[FFML] Ranma 1/2 End Game Chapter 1

Thu Feb 17 09:52:49 PST 2011

End Game

Chapter One: Secret Plays

By: Lord Archive

This is set in the manga time line. Anime only events do not apply.

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Akane made sure her door was locked and pulled the shade to her room closed. While it was hardly unusual of her to do such a thing at this time of day as she prepared for bed, she had more reason than to make sure no one tried to see her changing clothes. She dug into her desk and pulled out a folder hidden where no one would look, under her old homework that marked the greatest of her academic accomplishments. Inside the folder was an assignment she wrote years ago devoted to the person she idolized most, her mother. Buried within that folder was a piece of paper that had nothing to do with school, but in her own mind it was an award that far surpassed any other even if it was only a piece of paper that held little true meaning yet. It was her marriage license to Ranma.

After returning from China her father tricked Ranma into signing a marriage application. The idiot didn't bother to read what he was putting his name to. When that was tried on her, saying it was to deal with her impromptu trip to China and missed school, she had read the form. She had not been happy when her own father tried to trick her in getting married. Then he had the nerve to bribe her with Ranma's cure. She wished Genma had been the one to do that, so she could have let out her anger.

Akane then did something that surprised herself as much as it would anyone else: she signed the application. Not because her father wanted her too, but because she had convince herself that Ranma loved her. She heard him scream it at Jusendo. She knew he had. 

Even though the wedding ceremony had literally been bombed, she was still legally Saotome Akane. The only issue was that only a couple people realized this, and Ranma wasn't one of them. Still, she was the legal winner, and that would have to do for now. She carefully put the proof of marriage back in it's hiding place and got ready for bed, wondering when when that certificate would stop being just a piece of paper.

--------------------

Akane took position across from Ranma, poised and ready to strike. He wasn't paying any attention, his nose buried into a Chinese scroll.

"Are we going to spar or not?" Akane demanded.

"Just want to make sure I got this right. Don't want to do anything weird to you, like make you insult people uncontrollably." He then smirked. "Not that I'd be able to tell."

Akane blinked in confusion, uncertain how to take all of that. But one thing clicked for her. "Wait? You're actually going to attack me?"

"Yep." Ranma rolled up the scroll and set it to the side of the dojo. 

A smiled formed on Akane's lips. He was actually going to take her seriously!

The match started without a word, Akane's violent swings were largely deflected and yet his hands were like spears and he only poked her on the arms. 

"What the hell are you trying to do?" Akane demanded. She felt one more tap and her arm suddenly went numb and hung uselessly. She tried to use her limb, but it would not respond. "What did you do?"

"Hit your pressure points," Ranma replied. "I'm trying to see how combat useful it can be. Hold still for a second."

A couple taps on her arm and at her armpit and feeling quickly returned. Akane reflexive tested her arm. "So, I'm your live test dummy?"

Ranma scratched his head. "Well, it is a way to spar with you without hurting you, and improve myself at the same time."

Akane let out a short laugh. "At least you're attacking this time."

As the match progressed, both grew more frustrated.

Akane's increasingly wild swings met air far more often than they connected. Even then her blows were never anything significant.

Ranma was able to paralyze Akane's arms a few times, but only when she made a serious mistake by over extending her arm, giving him an easier target.

After a half-hour, Akane was winded and was sure she had bruises on shoulders and upper arms. 

"That'll be it," Ranma groused, going back to the scroll and looking it over.

Akane massaged her shoulders. "Didn't quite work they way you wanted?"

"Trying to hit a small moving target is difficult, especially when I don't know which way you'll move. Trying to hit it covered in clothes hardly helps," Ranma complained. "It'd be nice to have some way to win a battle without beating someone senseless."

Akane smiled at that comment. "We'll try again tomorrow." Seeing his absent-minded nod, she turned to leave. "I'll take a bath first." The memory of first seeing 'him' leapt to her mind, as she had a clear view of all he had to offer as he stepped out of the bath. She did not see his eyes follow her as she left the dojo.

