smiled at her, and placed his hand gently on her shoulder. "You make
your father proud, Akane. I -- oh! I'm sorry, your shoulder--"
"It's fine, Daddy," Akane replied. "It doesn't hurt at all."
"You should go and have a bath," Soun suggested. "The heat will be good
for your shoulder."
Akane smiled at Soun and nodded, deciding to cease her protests and let her
father take care of her.
* * *
Akane let out a deep breath as she slowly sank her body into the steaming
water of the bath.
"Ahhhh-ahhhh-ahhhhh..."
She felt the water rise around her, enveloping her in a soothing warmth
that radiated throughout her body, relaxing her muscles almost immediately.
She closed her eyes as she felt the warmth rise across her chest, slowly
lowering herself until she was at last sitting within the bath, the water
lapping gently at the base of her neck as it rippled from her entry.
Opening her eyes again she looked down at the water. She could see her
own indistinct form refracted by the surface of the water, through the
thin wisps of steam that drifted slowly upwards from it. Clutching her
arms together beneath her breasts, she tried to capture and hold as much
warmth as she could. She'd had enough of the cold for one day.
She took a deep breath of the moist, humid air around her and tried to
relax. The warmth felt good and she was determined to enjoy it. It had
been a long and confusing day.
She was unsure why she had made such a bad mistake during her flip; she
vaguely recalled a dark feeling of panic inside herself, but could not
for the life of her fathom what it was.
She had felt a similar sensation in the hospital, and again she did not
understand it. She knew that second time, however, it was somehow related
to her visitor. Her thoughts wandered back to the girl in black.
Did she really have a visitor, or was it just a dream? She seemed like a
strange person, this cloaked girl, this - what was her name?
"Ranma," she whispered to herself. "What an unusual name ..."
The more she thought about it, the stranger her memory of the girl became.
This girl, pale within a dark cloak, sharp blue eyes framed by fiery red
hair, but with hands that carried a touch like ice - she seemed unreal,
like some vision from beyond, a dream conjured by a semiconscious mind.
The girl asked not to be mentioned, and Akane had honoured that request.
Why?
Probably so her father would not think her insane, she reasoned. Still,
if this girl really was there, Akane owed her a debt of gratitude.
She reached up and rubbed her shoulder gently. It amazed her still to
feel no pain at all. The pain was like a thousand needles stabbed into
her arm when she was at the hospital - but now, it was gone. Surely,
that could not have been coincidence.
Thinking back, she remembered the icy chill that Ranma's very presence
had brought to the room. It seemed that the girl sucked the warmth from
the bed and replaced it with a sheet of ice. The hair on Akane's neck
stood up just from the memory.
Akane blinked, as she realized it was not just the memory; a shiver ran
through her as she became aware of the fact that she was freezing cold.
She ran her hands up and down her arms, fingers sliding against goosebumped
skin as she tried to infuse some warmth into herself.
A small gasp escaped her lips as she saw in front of her, where a moment
ago there had been nothing, the girl from the hospital room. She jumped
to her feet and instinctively covered herself with her arms, her shivering
forgotten.
The girl pushed back the hood of her cloak, revealing her face once more.
"I'm sorry about this, Akane," she spoke softly. "It was the only way to
talk to you alone."
"How did you ...?"
"Get in?" Ranma finished, folding her arms in front of herself. "It's not
hard to hide myself. Sit down, don't be embarrassed."
Akane nodded dumbly, and half sat, half fell back down into the water. She
felt an instinctive urge to defend herself, but somehow realized she did
not need to.
"How do you know my name?"
"I know a lot about you," Ranma answered, looking down at Akane. "You are
Akane Tendo, sole heir to the Tendo school of Anything-Goes Martial Arts.
You are sixteen, an only child. Your mother died twelve years ago, and
your father raised you alone, teaching you the family art so that you
would carry on after he was gone."
Akane swallowed, a nervous sweat forming on her forehead. How on earth
did this girl know these things?
"That's all true," Akane agreed, eyebrows raised, "but that's not what I
asked."
"No, it's not," Ranma admitted, with a sigh. "I have a lot to tell you,
and I don't have a lot of time. In a few moments your father is going
to come in and tell you to go downstairs, and I don't plan on being
around when that happens. So, I'll try to be brief."
"Okay," said Akane, not bothering to ask how Ranma knew that.
