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Title: The Countdown to Matrimony (Ch. 3 of Part 5)
Anime: Ranma 1/2
Author: Denise Cameron aka Elena99
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Chapter Three: Tendo School of Indiscriminate Grappling

"Because we can't say the words yet,
Quietly, I touch your hand!
Quietly, I touch your hand." 
-- "The Ballad of Ranma and Akane", Ranma 1/2

Her eyes were swimming in the blackness; she didn't want to be there.
She wanted to have her eyes opened, and be able to see around her. See
the dojo, see her own hands, see...Ranma. Most importantly, she wanted
to see Ranma. Reburn his image into her mind and just keep it there.
But he had said for her to close her eyes, and at least she still had
his voice like this. Calm, and comforting, and sure. Instructing her.
It wasn't often that he tried to teach her something, either; it was a
new feeling.

Yet still, childishly, she wanted to be able to see him as she did it.

_Don't be selfish...try and do what he said..._

It puzzled her, how she was supposed to do that. Concentrate in ways
she hadn't concentrated before. As herself as a body, as a mind, and
as a soul. Quietly, she wondered at what those things meant. And Ranma
had done it? But he couldn't explain it to her.

_Or maybe he's just embarrassed for some stupid reason..._

"Okay, myself as a body...that should be easy enough." She put a small
smile on her face to show confidence. She was a martial artist; her
body was a temple, wasn't it? Her temple. She concentrated on this,
held onto it, tensing muscles, focusing on the things her body was
touching. Skin brushing against her gi, legs and feet touching the
familiar floor, the feel of the air on her face, the sweat on her
forehead.

What was that odd fading feeling?

"Akane! Stop! You're...just stop, open your eyes!" Ranma's voice was
so urgent that her eyes snapped open, and she saw a panicked Ranma on
one knee with the foot of the other firmly touching the floor, as
though he had been ready to leap up and save her. But from what?
Shaking her head, she felt her center leave her and let out a breath
of air.

_Dammit...I messed up..._

"What?" she asked, watching as Ranma slowly sat back down, his wild
eyes calming as he looked at her. There had been so much worry in his
eyes, and fear.

"You were startin' to blur. I thought you were gonna go back to your
own image, and I..." He fumbled, and Akane found herself nodding.

_Ugh...and then we would've been right where we were to begin 
with..._

She frowned, looking down at the floor. Failure one. But what had she
done wrong? Was there a specific order to it, or had she not really
been concentrating on herself as a body?

"This's gonna be harder then I thought...damn. It's never easy.
Nothin's ever easy," She could practically hear the pout in his voice.
Feeling his frustration, and being annoyed at herself for it (and
partially him, too) she sat up straighter, shaking away the doubts.
She could do this. She knew she could do this. Ranma could, and so
could she...somehow.

"Just describe it again. I was trying to concentrate on myself as a
body, and started tensing all my muscles, feeling what my skin was
feeling, concentrating on myself. I was starting to get a hold of it
when you told me to stop," she said, and saw Ranma shake his head, his
eyes lost in thought.

_That wasn't it? What, then?_

"Ya gotta...well...I, uh...arg." Akane frowned, feeling the urge to
roll her eyes at the situation. Here they were, with Ranma finally
there to help her, and they couldn't communicate something as simple
as this between each other. Oddly, she found herself thinking back to
that time Nabiki had been lecturing her in her room, about how her and
Ranma had issues. Had communication been one of them? If it wasn't, it
certainly should have been.

"Are you telling me as best as you can?" she asked slowly, looking up
to his eyes and watching as they shone with an emotion she couldn't
quite figure out. His face could be such a mystery, sometimes; one
minute he'd be an open book, and she could read everything. See
everything. But sometimes...it was like trying to read emotion from a
rock.

"Course I am." But she could sense that the confidence in his voice
had taken more effort then it should have. Letting the edge of her
lips curl up in a knowing smirk, she watched as he faltered, then
slitted his eyes.

"What?" he asked defensively. Akane raised a hand, as though to stop
the question, and then put it back down on her lap.

_There's got to be something..._

"Okay, how's this. You do it, and tell me what you feel," she
suggested, and was taken aback by the blank stare that suddenly filled
his eyes. But as she looked at him curiously, he smirked, then let out
a small chuckle that served to only confuse her further.