--------------------

"I'm going on a date Saturday," Kasumi announced at dinner.

"Really? With who?" Soun inquired.

"Mitsutani-san," Kasumi answered. "He works down at the market at his parent's store."

Soun paused. "Ah, Mitsutani-kun's boy? Not a bad family."

Genma laughed. "Hope the boy can hold his sake better than his old man."

"Very true," Soun chuckled.

Akane held her chop sticks to her lips. "I suppose that means I'll be cooking dinner that night."

Soun shifted nervously. "Certainly Nodoka could take care of that."

"Auntie Saotome will still be baby-sitting for her friend," Akane reminded. "She won't be back until Monday."

"Well, what a shame, I've already got plans for Saturday," Nabiki deadpanned. "I won't be home that night."

"Ah, right, we've got plans that night as well, don't we, Soun?" Genma chirped in.

"Right! I almost forgot about it," Soun agreed quickly.

Akane sagged. 

"Meh, cowards," Ranma grumbled. "I've got no plans."

Akane looked at him uncertain what to say. She silently vowed to make sure to make him a dinner he'd never forget.

--------------------

"I told you I was going to cook!" Akane snarled.

"You are." Ranma motioned at the stuff on the counter. "Just getting you set up. Everything you need should be here."

Akane pouted. "You didn't have to do that."

"Just wanted to make sure you didn't mix things up," Ranma defended. 

Akane scowled. She moved to washed her hands and began to cook. "Are you going to sit there and watch me?"

"Yep," Ranma replied simply.

"You don't have to." Akane noticed he wasn't moving. "You're making me more nervous."

"Wanna be here to catch you if you make a mistake." Ranma shrugged. "I don't know how you can do so well in chemistry lab and yet lose control here. It's the same thing. Everything has a proper quantity to add."

Akane growled. And found her hand grabbed. "Not yet with that. You'd dull the taste. Calm down and relax."

"How can I with you breathing down my neck?" Akane hissed.

"Get used to it," Ranma shot back.

Akane shuddered, uncertain if he meant the double meaning of that statement.

Ranma faded to the back of the kitchen, but she could still feel his presence. In an odd way, she felt as if she was being tested. 

"What is with you?" Akane demanded.

"What do ya mean?" Ranma returned.

"Why are you watching me? I can cook perfectly fine by myself," Akane shot at him.

Ranma folded his arms. "Why would you think that? You're still learning how to cook."

Akane scowled at him. Words dying on her lips. She tried to come up with a retort, but couldn't think of anything. 'Because she was a girl,' sounded stupid to herself. She let out a growl as she focused on making diner, trying to do her best to not have Ranma interfere.

--------------------

Akane held her hand over her stomach. Dinner wasn't quite sitting the way she hoped, and it didn't taste nearly as well as it should have, but both her and Ranma were able to eat it.

She sighed while watching television. It was only six thirty and doubted anyone would be home any time soon. There wasn't anything to watch, making her discomfort more evident. She tried to think of something to distract her, and her mind kept going to the marriage certificate and what it should mean. 

"You okay?" Ranma asked.

"I'm fine," Akane chirped nervously.

Ranma looked at her with a lazy eye, hardly paying much attention to the television either. "Something wrong?"

Akane shifted nervously. "No... nothing is wrong."

"Don't tell me you're afraid I'm going to jump you, or something," Ranma groused.

Akane pouted. "I'm not afraid of that."

"You certainly were before," Ranma pointed out.

"I didn't know if I could trust you then." Akane looked away, blushing slightly.

"Whatever." Ranma went back to looking at the television. After a few minutes, he turned back to her. "Is there something you want to say?"

"Huh?" Akane emitted.

"You keep opening your mouth as if you're about to say something," Ranma noted.