"I've been watching over you for a few days now, Akane," Ranma continued.
"I know what I know from watching you and those around you."
"Why? What do you want from me?"
"I don't want anything from you," Ranma replied, with a sigh. She furrowed
her brow, deep in thought. "Damn it, I wish I had more time."
"I owe your family a great deal," she continued after a moment's thought,
"and I have a duty to perform. You're in danger, Akane, and it's my job to
protect you from that danger."
"Danger? What danger?"
"It's a long story, and I don't have time now. There's so much I want to
tell you - but, now I have the chance, I can't think how to begin. I have
to go, but I'll meet you tomorrow, in your dojo. Perhaps it would be
easier to explain if ...
"Yes," Ranma added, after a moment, "Bring Soun, too. Tell him I said
hello."
"But--" Akane tried, but was interrupted as Ranma suddenly vanished. She
blinked in surprise, her eyes flitting from the edge of the bath to the
window and back. The window was still closed, and the door had not opened.
Where did Ranma go?
A thin haze of steam rose up across her view, and Akane realized that
once again, the room was warm. Clenching and unclenching her fists as
sensation returned to her fingers, Akane heard a knocking behind her.
"Akane?" came her Father's voice through the door.
"Yes?" Akane replied, her eyes still fixed on the spot Ranma had stood in.
What on earth was going on? Who was this girl?
"Akane, please come downstairs," Soun said, opening the door just enough to
speak through it. "I've made a nice warm drink for you, and I would
like to hear what happened today."
"Okay, I'm on my way," Akane replied, and the door closed. She stared for
several moments, her eyes fixed on that one spot. There had to be some
explanation for all of this.
"Ranma," she whispered, again. "Such an unusual name ..."
* * *
"So," Soun said, as he sipped his second cup of tea. "What do you
remember?"
"Not a lot," admitted Akane. "I was distracted, and I lost my focus."
She sighed softly. Her father was in teaching mode, and obviously thought
a lecture was what she needed.
"And you ended up nearly injuring yourself," Soun added, with a solemn
nod. He fixed his eyes on the top of his teacup, and spoke without
looking up. "You made a very simple mistake. What did you do wrong?"
"I shouldn't have been distracted," Akane answered, staring at her own tea.
"Correct," Soun nodded. "You cannot afford to lose focus, Akane. Focus
and mental discipline are of the upmost importance."
Akane stared into her tea, letting the lecture her father had begun wash
over her. She had heard these words before, many times, and she probably
would hear them many times more. She felt a flare of anger for a moment;
she would not have lost her focus if it wasn't for ...
"Dad," she spoke suddenly, interrupting him.
He fixed her with an irritated glare. "I did not raise my child to
interrupt her father, or her teacher."
"I'm sorry," Akane apologised, looking up at him. "But I have to tell you.
Something happened while I was on the bar. It was ... I couldn't stop
myself-"
"What was it?" Soun asked, curious.
Akane paused for a moment, choosing her words.
"Does the name Ranma mean anything to you?"
"Ranma?" Soun looked at her, surprise flashing through his eyes for just a
moment.
"Hrmm," he rumbled thoughtfully, taking another sip of his tea. "I see.
She's talked to you, then?"
"Yes," Akane replied, utterly confused. "You know her?"
"Far too well," Soun replied with a sigh. "Far too well."
"Who is she?"
"An ... acquaintance of the family. If she's here, that means ..."
Akane looked at her father as he trailed off into silence. The look on
his face was a combination of deep thought and concern. She had seen
that look before, whenever he watched her compete in a tournament. He
kept a keen eye on her during her competitions, and she felt herself
stiffen under his gaze.
She waited for him to speak, but he remained silent. Several moments
passed before she spoke.
"She wants you to come with me to the dojo tomorrow."
He nodded, another thoughtful rumble his only response. He did not look
surprised in the least.
"What does this all mean? Everyone seems to know what's happening except
me!"
"Akane," Soun sighed, placing his cup on the table. "You must understand,
being a member of this family carries with it responsibilities that you
should not be burdened with as a child. This is one of those
responsibilities."
"I'm not a child, Daddy," Akane replied, growing irritated. "You know
that."
"I do know that," he nodded glumly, "that, my dear daughter, is the
problem."
"I don't understand ..."