"What's so funny?"

"Nothin'."

_Oh, no, you're not getting away with that._

"No, tell me. Don't you get it? The reason this isn't working is
because you don't tell me everything. You need to get into the habit
of it," she said, feeling a tinge of anger in her own words. It was
enough to cow him, and his face softened, the smirk disappearing.

"I get it, I get it...I was laughing cause, it's kinda...ironic. Or
just odd, I dunno. When I was trying to get your aura up, for tests,
back in the real world...the doc would ask me to tell him what I was
feeling. Sometimes I couldn't do it, and he'd get frustrated, and try
to hide it. And I'd get frustrated, cause I wanted to help you, but I
didn't have the words. So we'd both be frustrated, because I couldn't
do one little thing."

Akane felt herself melt, and put her head down. So that was it. She
felt relief in the confession, though it still worried her. Could he
get over it, now?

_Looks like we both had trying times, these past few days._

"I'm sorry," she said, unsure of what else to say.

"Nah, it's okay." Then he put on a smile, for her. She met his eyes
again, and felt better at seeing the carefree light there again.
Slightly. They gazed at each other for a moment, as though mutually
taking a break from the teaching. He looked so...tired. Not quite
physically, and he was trying to hide it, but mentally he was tired.
She wanted to reach out, and touch him, comfort him, but she wasn't
quite sure how. Plus she had noticed that their younger selves were
looking at them. No, she corrected, not younger selves. Not really.
But all the same, she felt on the spot. Old habits of trying to hide
her feelings came back.

_But he's...here. And despite how frustrating he's
being...he's...Ranma..._

"You two are pathetic," said the younger Ranma suddenly. They all
turned to him, watching as he stood with his arms crossed, a frown on
his face.

"Watch your mouth, shorty," said the older Ranma irritably, but his
younger version just smirked. The younger Akane nodded beside him, as
though in agreement, and they simultaneously walked in between the two
older versions, the girl facing Akane and the boy facing Ranma.

_Arg, now what..._

But Akane had grown to trust the younger version, after a fashion. She
didn't like being called pathetic, but they seemed bent on something.
They were so serious, now.

"You need to be honest with yourself," said the younger Akane.

"Yeah! Stop being a jerk," said the younger Ranma. She barely listened
to Ranma retaliate, as she looked into the small, liquid grey eyes of
her counterpart.

_Honest? But I am being honest! It's all him, it's Ranma who's not
being honest. He's not telling me everything. He's being aloof, like
he's scared or something. It's all him._

She crossed her arms, finding it odd that she had to look up to the
child now, but keeping her eyes determined all the same. She knew the
girl could hear her, yet she just shook her head, her red sundress
rustling around her legs.

"No. It's not just him, it's you too." Akane's eyes widened.

_What? Of course it's not me. I'm honest. If he asked, I would tell him
anything. It's him that's stopping the process, just because he can't
tell me what he's feeling._

"Really? Are you sure?" Furiously, Akane looked away, but wondered at
the girl's words. Was it just Ranma? But it was always him. She dared
a glance over at him, watching as he and the boy were locked in a
stare, like some sort of contest. Every once in a while, the boy would
say something, then Ranma would quietly stare, his eye twitching. No
doubt he was communicating mentally as well.

_Of course I'm sure._

But the look she received from the smaller grey eyes was far from
impressed. In fact, she thought she looked peeved, like a mother
trying to tell something important to an unhearing daughter. Taken off
guard, Akane frowned, wondering what the girl was getting at.

"You trust him?"

_I trust him absolutely. I trusted him to take my body to safety, and
to come for me, and he did both._

She did trust him, too. Always trusted him. Unfortunately, she also
found herself having to put trust in his uncanny ability to mess
things up. Like just now. Sighing, she glanced once more at Ranma, who
was not paying an ounce of attention to her, then turned back to the
frowning girl.

"Do you love him?" Akane's held her breath a moment, but the girl had
said it low enough that the other two hadn't heard. At least, she
didn't think they had. Worriedly, she made herself not take her eyes
off the girl.

"Nervous?" asked the girl, a smirk not making its way to her eyes.