Akane huffed. "I was thinking that since we we're alone that maybe we should talk."

"'Bout what?" Ranma wondered.

Akane glanced away. "There's a lot of stuff we don't talk about because of others always being around. It's rare when we're left alone."

"Don't jinx it. You can count on Ucchan and Shampoo being busy at work, but that doesn't mean we're going to be left alone," Ranma groused.

"That's my point exactly. Right now we can talk freely," Akane pressed.

"'Bout what?" Ranma repeated.

"Well, you know, about us," Akane ventured hesitantly.

"What is there to say?" Ranma shrugged. "Saying nothing and nothing changes."

"Perhaps I want things to change," Akane ventured weakly.

"Do you really?" Ranma shot back with a touch of nervousness.

Akane nodded. "I mean we are married."

"WHAT?!" Ranma cried out.

"Ack!" Panic alighted Akane's face. "Ah, um... I can explain!"

Ranma scowled. "Isn't that my line?"

Akane sheepishly played with her skirt while giggling nervously. "Well, you remember the papers Dad had you sign when you got back from China?"

Ranma folded his arms and cocked his head in thought. "Not really."

"That wasn't to deal with missed school or whatever lie he told you. It was a marriage application." Akane swallowed hard. "Before that attempted ceremony, I signed it and it was filed."

"So? The ceremony failed," Ranma pointed out.

"The ceremony doesn't mean anything. Only filing the application does." Akane looked away. "Not that it actually means anything. Sure I might legally be 'Saotome Akane,' but either of us could go to City Hall and get it annulled."

Ranma clinched his teeth. "Why did you sign it? Why haven't you gotten it annulled? Why didn't you tell me before?"

"I didn't get a chance to tell you before without certain people eavesdropping," Akane retorted. 

Ranma's eyes drilled into the girl, but she didn't say anything more. "Well? What about the marriage? Why haven't you done anything about it?"

"I... I...," Akane squeaked out. "I don't know what to say."

Ranma leapt to his feet. "Do you know what Shampoo would do when she finds out?! She's going knock your stupid head off! Gah! Of all the stupid things!"

"I can defend myself, you know," Akane growled.

"Oh, really?" Ranma shot back.

Before Akane knew what was going on, she was sitting in the pond, unhurt but very wet. "Wha?"

"Shampoo is the old ghoul's great-granddaughter. If she got her head out of her ass, she'd be a better challenge to me," Ranma told her as if a master to a student. "And you are honestly not worth my concern in a straight fight. Why the hell do you think I've been trying to learn ways of attacking you in sparring? You need to be better!" He started to pace around the pound. "Kodachi won't even try a straight fight, attacking like a fucking ninja when you aren't ready. Ucchan won't be much better, but she's more likely to attack me. Of all the idiotic shit...."

Akane didn't know how to take any of this. Anger at being thrown and having her skills belittled fought with the confusion of his seemingly angst filled rant. "Ranma..."

The pig-tailed martial artist in question was in her face. "You're not planning on annulling it, do you?"

"No," Akane replied firmly.

"Just fucking great!" Ranma cursed.

"Are you?" Akane shot at him.

"I'm going to pretend I don't know," Ranma muttered. "There's no way I can train you the way you need to be."

"Excuse me?" Akane demanded.

"You need to be better. Battle Douji better." Ranma broke a rock with his fist. "To do that you'll need to use short-cuts."

Akane glared at him. "What do you mean 'short-cuts?' There are no easy ways to learn martial arts."

"Easy takes time. To get it done fast is hard and painful," Ranma growled.

"What do you mean?" Akane demanded.

"I'm talking about the stupid shit like dumping your ass in a pit of hungry cats!" Ranma yelled at her. "No way I'm letting that happen, but there are other methods that are just as bad without the stupid fear." He let out another scream. "You're going to have to be trained by the fucking panda!"