"You will, Akane," Soun replied sadly. "You'll soon understand all too
well. Tomorrow, we will go and talk with Ranma."
"All right," Akane nodded, glad to finally be getting somewhere.
"But tonight," Soun continued, reaching over to grasp at Akane's hand,
"You will kiss your Dad goodnight, and you will go to bed, and you will
get a good night's sleep."
"But--"
"No buts, Akane," Soun looked at her without anger or irritation. "No
buts, tonight."
Akane looked down at her father's hand, then back up at his face.
Wrinkles appeared where before there had been none, and her father
seemed to have aged a decade in a moment. She placed her other hand
atop his.
"All right," she agreed. She leaned over, kissed him on the cheek,
and stood. Waiting until tomorrow would not hurt. Turning, she left the
room and walked up the stairs, leaving her father alone with his thoughts.
"Not my Akane," Soun whispered, a tear running down his cheek. "Please,
not my little girl."
Neither father nor daughter slept that night.
* * *
"Wait, Akane," Soun called, pulling his daughter back. "Let me go first."
Akane looked back at her father then nodded, stepping aside to let him
take the lead. He stepped up to the doors of the dojo and stood before
them for a moment, motionless, before eventually sliding them open and
stepping inside.
The dojo was cold inside, and Soun's breath changed to mist upon the cool
morning air. He stepped cautiously, looking left and right at each step.
Akane followed him in, held back by his arm held across her shoulders.
"Stay behind me," he instructed. She nodded, silently.
Sunlight filtered weakly in through the rice-paper doors on the other side
of the dojo, but they did little to warm the floor they illuminated.
"It's too cold," Akane commented, looking around her. Condensation
had formed along the blade of a sword that hung from the wall.
"Yes," agreed Soun. He glanced over at the dojo shrine and felt his
resolve firming. He stopped in place, near the centre of the dojo,
and spun around. "Show yourself, Ranma!"
Akane jumped a little at his sudden shout, and whirled around toward the
door they had entered through. Standing before it was Ranma, shrouded
completely in black.
Ranma stepped forward into the dojo, closing the doors behind her. She
turned to face the shrine and bowed.
"You have no right to bow to that shrine!" Soun bellowed, a cloud of
breath floating up from his mouth at his outburst. "You have no right
to be in this dojo!"
Akane stared at her father, shocked at his outburst. She had never, in
her entire life, heard such from her father. She glanced over at Ranma,
to see her reaction.
Ranma, for her part, lowered herself slowly to one knee, and pulled back
the hood of her cloak. Hair spilling down over her face, she looked up
long enough speak, "I'm sorry. I meant no offense."
"It's far too late for that," Soun fumed, watching as Ranma again lowered
her gaze to the floor.
"My life is in your hands; take it if you will," Ranma replied, lowering
her head further to expose her neck.
"Empty words," snorted Soun. "You know as well as I do that they mean
nothing."
"The spirit is willing," said Ranma, softly, "but the flesh is weak."
Silence filled the dojo for a moment as Soun chose his words. Ranma
did not move, and Akane was too dumbfounded to speak.
"Why have you returned?"
"To warn you," Ranma replied.
"Of what?" Soun asked, already knowing the answer. He sighed, and turned
away. "Take off that damn cloak before you answer, it's freezing in here."
"As you wish," Ranma nodded, and reached up to unfasten the cloak. As she
raised herself to stand, it came loose around her neck and flowed off her
body, pooling in a black puddle of fabric near her feet. Almost
immediately, the warmth seemed to return to the room.
Akane stared at Ranma, for the first time getting a glimpse of what lay
hidden beneath the cloak.
The first thing Akane noticed was a large sword strapped tightly across
Ranma's back. She swallowed, wondering how such a large sword was
concealed so completely beneath the cloak.
Ranma stood a little shorter than Akane, a traditional Chinese shirt of
red silk that seemed several sizes too big was draped over her body, the
sleeves rolled up to the elbows, exposing well-toned forearms. She
reached back and slid the strap holding the sword to her over her head,
and lowered the sword to the ground, resting it upon the cloak.
Akane noticed a long dragon tattoo that ran the length of Ranma's left
forearm and for a moment wondered where a girl as young as Ranma would
find a tattoo artist willing to tattoo her.