_You're me, you already know the answer._

"I want to hear you think it. Or say it. I'd rather you'd say it, but
I'll settle for thinking." Grumbling under her breath, Akane shook her
head, then sighed. She could do this. It wasn't as though she hadn't
thought it before. She just wondered why the girl was being so
persistent about it. Did they really have to put to words their
feelings for each other? Weren't they obvious? They had to go back to
the teaching, so she could learn the technique, and they could go
home, and...

"Well?"

_I love...Ranma._

It felt surprisingly good to think that, but it was spoiled by the
satisfied smile on the girl.

"Good. Now can you tell him that?" She shook her head slowly. As
though done with her, the little girl turned around, and tapped the
little Ranma on his shoulder.

_What are you doing?_

But the girl didn't answer. The two younger ones whispered, the boy
looking annoyed, but agreeable. Soon they stopped, and turned back to
their counterparts, determined looks on their faces.

"Saotome school of....," began the boy.

"Tendo school of...," continued the girl.

"....Anything goes martial arts..."

"....Indiscriminate grappling..."

"....Special technique..." They said together, an odd smile on the
girl's face as Akane stared, dumbfounded.

"...Mind fade!"

Then Akane fell back to the ground in shock, as the last thing she had
seen was the bottom of the shoe of the younger girl, shoving itself
into her head.

* * *

"Nabiki...Nabiki, time," said Doctor Tofu, eyes locked on the auras
still. It felt like it had been so long, now. Like they had been
standing there for days, or weeks, or that maybe time itself had
stopped. But he knew it had to be still going.

"She took father out to the phone to order some food," explained
Kasumi soothingly. The doctor sighed, but wouldn't let himself turn to
look at her. Her voice sounded so sweet, and comforting, and right
then he didn't want to be comforted. He wanted to know.

"It's been almost four hours now, Doctor," said Ranma's mother. Nadoka
Saotome. Nodding, the doctor ran his hands lightly over the top of the
auras. They were flashing, from blue to orange to green to silver,
then blue again. But then they calmed themselves, going back to their
usual pattern.

"Thank you, Mrs. Saotome," he said, scratching his head. The overhead
light was still humming irritably, innocently. It was really starting
to drive him, how it was the only sound in the room.

"There is a radio on my counter, over there. Could somebody please
turn it on?" It would be enough to keep the others distracted, and
keep his mind still. Slowly, the radio crackled to life, invading the
room, and he heard Mr. Saotome shuffle back to the other side of the
room.

He barely heard the newscaster drone on about how it was going to
rain, his eyes locked as they were on the hands of Ranma and Akane.

* * *

Ranma forced himself back into a sitting position, his head still
spinning. His forehead in particular throbbed, and he rubbed it,
frowning at the floor.

_Stupid little brat...why'd he have to kick me like that..._

As though remembering, he quickly put his head up, looking around the
room, his eyes searching for the runt. But all he saw was their
fantasy dojo, and Akane in front of him, groaning as she tried to sit
up.

_But where'd they...oh, I get it. They went back into our heads..._

Quickly, he walked over to Akane and helped her back into a sitting
position. She gave him a grateful look, rubbing her forehead as though
in pain.

"I should've expected it to hurt...it hurt when they left," she said
irritably, as Ranma knelt beside her.

"Yeah...," was all he could find to say, but Akane seemed to accept
this. For now.

The kid had been lecturing him, or at least trying to. About being
honest, and open with his feelings. Saying that not only did getting
back to the real world depend on his honesty, his relationship with
Akane depended on him being open. But he was open, wasn't he? Akane
knew how he felt. She always did; they didn't need words, the two of
them.

_But that little runt seemed to think we needed more...he's right about
one thing, it'd help if I could describe that damned technique better._

"Do you feel any different?" asked Akane, and Ranma realized how close
he was to her now as she looked up at him. His first instinct was to
back away; he was too close, he'd get her mad, she'd... But he stayed,
trying to make himself relax.

"No. Err, yeah. Not so much empty," he said after thinking about it
for a moment. Something had been filled up; it felt like when Akane
was being pulled into the image, earlier. Except it hadn't hurt then.

_Probably cause that was temporary._

Now he was alone, with Akane. Without the kids running around, being a
nuisance and a pain, and without distractions. He found himself both
scared and happy, especially when he noticed Akane smirking.

"You're shaking." Realizing that he was, he stopped and looked away,
quickly trying to firm his face.

"Was not."

