Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ A Tail To Remember ❯ Enter Ranma and Seiika, or is it Serori and Akane? ( Chapter 4 )

~Chikyuu, Nerima, Tendo Dojo, Morning~

The Sun peeked through the partially closed curtains of the
sleeping martial artist's window. She snuck in, keeping herself as
quiet as possible. Creeping up close to him, she gazed upon the
young male's handsome features, stroking his face lovingly, and tried
to coax him awake from his deep slumber. She told him of all the
wonderful things that were in store for him that day. It would be a
changing point in his life, the Sun promised, one that you will greet
with open arms and a willing heart. All you need to do is wake and
greet the morn.

Ranma just flipped over and snored loudly.

A dark cloud crossed over the Sun's gaze, mirroring the mood
the pigtailed male would be in for if he didn't get up that instant!

He flipped over again, and one of her sunbeams shone directly
in his eyes. He covered his face with an arm and snorted once, still
sleeping. The Sun snorted back and disappeared behind a bank of
clouds, giving up on the boy for the morning. He would greet the
morning--just a little bit later in the day. But she would show him
who's the boss later, with a well-placed rain cloud.

The sleeping teenager slept on, unaware of the goings on
above him. Although he wouldn't be in that restive state for long,
for the other occupant in the room, Ranma's father, Genma, had just
awoke and was preparing for the morning's sparring session by
yawning and scratching himself in several places. He smacked his
lips once and looked over at the boy, still sleeping soundly. Genma
put on a fresh gi and an evil smile and began to wake up his son.

"Ranma, wake up! It's time to train!" Genma bellowed in his
ear.

Ranma screamed and jumped eight feet in the air, hitting his
head on the ceiling. He rebounded back to the floor, landing
spread-eagled on his futon. "Kuso! Oyaji, what in the hell did you do
that for? I was sleepin' peaceful-like!" He rubbed his head and sat
up, glaring at the older male grinning at him.

"You slept long enough, boy. Let's get started." He
demonstrated by doing a few toe-touches and jumping up and down.

Ranma growled and started to stand up. He felt a little
wobbly, but just took that as an after-effect of the pre-fight flight
he had. "Fine, Oyaji. Let me change first, and then I'll kick your
ass."

"You wish! No time for clothes, boy! Out you go!" He picked
Ranma up by the front of his t-shirt and threw him out the window
and into the yard.

Ranma grabbed his clothes in his flight, and after quickly
donning his favorite red shirt and black pants, which for some
reason wouldn't slip on properly. He yanked them on hard, wincing as
a sharp pain shot up his spine, and continued his flight path outside.
He shouted a curse into the air and attempted to flip and land on his
feet. He felt different--for some reason he couldn't achieve his
normal balance. Something felt off, or wrong. But before he could
control his landing, it was made for him--face first in the garden.
Genma bounded out the window after him in pursuit.

Ranma groaned and spit out a mouthful of dirt. He cursed his
father again under his breath and laid there, trying to figure out
why he couldn't assert control over his balance this morning.

Genma landed in front of the prone Ranma and scoffed at
him. "What's wrong, Ranma?" Genma needled his offspring. "Not
awake yet? You're getting lazy, boy! Maybe it's time to go on
another training journey to cure you of this bad habit!"

"Yeah, right, Pops." He spit out another clump of dirt and sat
up. "You wouldn't miss Kasumi's cooking for nothin'. And talk about
lazy! You were in bed before I was last night."

"Shut up, boy. Let's get started, or does your mouth need a
longer workout than the rest of you?"

Ranma cracked his knuckles. "Fine, then. I can cream ya now
or later. No difference to me." With that, Ranma leaped up into a
standing position and ran at his father.

Only to fall flat on his face, tripping over an unseen obstacle.

Genma burst out laughing at the boy in the dirt. "Ranma,
maybe we should restart with the basics today, like walking!" He
laughed even louder as Ranma glared at him.

"Will you shut up? Something tripped me up." Ranma stood
and bent forward, looking for the miscreant root or whatever that
dared to get in the way and under Saotome Ranma's feet this
morning.

Genma slowly stopped laughing and wiped the tears that
formed from his fit. "Boy, at least you're good for a laugh in the..."
He trailed off and sobered quickly when he glanced over at his son.
Ranma had his back to him, but something had caught Genma's eye.

A furry brown tail was dangling from Ranma's posterior, the
tip twitching in the morning air.

Genma began to turn pale and sputter incoherently.
"What...where...when?"