-------------------- 

With each bounce, Akane groaned in pain. She didn't care about being unceremoniously carried on the shoulder of a panda. She was in too much pain. One day of training and already she would never look at whips, bubblegum and lava lamps the same way. They hadn't even gotten around to using the sofa Genma made her pull into the empty lot beyond him lazing on it while putting her through hell. Best not to mention any of that to Sayuri or Yuka, they'd seriously get the wrong idea.

"Oh, my! Akane!" Kasumi cried out in surprise, taking the limp girl from the panda. "Are you all right?"

"Next time I say 'I'm a martial artist, too,' slap me," Akane groaned. 

"Uncle Saotome, what did you do to her?" Kasumi demanded with worry. "There's cuts and wax on her ankles and gum in her hair!"

The furry bear held up a sign, [Don't look at me. I'm just a panda.] 

"Really, oneechan... don't ask. It's training," Akane moaned out.

"But, Akane..." Kasumi moved to grab a first aid kit, but Ranma was now behind her holding it out for her. A strange look clouded his face. She took the kit. "Thank you."

"You're not goin' to quit, are you?" Ranma asked.

"No," Akane vowed.

"Akane, you might seriously be hurt," Kasumi protested.

"If I don't do this, it will be worse," Akane retorted.

"How can it be worse?" Kasumi wondered.

Ranma gritted his teeth and leapt away, kicking the panda into the wall on his way.

-------------------- 

Akane wasn't sure if she was getting better, but she was quickly losing her sense of pain. She had barely noticed accidentally putting her foot through a fish tank. The piranhas, however, were too annoying to ignore. At this rate, she felt that she could take a boulder to the face and not notice it. Perhaps she could get Ryouga to teach her Bakusai Tenketsu.

There was one thing she had noticed, Ranma seemed to be avoiding her. She had barely seen him in the past week. Which made his sudden appearance with a smile and slap marks on his face all the more surprising. 

"Where have you been?" Akane demanded.

"Annoying Shampoo," Ranma replied simply.

Akane's vision turned to red. "You've been with that bimbo?!"

Ranma shrugged. "Yeah. Thought the best way to deal with Shampoo is to get on her bad side. So, I'd sit in Nekohanten talking to the old ghoul, Mousse, other customers while making a mess. If I said something to her, it'd be in an insulting tone."

Akane blinked. "Where did you get the idea to do something like that?"

"Nabiki suggested that if I wanted to piss her off, I should treat her like I treat you." Ranma folded his arms. "Am I really that much of a jerk?"

Akane forgot all about her soar body as she began to roll on the floor laughing.

Ranma scowled as he walked away. "Don't know why Nabiki said not to try that with Ukyou, though."

--------------------

Akane's practice paused as Ranma briefly leapt into the field splashed the panda with hot water and then disappeared.

"What was that about?" Genma wondered, adjusting his clothes.

Akane shrugged and then stiffened hearing demented laughter.

"Ohohohoho! Father-Saotome, Ranma-sama has expressed that to be someone worthy of him, I would need to learn his family's art. Please train me," Kodachi announced in a haughty tone.

Genma nodded. "Akane could use a sparring partner soon." He then turned to the Tendo girl. "Take a break. I need to see where this girl is at, skill wise."

Akane wasn't sure she should thankful for this break. 

"Attack me," Genma announced.

"As you wish, Sensei!" Kodachi launched herself.

Akane flinched and wanted to look away, yet she took a touch of sadistic pleasure from Kodachi's cries of pain.

Genma shook his head. "She needs a lot of work. Akane take the rest of the day to rest. We'll see if she's ready to spar with you tomorrow."

-------------------- 

Akane had a slight smile on her face as she limped home. She paused as Sayuri waved at her and rushed straight to her.

"Geez, Akane, you're just one big walking injury," Sayuri noted with worry. "Did you piss Shampoo off?"

"Not yet," Akane replied to her friend. "Chances are I will soon so I need lots of training."