"Were too." It felt oddly familiar, and Ranma soon felt the fear leave
him. Finally relaxing, he sat with his back propped up against Akane's
shoulder, cross-legged, his hands on the ground by his thighs. It was
comforting to feel her there; know she was real, and there, whether or
not they were being childish.

_See, we don't need those stupid words._

He found himself oddly distressed by the lack of reply from the voice.

"So what are we going to do now?" she asked wistfully. Ranma stared at
the wall of the dojo, without really looking at it. He let his
eyesight turn fuzzy, and frowned.

"Dunno. We could try again."

"We could." He felt Akane shuffle, and adjusted his weight to make
sure he wasn't making her uncomfortable.

"Hey...that kid...what'd she say to you?" He had seen Akane
occasionally looking at him during the conversation, her expression
changing each time.

"N-nothing," she said quickly. Too quickly. He turned his head
slightly, just enough to see that her hand was holding onto the
material of her gi rather tightly.

_Heh. Probably got another version of what I got..._

"Right," he replied, turning back to the wall and taking in a deep
breath. He heard Akane do the same, and then sigh.

"What did he tell you?"

"N-nothin'."

"Oh. Right."

They were both silent. He hated that, the silence. It began to eat at
him, and he stood up quickly, turning around to face Akane, words on
his lips that he was going to force himself to say. But when he found
that she had stood up too, and was looking at him with one hand raised
as though to make a point, her eyes intent on him, they both blushed
and immediately looked down.

"Akane, I...," he began, looking at his foot. But then Akane began to
laugh. Confused, and thinking she was laughing at him, he looked up.
Her face was so alive, her cheeks pink, and she allowed her whole body
to shake with the laughter.

"Wh-what?"

Then she shook her head, wiping a tear from her eye. Insulted, Ranma
looked away, firming up his face and crossing his arms. Seeing this,
Akane grabbed his wrists, forcing his arms to his sides. He let her,
but didn't look at her face.

"No, no I wasn't laughing at you."

"Then what were ya laughin' at?"

"Us."

Their eyes met again, and Ranma tilted his head, trying to read her
expression.

_Us?_

"Ranma, look at us. We're pathetic! They were right."

"Whoa, hey, we're not pathetic," he said defensively, unsure what she
was getting at. Smiling, she reached up to touch his face, and he
forced himself to keep his blush under control as he felt her soft,
warm fingers brushing over his cheekbone.

"How do you feel about me?" she asked.

_Ugh. The girl WAS going on about the same thing as the brat..._

"You know how I feel," he said irritably, though keeping his voice
soft. But Akane shook her head, maddeningly.

"I know. I do, but...maybe she was right. She said we weren't open
enough, or honest enough, and that it wasn't good. She..." Akane
stopped, as though embarrassed, and let her eyes just wander over his
face as she pulled her hand back, letting her arm hang at her side.

"She what?"

"She wanted me to...tell you how I feel...I could tell her, but I
realized. I had never said it to you." Ranma realized she was right;
although he had been told that he had declared his feelings to her,
that one time, neither had actually said it before. And he didn't
think there was a real need to. But something about the way Akane
looked, and spoke, said that she was beginning to need it. She wanted
something more concrete, something more tangible. Something that made
his mouth go dry at the thought of it.

"And uhh...how do you feel?" Immediately the smile on her face turned
to a nervous grin, and she raised her hands, waving them above her
face as though to say no. She looked so cute right then, not wanting
to say her feelings, but it bugged him at the same time.

"No, no, I can't go first. You go first," she said. Ranma sighed,
shaking his head.

_Figures. Tryin' ta boss me around again..._

"It was your idea. You go first." Akane straightened, her eyes looking
determined.

"Hey, you stood up first. You had something to say. What was it?" she
asked.

"Arg. It wasn't that, it was-" But he stopped as he saw her face fall.
Worried, he put a hand on her shoulder, frightened by her suddenly sad
face.

"No, no don't get that look on your face. Please? Don't do this to
me." Something at the back of his mind told him she was playing with
him still, but...the look was real. He knew it was.

"Then...stop being a jerk and just tell me how you feel." Her voice
was so small that it stunned Ranma, and he shook, closing his eyes.