Ranma glanced over his shoulder at his father. "What did you
say, Oyaji? I'll kick your hairy butt in a minute. I just want to see
what tripped me up." Genma pointed a him and sputtered more, his
face a ghost-white. "What are you pointing at? Do I have some dirt
on my butt or somethin'?" Ranma stood up and reached behind him
to brush off anything that was resting there. His hands found some
dirt, but when he ventured lower, they also found something that
felt remarkably like fur. Soft fur. "What the hell? Do I have an
animal on me?" Ranma grabbed the furry object and yanked. Hard.

Ranma's scream woke the entire Tendo residence and the
surrounding neighborhood.

He gasped for breath, unable to breathe through the
excruciating pain. He let go and stuck his hands as far away from
his body as they could go. He spoke quietly and carefully. "Oyaji,
what in the hell is attached to me?"

Genma audibly gulped and spoke one word. "Tail."

Ranma blinked. And blinked again. And once more for good
measure. "What did...What did you say, Pop?"

Genma repeated his one word, covering his face with shaky
hands. His voice cracked as he barely voiced the word. "Tail."

Ranma swallowed and reached behind him again. "That's what
I thought you said." He slowly put his hand behind him and, gently
this time, brought his tail around so he could see it. It was brown, a
dark chocolate brown with thick black hairs that stuck out
intermittently. The fur was soft and thick, and he stroked it
absently. He felt tingles travel up his spine when he went against
the grain. He brought his hand up to the base and realized it grew
right out of his spine. That was the reason it hurt like hell when he
yanked on it. Even though it was completely foreign to him, it did
feel natural to have one.

He dropped it and watched as it slowly returned to its
original position behind him, tip curling sporadically. He turned to
face his father and asked the all-important question:

"Why...why do I have a tail, Pop?"

Genma stuttered and shook his head. "I..." Before he could go
any further, a scream was heard from inside the house. Both looked
up to where the sound came from and Ranma snapped to attention.

"Akane!"

He jumped up and latched onto the frame of Akane's window,
which luckily for him, was open. He stared at Akane, who was in a
familiar position. Her arms were as far away as possible from her
body and her face had a combination of shock and horror written
upon her features. His eyes roamed her body, searching for injuries
and stopped when something grabbed his attention. A furry brown
tail almost identical to the one he just discovered on his own person
emerged from her backside, the end twitching frantically.

Ranma let out a gasp at the sight and that was when the
other members of the household came barreling in to her room.
"Akane..." He pointed at the new appendage and stared. Kasumi
covered her mouth with her hands; Nabiki stared slack-jawed, and
Soun began to get pale, putting a hand on his cheek. Genma arrived
and groaned when he saw the matching appendage on his future
daughter-in-law.

Akane turned to her family, a stricken look upon her face.
"Tail...I have tail..." She turned around as Ranma climbed in through
the window. Her eyes went wide as he walked near her and turned
around, showing her his own tail.

She pointed at his new part and gasped. "You...tail...too...you!"
He nodded and started to speak, but several thumps coming from
the doorway halted his conversation. Kasumi and Nabiki were looking
down at their fathers, who had just passed out from shock.

All four conscious beings muttered, "Oh, my."

Nabiki looked up at the newly-tailed iinazukes and blinked
slowly. She turned to Kasumi and asked, "So, when's breakfast?"

Ranma and Akane both facefaulted, and Kasumi looked up at
her younger sister and smiled. "Oh, Nabiki-chan!" She turned
toward the kitchen and called over her shoulder. "It's the same time
as always!"

Ranma and Akane greeted the floor once again. They sat
there, dazed, shaking their heads in disbelief. Nabiki watched the
two with an amused smile and shook her own. "I have a feeling the
two lummoxes on the floor here have an explanation on why the two
of you are crossing the species barrier." She smirked and reached
down to grab a hold of an arm of her father. "Hmm...I can't wait to
hear what they have to say." She gave Ranma a thoughtful look. "Do
you want me to call Auntie Nodoka, Ranma-kun? She might actually
have an answer to this...the real one, at that." Ranma nodded slowly.
She smiled and held her free hand out. "Five thousand Yen."

Both Ranma and Akane scowled. "Nabiki..." Akane growled.

Nabiki put an innocent look upon her face. "What?" She was
surprised, though, that when Akane growled, she actually *growled*.
Nabiki wasn't aware that Akane could actually even make that noise.
Naturally, she didn't show her surprise outwardly.

Ranma scowled at her and rumbled deep in his throat. "No
thanks." He stood up and brushed by her, grabbed his father's arm,
and dragged him downstairs. "I'll call her myself." She shrugged
and turned back to her sister, who was still staring at her. She gave
her a small smile. "See you at breakfast. I'll take 'Tousan
downstairs." She held onto his arm and pulled him down the stairs,
following in Ranma's footsteps.