As well as the shirt, Ranma wore simple silk pants but no shoes. Her feet,
like the rest of her body, were pale and delicate in appearance, while at
the same time issuing a feeling of sturdiness.
Atop her head lay a thick head of cherry-red hair, that dangled down to
her waist in a thick ponytail. It was matted and dirty, but Akane was
nonetheless stunned by its radiant colour.
Scars ran across Ranma's skin in various places; the two she had already
noticed, on the cheek and the forearm, were only the beginning. Scars
riddled the redheaded girl's body, mostly tiny scars that were not
really noticable, but there were several larger ones.
Akane wondered what sort of life this girl led in order to receive so very
many scars. She glanced up at Ranma's face and saw the girl was watching
her, noticing Akane's examination of Ranma's body. Akane flushed, and
looked away.
"Well?"
"Well what?" asked Ranma.
"What did you come to warn us of?"
"Hunters," Ranma answered the question, surprised that it was being asked.
"They know about the Tendo heir, and they are looking for her."
"Hunters?" asked Akane. Her question went unanswered.
"How did they find out?"
"I don't know," Ranma answered. "Their techniques are more sophisticated
these days, I don't understand half of the stuff they use to track me."
"If you know they're tracking you," Soun said, turning to face Ranma again,
"why on earth did you come here? Are you trying to lead them to Akane?"
"Lead who to me?"
"I had no choice," Ranma replied. "Even if I stayed away, they would find
her. She stands a far better chance with me than without me."
Soun snorted. "History suggests otherwise."
"WHAT ARE YOU BOTH TALKING ABOUT?!" Akane bellowed,
frustration in her voice. She had had just about enough of being
ignored.
Soun sighed. "Tell her who you are."
Ranma turned to face Akane directly and bowed formally.
"I am Ranma Saotome," she said, still bowing, "of the Saotome clan."
"Saotome clan?" Akane asked, bewildered.
"For nearly nine hundred years now, your family and mine have shared a
common enemy. We don't know who they are, but they hunt us without mercy.
I don't know how, but they've found out about you. I must take you from
this place before they find you."
"What are you talking about?" Akane asked, completely bewildered.
"I know it sounds strange, Akane," Ranma replied, sadly. "We don't have
a lot of time. We must go far from here. You and your family are in
danger as long as you stay here."
"I can't leave!" Akane replied, angrily. "I'm not going to just leave my
family like that!"
"Akane," Soun interrupted, placing his hand gently on her shoulder. "I
hate to say this, but it is the only choice."
"Dad?" Akane asked, turning to stare at him. Surely her father could
not agree with such a bizarre statement?
She stared at him for a moment, and could see that he was not joking. She
looked back and forth a couple of times, before angrily stepping away from
both her father and Ranma.
"I'm not going to run away just because you tell me to!" she shouted,
furious. "I'm not some weak, cowardly girl who can't take care of herself!
If anyone tries to hurt me OR my family, they'll regret it!"
Ranma stepped forward after Akane as the young girl stormed out through the
far door, only to be stopped by Soun's outstretched hand.
"No," Soun said, shaking his head. "It is best to give her some time, let
her think about this. It will do you no good to talk to her while she's
angry."
"She must accept it," Ranma countered, "the sooner, the better. We have
two days, three at most, before they find us here."
"I know my daughter better than you, Saotome," Soun answered, spitting the
last word as an insult. "Leave her be. Talk to her again this evening.
Leaving her alone until then would be the best idea."
"I won't leave her side," Ranma bristled. "Never. I owe you more than I
can ever hope to pay, Soun, but I can't honour that request."
"If you'd left Kimiko alone in the first place," Soun growled, "you would
owe me nothing."
"Nothing I can do will ever bring her back," Ranma sighed, looking down at
the tatami mats on the ground. "But I still have the power to save Akane
from sharing her fate. Let me redeem myself; let me save her."
"I have no choice," Soun replied, turning to face her. "Know this; if my
girl dies, I will find you, and I will destroy you. I promise you that."
With that, Soun walked away, following his daughter through the far door.
Ranma stood alone for a moment, silent, before reaching down for her sword
and cloak.
"I won't fail," she said softly, looking over at the dojo shrine. "Never
again."
* * *
Akane growled angrily as she unleashed a flurry of kicks upon the training
doll. How dare this Ranma come into her life, demand she drop everything,
and run away from her family?