"Akane I...," he began, then stopped. No, he had to do this. Slowly,
he straightened, looking at her as she watched him. Judged him,
scrutinized him, or so he imagined. But no one else was around. It was
just him, and Akane, in this dream-like world that they had to get out
of somehow. Nobody to laugh at them, or yell at them, or be there at
all, period. Gulping back his fears, he looked at her and
concentrated.

_Okay, how I feel...I did this before, but I have a feeling she wants
more then that..._

"I...," he began again, and she tilted her head, her expression
encouraging. Ranma groaned inwardly as his tongue suddenly began to
feel fat.

_Arg...just do it already, Saotome!_

"Akane...I...I...I...lo...dammit. Akane, I love you!"

Akane quirked an eyebrow, no doubt at the curse, but still smiled. He
felt his entire being melt at the smile she had on her face, which
quickly turned into a giggle as he realized that he probably looked
very dumb right then. And lovestruck. But he was too much under her
spell to care.

"I love you too, Ranma." Then she lunged forward, wrapping her arms
around his waist in a tight, warm hug. After a few moments, he
nervously wrapped his arms around her small, strong body, and held her
protectively.

* * *

They sat on the floor again, backs to each other, legs crossed. But
the air felt lighter around them; and tingly. It had felt wonderful to
hold Ranma like that, and feel him actually hold her back. He didn't
do that often. Usually he would just let himself be held, and she had
to satisfy herself with that. But this time...

"Ready?" she heard him ask, and felt his back muscles shift against
her shoulder blades.

"Ready," she replied, focusing on putting her feelings aside and going
into learning mode. They were going to try again. As soon as Akane had
released him, Ranma had looked like he was going to say something
else, but then he had shaken his head. With that single motion, she
had a feeling he had gone right back to business, and she was correct.
He had sat down almost immediately, looking up at her expectantly,
then looking away. Feeling awkward, she had opted so sit behind him,
but with their backs together so she could still feel his support as
she concentrated.

_This may have even been missing from last time...the support...I don't
feel as isolated, now..._

"Remember the first steps?" Akane nodded, then remembered he couldn't
see her. Closing her eyes, she began.

"Find my center, and start the flow."

"Right."

They were silent for a few moments as they both did this. It felt
easier this time, since she had done it before, but this wasn't the
hard part. This was merely the preparation; setting the atmosphere, so
to speak. She wondered if her body, back in the real world, was moving
at all. Could she move? Did she? But she forced the questions to die
as she sought out the clarity. Clarity of mind, clarity of body,
clarity of soul.

"I have it," she said after a moment, letting herself out of it just
enough to feel Ranma's back behind her, holding her in the clear
blackness.

"Okay. I'll uh...try 'n be more detailed about it this time. Ya gotta
focus on you as your body, as your mind, and as your soul. Separately,
then together."

"That's not how you said it the first time."

"I know. Work with me, here." Sighing, she drew in a deep breath, then
refocused.

"How do I do it?" There was silence, as Ranma was apparently choosing
his words. Patiently she waited, not wanting to start anything before
she had a better description.

"Don't think of yourself in relation to this room. That's whatcha did
the first time, ain't it?" After thinking about it for a moment, Akane
realized he was right. But how else was she supposed to do it?

"Yeah...that's what I did."

"I started to do that the first time too, but it didn't feel right.
It's more in relation to your own organs. Your breathing, your blood,
your heart, your, uh, other parts." She frowned, not sure what he
meant by other parts. Something came to mind though, and she felt her
cheeks prickle.

_Don't fill in the blanks! Just listen._

"I see. I can do that."

"Great. When ya got it, don't talk, you'll lose your concentration.
Elbow me, and I'll tell you what do to next."

"But...if I start to fade again...how will you know?"

"I'll feel ya fade, then I'll stop you before it's too late. Stop
worryin' already," he said, though there was a soothing undertone.
Akane nodded, gritting her teeth.

"Right. Here I go."

Obeying, she focused on her breathing, trying to feel every inch of
her lungs, her esophagus, her tongue, her teeth, her lips. Inhaled
through the mouth, exhaled through the nose. She felt her nostrils
flaring as she expelled the air, then took it back in through her
nose, exhaling through her mouth. Once done, she moved to her heart,
tried to feel it beating inside of her. Pumping her blood, her life
force. Moving from there, she tried to feel her veins, her other
organs, her eyes, her ears, her head. Focusing on feeling her body,
and feeling real, she got to a point where she felt she had it.
Carefully, so as not to lose it, she pushed her arm back to elbow
Ranma in the ribs, then rested her arm again on her leg.