Akane just watched them leave. She blinked when she heard
a small squeal coming from her bed. She turned and smiled at
P-chan, who's eyes darted back and forth from her face to her new
tail. "P-chan! How's my baby this morning?" She cooed to him. He
gave her a squeal and jumped into her waiting arms. He snuggled in
her arms while she scratched a particular spot he enjoyed behind
his ears. After a few minutes of loving, P-chan jumped down from
his mistress' arms and made his way out the door. Akane followed
him out, but turned in the bath. She closed the door and undressed,
preparing for her morning bath. She scrubbed and rinsed clean
before stepping into the furo, sighing in contentment as the hot
water seeped into her bones and muscles.

Akane began to think about her tail, and what it signified.
"Hopefully, nothing big. I really, really hope it means nothing big."
She sighed and held her tail in her hands, smoothing the wet fur
down. She wrinkled her nose. "Eww. Wet fur smell. Almost as bad
as Saotome-ojisan in panda form." She petted her tail absently as
she thought about panda's son, Ranma. It was strange that he had
one as well as she did. "I just wonder what it means."

Suddenly, a snatch of a dream popped into her mind.
**********

~Somewhere not yet defined~

Akane stood in a giant hall. She looked around and saw richly
colored tapestries adorned the walls and portraits of people that
she didn't recognize. Thick, deep-purple carpeting covered the
floor. She saw several clumps of people scattered throughout the
vast room. In front of her sat a gigantic throne and an identical, yet
smaller one, flanked each side. In the center throne sat a large
man; his thick black hair stood virtually on end. A goatee framed his
frowning mouth. Bushy eyebrows were drawn together in a deep
scowl. He wore a set of heavy armor and a cape was draped over the
arm of the throne. He had his arms crossed and his eyes closed.

Akane turned to her right and saw a young boy, no older than
two, standing next to her, mimicking the man up front. His frown
was as deep and his scowl as dark. Akane saw his hair was black and
stuck up like black flames. A thin strip of gold curved around his
forehead. The boy opened his eyes and turned his coal-black gaze
to look at her. He frowned even deeper, turning away when the man
up front barked a command in a language she didn't understand. The
boy next to her answered back in the same unfamiliar language and
she turned back to the male in front.

The King, she guessed, was saying something to her, and
automatically responded, even though she had the faintest idea what
she was saying. She sounded angry, or hurt, though. The King
turned his attention to her left and a boy stepped out from the
shadows. It was Ranma--but not. He looked the same, except his
hair was sticking out everywhere and he looked to be about the same
age as the boy next to her. He wore the same armor that the boy
next to her wore, except the color of the jumpsuit he wore
underneath the gleaming white armor was a deep purple; it almost
matched the carpet.

Ranma came forward and kneeled before the King and spoke
in the same language as everyone else. The King responded and
nodded his head. Ranma stood and came back to stand slightly
behind Akane, as a guard would. She noticed as he walked back to
her, that he had a tail, like he does now. She glanced over at the
boy next to her and saw that his tail was wrapped around his waist.
She felt for her own and took note that hers was wrapped around
her waist as well.

The King spoke and nodded again, and two guards appeared
out of the shadows. They picked up Ranma and Akane and turned to
leave the room. Akane struggled in her guard's grasp, and shouted
out in that language again. The boy that matched the King shouted
out and tried to go after her. She reached out to him, but the
guard held her fast. Another guard appeared from the shadowed
sidelines and tried to restrain the boy. He shook free and shot a
beam of light from his hands, disintegrating the hapless guard. A
door shut in front of her and the boy and the image disappeared.
******

~Present time, Tendo-ke~

Akane blinked and shook her head, clearing it of the lingering
images. "Where in the world did that come from? And where was
I?" She was brought out of her pondering when Kasumi announced
breakfast and the Fathers' awakening. Akane hurried out of the
furo and got dressed quickly. She put on a skirt because she tried
shorts--her tail got in the way. That's how she discovered it in the
first place. But her tail was not cooperating, so using a scissors, she
cut open a hole in the back of her skirt, allowing the new appendage
to be free.

She went downstairs and joined her family at the table,
sitting next to the already seated Ranma, her usual spot. Only to
stand up again because she had pinched her tail. Ranma looked up at
her and shrugged helplessly, holding his own tail in his lap. She
remembered how she and that boy had rested their tails around
their waists, and tried it for herself. It felt sort of funny, but she
could get used to it. She sat down again, noting that it didn't get in
the way this time. Ranma raised an eyebrow at her actions and
smiling, did it himself. They both watched the two adult males
slowly make their way to the table, groaning and holding their heads.