She had trained for years, following her father down the path of the family
school. When her father died, she would take over, and lead the school. It
was what she had always imagined herself doing, and she would be damned
before she would let some stranger barge into her life and ruin everything.
She let out a cry as she swung a high kick past the dummy's head; a dull
thud answered her as the head broke off and tumbled to the grass below.
Sighing, she kneeled and picked up the broken head. Another dummy broken.
Training. That was all she had ever done. Training for what?
Her father seemed so intent upon her learning the family art. She knew he
wanted her to teach the school's classes once he was no longer able to. Was
that the only reason?
Did he know Ranma would come? Had he been trying to prepare her, all these
years?
The regional tournament was coming up in three days. She had been training
hard, harder than usual, for that tournament. Her father wanted her to
win, to show everyone that the Tendo school was the best, so that they
would want to attend it.
That had been her target, her goal. But what beyond that? The next
tournament? The tournament after that?
Did she want to spend her life doing that?
She did not know. She did know, however, that she wanted to stay with her
father. She was driven by a need for strength, to keep and protect her
home.
That was why she trained. Not for tournaments or prestige, but to help
her home.
She thought back to her father's argument with Ranma that morning. Her
father seemed to despise the girl, but Akane did not know why. Her
mother's name was mentioned, but Ranma was not old enough to really know
Akane's mother.
Ranma, unlike her father, did not seem angry. She seemed stiff, formal,
apologetic.
Akane thought back to Ranma's face. Those blue eyes, deep and expressive,
showed a concern and desperation that had surprised her. She failed to
understand why this Ranma, this person who had never met her, could be so
concerned for her.
Standing, she balanced the head of the dummy upon its shoulders, and turned
away. She was angry at this girl for barging into her life and disrupting
everything, but her curiosity at the strangeness of it all was too strong
for her to stay angry for long.
There seemed something strange, unnatural, about Ranma. Her very presence
sucked the warmth from the room, but at the same time, the very air around
her felt charged, somehow. The hair on the back of Akane's neck stood up
at the memory as a shiver prickled her skin.
Even when she was standing near, Ranma seemed only half-present, as if she
would be gone if one blinked or gazed away for just a moment. She had in
fact demonstrated her knack for that very trick on several occasions.
Akane could not put her finger upon it, but there was something uncanny
about this girl. Normal people did not appear and disappear like she did,
normal people did not bring prophecies of doom on an ordinary Tuesday
afternoon.
Sighing, she decided it was a mystery she could not solve while beating up
a training dummy, and chose instead to have a bath before dinner.
* * *
A gentle dripping sound was Akane's only companion as she relaxed in the
water. She stretched her legs out beneath the water's surface, letting
her head rest back on the side of the bath, her eyes closed as she let the
water envelop her body.
Steam filled the room from, blanketing Akane's face in warmth as she
smiled. It was so relaxing in the bath, she could always forget about her
worries as she soaked away the evening.
Almost always, anyway.
Thoughts continued to dart through her mind as to what she should do. Her
father had said nothing to her of the incident in the dojo that morning,
and Ranma had disappeared again.
Her anger had all but disappeared now, replaced by a burning desire to know
exactly what the heck was going on. Everyone seemed to be talking about
her and her life, and she was the only one who did not understand.
She had spent a short time looking for Ranma, but knew it was futile. The
way she seemed to be able to hide herself, Ranma would only show herself
when it suited her.
So, Akane tried to put the entire affair out of her mind while she relaxed.
Once again, her bath was interrupted by a sharp sensation of cold that
filled her entire body. She frowned in irritation. No matter how curious
she was, she did not like having her bath interrupted. Espescially two
days in a row.
"You always choose the worst moments to appear," she snapped. "Can't you
let me finish my bath?"
"You're a hard girl to find on her own," came the answer, accompanied by
a smile Akane did not have to see to know was there. "Bath time is just
about the only time I can get you on your own when you're not destroying
something."
"Not quite so melodramatic now, are we?" Akane observed, ignoring the barb.
She lifted her head and opened her eyes. Ranma stood, in her everpresent
cloak, by the bathroom door. "No warnings of death this time?"
"I thought I'd try dropping the formality a bit," Ranma countered. "Your
father appreciates it more than you, I think. I wanted to show you the
real me."