"Good, ya got it this time. Lemme get it too," he said, and she felt
herself balancing, as though on one of the thin, metal fences that
Ranma loved to run on. But she had never been as good as he was at
balancing on it. Still, she held on, feeling the rush of it as well as
the fear of losing it. She didn't realize she was biting her lip until
she tasted the tang of blood on her tongue.

"Okay, this is the easy part. You as your mind. I got it by saying a
mantra the doc told me."

She wanted to speak, but remembered that she shouldn't, and instead
held her concentration, still teetering.

"It's some kinda Buddhist thing. Just keep saying it over and over:
Omitofo. Omitofo. It's kinda hypnotic after a while, and you'll feel
a...click. Really soon."

_Omitofo? But...well, if he says it'll work...Omitofo...O-ohmitoh-
ohfo...Omi-itofo..._

She allowed herself to singsong the chant in her head, feeling it
filling her mind. Her voice was pure and sweet in her head, and inside
of her she felt an expanse growing. It made her feel dizzy, but she
held herself in check. Slowly, surely, she felt the click that Ranma
had mentioned, and this time jabbed him more sharply, scared to lose
it.

"Ow...hey, great. Now, the hard part. The soul. It took me a lil'
while to get this...dunno why, cause once I did, it seemed easy. I
um...heh. Actually, now that I think of it, I know why it took me a
while," he said, then paused. Akane, balancing herself as her mind,
and herself as her body, said nothing.

"I...the doc told me to think of a reason to live. And...me being
upset, and wanting to get to you and all...I uh...kinda thought of
that. It made my soul...tingle. You sorta feel it in the base, like
you've gone numb. I uh...I got it pretty fast, once I realized." Akane
barely let the words register in her state. She was the reason he
lived? Rescuing her?

_O-ohmi-itoh-oh-fo..._

Ranma was often single minded, though. Obtusely single-minded. But it
made her wonder...what was her reason to live? What was her reason for
being?

_Breathe in and out...feel...be...Omi-ito-ohfo-oh..._

She wanted to be with Ranma. To help people. To teach, to master the
martial art that her father had taught her. To be, to know, to
cherish, to have children. She wanted to...

_Live..._

When the numbness sank in, she elbowed Ranma so hard that the part of
her that was still paying attention was surprised he didn't hit back,
or at least fly away.

"Arg. I get it, I get it...lemme catch up. Just stay balanced," he
said, but his voice barely registered. She felt like she was on a
cloud, suspended by a single hair on her head, unsure of where it was
attached. If she moved, or breathed wrong, or dared to speak, she'd
fall. Maybe plummet to her death, maybe not, but she could barely
breathe in such a state. Ranma seemed to be taking forever. Didn't he
know that she was barely clinging? Didn't he know that...

"Got it. Okay. This is the easy part, but...Akane, you're gonna fall.
You're gonna fall, and you're gonna be scared, but don't worry. When
it starts, you can scream if you wanna, but I promise. I will catch
you. Elbow me if you understand." She pushed back her elbow so gently
that she wasn't even sure if she had done it. Her balance remained
intact somehow. What had he said? About catching her? But she didn't
want to fall. Ranma couldn't fly, how was he supposed to catch her?

_O-ohmi-ito-ohfo..._

"Alright. Now, when I say go, I want you to open your eyes, and tense
everything around the base of your ki. Then, as soon as you have it,
release. Don't bother bracing yourself on the floor, though. If I
remember what the doc said correctly...it should be gone before you're
halfway there. Now...go!"

Her eyes snapped open as she obeyed, partially feeling fear, and
allowing her instincts and martial arts training to take over. She
barely felt Ranma behind her as she tensed the muscle, feeling the ki,
then released it. Her body tingled, and the colours around the room
faded, molded, blurred and turned to mist. Almost wanting to let out
that scream that Ranma had suggested, she found herself falling, and
realized he had been right. There was no floor anymore. Instead, she
fell into a swirling pit of rainbow coloured darkness, keeping her
panic in just by the skin of her teeth.

"Ranma? Ranma!" But her voice wouldn't travel anywhere. The wind
around her blew it away; they were caught in the swirl of the world
between dreams and reality.