"Ah..." Sayuri glanced at all the bandages. "Want to get some ice cream?"

Akane nodded. "Sounds great to me."

Sayuri lead the way to the ice cream parlor. After getting their orders and finding a table, she finally asked, "What sort of training have you done?"

"The wildest ideas Yuka has had wouldn't come close to what Uncle Saotome has done to me," Akane groused. "I'm not giving any details as it will sound horribly stupid. And if I told you what was used in the training, it would sound incredibly perverted."

Sayuri giggled nervously. "If you say so. Have you gotten any better?"

Akane shrugged. "Hard to say. I can trash Kodachi easily, but I've beaten her before. At least now I'll be able to fight even after being injured."

Sayuri pouted. "That's good... I guess." She then blushed. "Mind if I ask you a question?"

"Go ahead." Akane shrugged.

Sayuri suddenly found her ice cream very interesting. "Um... Do you know of a good love motel?"

Akane's face turned bright red. "Why would you think I know? Why are you asking?"

"Well, you did file the marriage application before the ceremony, right?" Sayuri glanced away. "And well, I have been with my boyfriend for a while now..."

"Ranma and I aren't officially married," Akane half-lied.

"You don't have to keep it a secret from me. I know that with the way your house is, the only way you can get personal time with Ranma is at a love motel. That it would be hazardous to just have your way with him at home because of the whole marriage issue and his suitors," Sayuri pointed out.

"I have never been with Ranma, let alone gone to some sleazy love motel," Akane protested.

Sayuri frowned. "Not all love motels are sleazy. My parents use them all the time."

Akane blinked. "They do?"

"Yeah." Sayuri looked away. "When I was little, I knocked on their door asking what that noise was and if they had tummy aches."

"Ack!" Akane emitted

"'Ack,' indeed." Sayuri shook her head. "You can understand why I can't ask them where to go."

Akane nodded slowly. "I don't think you should go. You're not even engaged. There's so many risks."

Sayuri grasped her friend's hands. "Akane-chan, I love my idiot boyfriend. I know when he goes to college this summer, I can write off our relationship. But I want at least one night with him all to myself. Maybe, just maybe, doing so will give him incentive to come back to me."

"Sayuri-chan..." Akane tried to think of something to say.

Sayuri took her last bite of ice cream. "I'll let you know if I find a good place to take your idiot to."

"Sayuri-chan, why the hell would I take Ranma to a love motel?" Akane grumbled in embarrassment.

"Perhaps Kitchen-Destroyer can explain why Ranma act like jerk?" 

Akane spun around and saw one very irate Amazon glaring at her. "What do you mean 'act' like a jerk? He IS a jerk."

"I am getting sick of him calling me 'Airhead.' I am NOT an idiot. I was speaking cute because Japanese boys were supposed to like that sort of shit," Shampoo ranted.

Akane blinked dumbly. She couldn't remember a time the girl didn't use her name when speaking about herself. 

Shampoo gaze studied her rival. "What happened to you?"

"Ten rounds with Kodachi. She got it in her head that Ranma wants a skilled martial artist as a wife," Akane explained, while trying to reign in her mixed emotions. Her anger at Shampoo because Ranma was spending time with her, her mirth from said boy calling the Amazon an 'airhead,' and her worry that Shampoo would attack her when she was sorely not ready.

Shampoo laughed. "If crazy-girl can't defeat you, she's no threat." She then smirked. "If Ranma rather stay with me than help you, guess you aren't as much of a threat anymore." She whirled around. "Will need to train beloved to be proper husband."

"Good luck with that," Akane shot at her. "I certainly haven't gotten him to change."

Shampoo clenched her fist. "I'm not weak, like you. I'll make him change for me."

--------------------

A sudden down pour didn't make Akane stop dodging, but Kodachi got a face full of trashcan lid. 

"What happen to Sensei!" Kodachi cried out. "He turned into a panda!"