"He didn't seem to appreciate you or your formality earlier," Akane
commented, allowing her barriers to drop a little, "what was that all
about?"
"It's a very, very long story, Akane," Ranma replied with a sigh. "There
will be plenty of time to tell it on the road."
"You seem pretty confident I'll come with you. What makes you think I
can't handle whatever's coming myself? If it's even coming at all, that
is."
"Confidence always was my strength," Ranma admitted, the corner of her
mouth turning upwards in a wry smile.
"It's only fair to you that I tell you some more about me, and your
family. I think you'll agree that leaving is the best idea."
"I'm glad you've finally decided to let me in on the big secret," Akane
noted sourly. "Everyone seems to know what's going on but me."
"Before that, I want to ask you a very important question."
"What?"
"Mind if I join you in there? I haven't had a good warm bath in years."
* * *
Akane sat in silence, watching the girl across from her relax luxuriantly
in the water.
Ranma had offered a closer view of her body as she undressed and rinsed
herself with cold water, and Akane had found herself staring.
Akane was stunned by the number of scars lacing her body, and was surprised
as well to see how many tattoos Ranma had across her body. There were a
few swords, dragons, faces, kanji, and a few other symbols Akane did not
recognize.
Eventually, her curiosity got the better of her. She cleared her throat
gently.
Ranma opened one eye and turned it to look back at Akane. "Mm?"
"Umm, you said you were going to tell me about my family."
"Oh, I'm sorry," Ranma replied, sitting up straight. "I'd just forgotten
how wonderful this felt. A good, warm bath is good for the soul, don't you
think?"
"I guess..." Akane replied, half-heartedly.
Ranma smiled at her, her eyes sparkling with energy. Akane got the
distinct feeling that Ranma did not get many chances to relax in situations
like this. She felt something of a kinship to the girl, knowing all too
well how it felt to have little time aside from your obligations.
"Well, I can understand you're curious. I know I would be, if I were in
your place.
"There's so much I can tell you, it's hard to know where to begin.
Although," Ranma paused, looking over at Akane, who was still staring, "you
seem more interested in me than your family."
"S-sorry," Akane stammered, taken by surprise. She looked away. "I didn't
mean to stare."
"It's okay," Ranma replied, laughing a little. "I don't mind. It's not
often you see a body like mine, I guess. Although, it's usually boys who
stare, not girls."
"It's not like that!" Akane yelped, splashing Ranma as she sat up in
violent denial.
"I know, I know," Ranma replied, waving a hand to dismiss Akane's protests.
She smiled again, kindly. "I'm just teasing you."
"Honestly," huffed Akane. "I can't believe you said that."
"I'd be pretty curious about all this," Ranma remarked, looking down at
herself, "if I didn't see it every day. Well, where can I begin?"
"My father," she said at length, turning to face away from Akane, "is
here."
Ranma pulled her flowing hair over one shoulder, exposing a small face
tattooed just below the back of her neck. She turned back to face Akane.
"He died protecting me, and ever since, he's watched my back."
"He died for you?" Akane asked, stunned by the nobility of it. "What was
his name?"
"Genma," Ranma replied, nonchalantly brushing her hair back over her
shoulder. "He was my best friend and my worst nightmare, all rolled in to
one."
"Your worst nightmare?" Akane asked, wondering how someone who would die
to save their daughter could be bad.
"Well, he saved my behind a few times, I'll give him that," Ranma said,
offhandedly. "Truth of the matter is, though, he got me IN to bad
situations far, far more often than he got me out of them."
"You shouldn't disrespect him like that," Akane grumbled. "He saved your
life, you should be grateful."
"Oh, I was, I was," Ranma replied. "Don't get me wrong. I love him, and
I'd give anything to see him again. I'm just not going to disrespect his
memory by forgetting all the stupid things he did. It was a part of who
he was."
Akane blinked, trying to fathom the logic behind that.
"This," Ranma said, indicating a curving dragon that spiralled down over
her right shoulder and along her upper arm, "is Garyoutensei. I've carried
him since my father died."
"What do you mean?"
"Garyoutensei," Ranma replied, pointing over her shoulder at the pile of
her belongings near the door, "is my sword. My father gave it to me as
he died, and told me to keep it with me as long as I lived."
"A finishing touch, appropriate name for a sword, I suppose."