_We...we...where's Ranma?_

She looked up and around, and below, but didn't see him. All she saw
were the bright colours, and the darkness, and she could feel the cold
wind abusing her. Turning her, twisting her. She felt like she'd be
sick from all the motion, but her eyes only continued to search for
Ranma.

It felt like she was falling one minute, then floating the next. Her
hair swirled, her clothing blurred, and she wondered if she was
beginning to fade as well.

_Oh no...no, no...where's Ranma?_

She had the sinking feeling that something had gone wrong.

* * *

"Oh my..."

Kasumi raised a hand to her mouth delicately, the only one to speak as
the flurry of colours surrounded Ranma and Akane. It sparkled and
shone, tugged and twisted, as though a living thing on it's own. It
hummed, and sang, and she was unsure whether or not the two had become
prisoners of their own auras.

The sight was so amazing that no one noticed that Ranma and Akane had
each tensed all of their muscles, and Akane was moaning, as though in
pain.

* * *

He had been too fast. He had been too fast, and now he couldn't see
Akane anywhere. Amidst the swirling, and the darkness, and the wind
and his own wildly beating heart, he didn't know where she was. All he
knew was that he was ahead of her, and falling much too fast.

Stretching out his arms and legs, he spread out as much as he could,
trying to become less aerodynamic in hopes that he would slow, at
least enough for her to catch up. His eyes teared up at the wind, and
his pigtail was nearly ripped from his scalp, the pull of it was so
strong.

"Akane!" he roared, but the wind just took his voice.

_Dammit...I promised her I'd catch her...but where is she?_

He felt himself slow down, as the turning and twisting went through
another edge. Gathering as much ki as he could, so close to the real
world and yet not, he pushed it below him, willing himself to go up.
It barely slowed him down, but he thought it would be enough. Hoped it
would be enough.

"Akane?" he called again, forgetting about the wind. She had to be
okay. She just had to.

He found his mind wandering, to all the times he had saved her. To the
memories, the emotions, trying to remember what had kept him calm
then. Was he calm even? It was hard to actually be it. He could show
an ice cold exterior if he had to, but it was hard to keep up. Plus,
this was like nothing he had ever tried to rescue her from. He wasn't
even exactly sure of where they were, let alone what he should do, or
what was really going to happen to them. All he knew was that it lead
to home.

Finally though, he saw her, and was surprised to see that she was
actually below him.

_Oh...crap, crap, I'm such an idiot..._

As though swimming, he dove down through the twisting, pushing himself
with his ki and with whatever strength he could summon. She was so
close now, but the wind fought against him. It pushed her away,
leaving him to barely snatch at her arm, and miss.

"Ranma!" He watched her mouth, but didn't hear the voice. Cringing, he
leapt for her again, and this time he caught her. Holding onto her
tightly, just like the time when he had been taking her to the
doctor's, he sighed with relief. She was safe; he had found her.
Although she looked up at him with gratitude, her eyes were still
worried. He had caught her, but what were they going to do now?

_Arg...this is gonna be a rough landing..._

Curling up into a ball, making sure that Akane was well protected with
his own body, he steeled his nerves, waiting for impact.

But the impact didn't come. They floated, and fell, and twisted and
turned, Ranma feeling as though he were a ball being bounced around by
the wind. He watched as Akane's face cringed, and as she buried her
face in his shirt, as though not wanting to see. She looked so
defenseless, just then. So helpless, and Ranma frowned. It wasn't like
her to be this way. She was strong, and tough, and...

"Akane...," he whispered, knowing it would just be carried away by the
wind.

Then they both faded away from the tunnel of wind and rainbow-coloured
darkness.

* * *

She groaned loudly, putting a hand to her head. It felt so heavy, in
there. Her whole body ached, and she found she had a hard time
catching her breath.

_Are we still falling? What's going on?_

Below her she felt something soft, almost like a cushion. Something
was hanging from her arm, she was sure. Trying to move her other hand
to brush it off, she found that when she tugged, her hand wouldn't let
go. She was holding onto something. Or was something holding onto her?
Confused, she opened her eyes, and looked towards the hand.

The first thing she saw was Ranma Saotome, laying on a bed placed near
hers. He grinned at her, his eyes sparkling. Her eyes went wide, and
she nearly ripped out the thing that was attached to her arm as she
sat up.