"Ancient Chinese curse of Jusenkyo. Fall into the spring and you turn into whatever fell into it. Hot water changes you back until the next time you're hit by cold water," Akane recounted in a bland tone. "In Uncle Saotome's case, he fell into spring of drowned panda."

Kodachi stood their dumbly. "There are other springs?"

Akane folded her arms. "Over a hundred."

Kodachi looked over with wide eyes. "Is the red-haired harlot and Ranma-sama...?"

"One in the same person? Yes," Akane deadpanned. "He fell into spring of drowned girl."

"I see..." Kodachi leapt away without another word. 

The panda held up a sign, [There went your sparring partner.]

Akane wiped some of her wet hair out of her eyes. "I guess so."

The sign flipped, [That will make things more painful for you.]

"Joy," Akane groaned.

--------------------

Akane didn't know what to make of Ranma stumbling around as a girl with a bucket dented around her head.

"What happened to you?" Akane asked.

"Can you get this stupid thing off me?" Ranma pleaded.

"Should I get a can opener?" Akane wondered.

"Just pull the stupid thing off!" Ranma barked.

Akane made Ranma bend over, grabbed the edges of the bucket and started to pull. She hefted her foot to his shoulder to push off him. With a final tug and a moan of pain from Ranma, Akane fell backwards and launched the bucket into the air. Not the best thing to do in her school dress with it bellowing out. At least only Ranma was in any position to see her panties. "Did you see?"

"See what?" Ranma rubbed the sides of her face.

Akane wasn't sure to believe her, but there was something more pressing. "What was with that bucket?"

"Kodachi splashed me. She then complained about me lying or something, and about how insane Pop is," Ranma muttered. "She then shoved the bucket on my head and whacked it with her baton or something until it stuck. Told me to tell you that I'm all yours as she's 'done with me.'"

Akane stared at the red head. "Really?"

"Yep." Ranma slowly got to her feet. "That's one down."

"At least I don't have to worry about late night assassination from her," Akane agreed.

-------------------- 

"Hey, hon," Ukyou greeted.

"Hello, Ukyou-kun," Akane returned. 

"Still training?" Ukyou wondered.

"Yeah," Akane muttered.

"I don't see why," Ukyou commented. "Your father has to realize at some point you're not the one that'll marry Ranchan."

Akane gritted her teeth. "You know how stubborn people can be."

Ukyou shrugged. "Do you know where Ranchan has been? I haven't seen him outside of school for a couple weeks now."

Akane clenched her fist. "He's been hanging out at Nekohanten."

"What?!" Ukyou screeched. "Why is he with that bimbo?" 

"I believe you answered your own question," Akane shot back.

"Oh, we'll see about that," Ukyou snarled.

"You go do that," Akane whispered with a smirk. It'd be a nice change of pace if someone else's place got trashed instead of her own.

--------------------

The koi pond suddenly exploded into a shower of rain and fish.

"So much for those koi fish," Akane grumbled. She then blinked. "Ranma, where's your shirt?"

Ranma opened her mouth and thought better of it. "Not going to answer that."

"Were you doing something perverted?" Akane demanded grabbing the topless girl by her pigtail before she could escape.

"There's no way for me to say that without sounding like it was," Ranma grumbled. "Only did it to piss off Ucchan and Shampoo."

"What did you do?" Akane hissed dangerously.

"Ah, proved I've got the biggest chest," Ranma squeaked. "Those two will be rather busy for a while..."

Akane promptly tried to make herself a legal widow by pounding her 'husband' into the ground with one of the pond's larger rocks. She then stomped past her eldest sister back into her house.

Kasumi shook her head. "Now THAT he had coming."

--------------------

Author's Notes:
Coming next: Chapter 2 - Desperate Measure

This was a story I started years ago. Being a shorter story, I held off posting any of it until it was complete. Over the next couple weeks I will be posting the other two chapters of this three part mini-series. 		 	   		  
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