"He told me he got it from a dragon," Ranma explained. "He always did have
a flair for the dramatic."
"He certainly sounds like his daughter's father," Akane noted.
"The story he told me was that he made a deal with a dragon spirit. He
asked to be the greatest martial artist in the land, and the spirit
granted his wish. In return, however, the dragon commanded him to take
the sword, and carry it with him always. It was to become a family
heirloom. It seemed like a pretty good deal to him, so he took the sword,
and the deal was sealed."
"That's quite a story," Akane said reverantly, marvelling at the
romanticism of it all. "Your father sounded like quite the warrior."
"I think," Ranma noted, "the truth was probably a bit different. I think
he paid a fortune for it from some merchant while utterly, utterly drunk.
He always did like his alcohol."
Akane looked at him sourly.
"But," Ranma said, holding both hands up in an appeasing gesture, "I wanted
to always remember the story, so I had the dragon spirit tattooed on my
arm."
"And this," Ranma continued, standing so her waist emerged from the water,
"is a mark I was given the last time I told the story of how I was first
given Garyoutensei."
Ranma pointed at her stomach, where a small, individual kanji was tattooed
above a large horizontal scar across her stomach.
"Ten?" Akane asked, looking at the kanji. "Why that kanji?"
"It's a long story," Ranma replied, lowering herself back in to the water,
"but apparently, anyone who carries that mark is invincible and immortal.
It doesn't sound like a bad mark to have, does it?"
"I guess not," Akane admitted, watching the kanji sink below the water's
surface. "You really are a ... a warrior, aren't you?"
"Yes," Ranma nodded, her face becoming serious. "I am."
"Tell me something. Why are you so sure I have to leave my home?"
Ranma sighed, all traces of the smiles and laughter draining from her face.
Her eyes changed, the sparkle disappeared as the pearls of blue seemed to
grow old the moment Akane asked the question.
"If you don't leave this place, you'll die, Akane."
"How do you know that? What makes you so sure?"
"Your mother was just like you," Ranma explained. "She and your father
used to live in Okinawa together. I came to them, just as I've come to
you, and explained that she needed to come with me."
"You knew my mother?" Akane asked, eyes widening.
Ranma nodded sadly. "She didn't want to leave; she was proud of her own
strength and thought she could handle anybody who challenged her. She was
wrong.
"They came at night, a swarm," Ranma continued, "and before I knew what was
happening, she was fighting four of them at once. I tried to help her, but
it was too late. She was dead before her body hit the floor.
"I knew I had failed her," Ranma said, choking on the tears that came to
her face, "so I did the only thing I could to help her; I hid her young
daughter, so they at least wouldn't find her.
"Your father would not even speak to me afterwards, but he did listen to me
when I told him to move away from Okinawa. That, at least, he understood.
"He hates me for failing to save your mother, but he learned that day to
listen to my warnings. I told him I would be back for you if they ever
found you. He hid you well. I'm lucky to have found you before they did."
"My mother," Akane whispered, bringing a hand to her open mouth in shock.
She did not remember much of her mother; she was only four years old when
her mother died. She remembered only her face, her smiling face - the face
she imagined twisted in agony as she was murdered.
"She was a beautiful, wonderful woman," Ranma said softly, seeing the grief
take Akane's face. "She was strong, talented, proud. It was her pride
that doomed her, Akane, which is why you need to swallow yours for the
moment."
"You could have saved my mother?" she asked, looking up at Ranma, tears
streaming from red-rimmed eyes.
"If I could give my life so she would live again, I would in an instant,
Akane," Ranma offered, looking into Akane's eyes. "I can't do that, but
I can stop history repeating itself. It's up to you, I can't make the
choice for you."
"You want me to ... just run? I don't run away from a fight!"
"There will be opportunities for justice," Ranma said, looking down into
the water. "But you need to learn more about your enemy. If you try to
fight now, you'll just die; a meaningless death."
"You'll teach me?"
"Yes, Akane. I'll teach you."
"There are so many things I don't know about you," Akane sniffed, looking
down for a moment, "how old are you? Where is the rest of your clan? How
did you heal my shoulder?"
"You'll find out if you come with me."
Akane wiped tears from her eyes, and looked at the girl before her.
Gritting her teeth, she made her decision.
"All right. I want to talk to my father before I leave."
= = = =
T E N
= = = =
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