"Whoa, whoa, hold on. Lay down, Akane," she heard a voice say.

"Oh Akane! Akane, you're alright!"

"My darling daughter! You're awake!"

The voices of her family and of the doctor surrounded her. She found
her view of Ranma was blocked by his mother smiling at her, then
turning to fuss over him, and he released her hand after one tight
squeeze. The hand that had been held was white from their tight grasp,
and numb. She looked at it oddly, as the doctor prodded at her arm,
obviously trying to fix the object that she had now identified as an
IV.

She was home.

Her father held her tightly, and Akane hugged back, glad to feel the
warmth and comfort of her father. Her head still swam with confusion,
but she tried to keep herself from drifting off to dizziness.

"Akane? Akane how do you feel? What do you remember last?" she heard
the doctor say. It made her laugh, and she was graced with confused
expressions.

"You probably wouldn't believe me if I told you. But...Ranma found me.
I'm okay. Really." Dr. Tofu still seemed uncertain, and checked her
ki. She found herself giggling almost uncontrollably at her happiness,
and felt Kasumi touch her cheek, then her forehead, as though checking
for a fever.

"Are you certain that you are well?" She asked, and Akane tried to
still her giggling as she noticed the concern in her sister's face.

"I'm alright. I'm just glad. So glad."

It was another ten minutes before the doctor stopped checking on her
and let her sit up. Her head swam, but she fought to control it.
Beside her, she could hear the sounds of people moving the other bed,
and replacing it with the chair. Ranma was sitting in it now, shoving
papers and other objects into a bag that looked to be his schoolbag.
Noting this as odd, she looked at him questioningly. She had suspected
that he had been staying the nights, but...

"Ranma? You haven't been...you weren't...always here, were you?" she
asked, and watched as Ranma quickly averted his eyes.

"I umm...kinda have been living here since you went out. I still went
to school, though," he defended, and Akane smiled.

_So he was protecting me...figures..._

"I believe you," she said, then felt Nabiki's hand on her shoulder.
Turning around, she looked at her sister, who had been shier then the
others so far. She smiled at her, though it didn't touch her eyes.
Akane tried to return the expression, but still felt the deep
irritation at her sister that had been there for the past few weeks.

"Hey. Welcome back."

"Thanks." Nabiki patted her once on the shoulder, then turned around,
letting Kasumi close again to fuss over her.

_Nabiki..._

"So, Mr. Tendo, you have a choice. You can take Akane home tonight,
though she'd have to be helped, in her weakened state, and I could
check up on her tomorrow afternoon. Or you can leave her here for
another few days."

"Home! Take me home!" shouted Akane, immediately getting the attention
of everyone in the room.

"But Akane...don't you think it'd be best if...," she heard her father
start to say. Quickly, she gave him a look that said not to cross her,
and hoped it would work. He wavered under the look, then turned to the
doctor, then back to her. Seeing that she still had the same look on
her face, he helplessly turned back to the doctor and nodded.

"We'll take her home."

Gleefully, she got up, fighting the stiffness of her joints and the
swimming emotions in her head. Taking one awkward step off the bed,
she felt as though she were a toddler, relearning how to walk. How
long had it been since she had? Nine days, had Ranma said?

As she took another step, she felt Ranma grab at her elbow, as though
to help her. But she brushed him off, turning to look at him with a
determined face.

"I just want to walk out of the clinic on my own. After that, you can
help me," she said, hoping it would satiate him. He frowned, then
nodded, but his face still looked determined.

"But, Akane..."

"No buts! I'm fine," she said, walking forward and leaving him to
stutter after her. Before she got too far, she felt another tug at her
other elbow. This one was gentler, and when she turned around, she saw
that it was Kasumi. She held a bag in her hand, and tried to give him
a meaningful look, which was lost on Akane.

_But that's my travel bag...why does she?_

Then slowly, she looked down on herself and flushed as she saw that
she was in her pyjamas. Taking the bag quickly, she walked back to the
bed, feeling the embarrassment start to rise in her.

"Everybody out. I'm changing."

She didn't hear any snickering or comments as everyone filed out of
the room, but her battle aura flickered anyway. Once everyone was
gone, she calmly put the bag on the bed, and began to change. Then
happiness overtook her and, slowly, she began to weep.

"I'm...I'm home. Really home."


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