Ranma and Akane just stared at their fathers, who were
doing a good job of ignoring their children. Kasumi set out the food
and everyone began to help themselves to the dishes. The silence
around the breakfast table was oppressing, to say the least. The
only sounds made were of bowls and glasses being set down. Tea
cups tinkled against their saucers. Ranma would sneak a glance here
and there at Akane, focusing on her face, or peeking at her tail.

Akane, though, concentrated on the food in front of her. She
was hungry this morning. Actually, starving was more the word.
Kasumi's food never tasted so good! She ate and ate, not getting
enough to satisfy her stomach. Ranma ate in his normal pattern,
piggishly, but that was no surprise. Still, no one spoke about the
events of the morning.

Soon enough, and too soon for the hungry members of the
household, the food was polished off, and tea was re-served.
Everyone found their cups to be the most fascinating items, when
they weren't drinking out of them, that is. Finally, Nabiki broke the
painful silence.

"Ranma," everyone looked up and directed their attention
toward her. "Ranma, did you call Saotome-obaasan yet?" Genma and
Soun opened their eyes in shock and relief, respectively, at what
Nabiki said.

He nodded, looking back into his tea. "Yeah, 'Kaasan is on her
way."

Genma gulped and spoke fiercely. "What did you say to her,
Ranma?"

He eyed his father warily. "I told her to come over right
away. It was important for her to do so."

"And..."

"And what?"

"Did you tell her about the...thing?" He swallowed again and
threw a glance at Soun.

Ranma nodded. "Yeah, I did. She asked why she had to get
here immediately an' I told her me an' Akane grew tails last night.
She was quiet for a long time. I thought she fainted or somethin'.
She then asked if I actually said 'tails.' and I said 'Yeah, brown
tails.'" He took a sip of his tea. "She then muttered something
about giant monkeys and green men." He studied the fathers'
reaction to his last comment, but they didn't even flinch. He
continued. "Anyway, she said she'd be over as soon as possible. She
had to find somethin' first and then she's come over. She did
mention taking a cab, so she should be here soon."

Soun nodded his head. "That's good to hear. I need to find
something as well. I'll be back soon. I think it's up in the attic..."
He nodded to Kasumi. "Breakfast was delicious, as always,
Kasumi-chan." Everyone mumbled an agreement.

Kasumi smiled and nodded back. "Thank you, Otousan,
everyone." She turned to her youngest sister. "You seemed extra
hungry this morning, Akane-chan."

Akane rubbed her stomach in agreement. "Un! I was, Kasumi.
Everything seemed to taste especially good today, too. Actually, I'm
still hungry. Are there any leftovers from last night?"

Nabiki snorted. "In this household? Yeah, right, little sis."
She turned to her father before he left the room. "So are you
going to explain what's going on, 'Tousan?"

Soun started to sweat. Big. "Well, I would, but Nodoka-san
could probably explain everything the best. We should wait for
her." He hurriedly exited the room.

Genma stood up to follow his friend. "Excellent idea, Tendo.
She would be the most eloquent on this matter."

Ranma crossed his arms and sneered at his father. "Eloquent,
my ass! You just don't want to tell us about me an' Akane's tails!
What're you hiding, Oyaji?" Ranma stood up and started to move
menacingly towards his father.

"Now, boy, Ranma, let's think rationally about this." Genma
started to back up as he saw Ranma's aura flare into the visible
spectrum. "Tendo's right. Your mother would be able to explain it
the best."

They had backed out into the yard. "So, you are hiding
something! Okay, Oyaji, if you won't talk now, I'll just have to beat
it out of ya. Don't matter to me." Ranma cracked his knuckles,
flared his aura, and jumped at his father.

Genma jumped up in response and a volley of furious blows
were exchanged between the pair. It ended quickly, though, when
Ranma feinted and kicked Genma in the stomach, hard. Genma
landed on the ground with an 'oof.' He laid there and didn't get back
up. Ranma, however, hung in the air after his father had fallen.

"See, Oyaji? I can kick your ass anytime, anyplace,
anywhere."

"Ranma!"

"Nani?" Ranma turned to Akane, who had called out his name.

She was staring at him with her mouth open and pointed at
him. "Ranma...you're floating!" He looked down at himself and saw
that he had not yet returned to the ground. A soft blue aura
surrounded him, as well.

"Sugoi!"

"How are you doing that?" Akane came closer to him and
stared at his aura incredibly.

"I don't know, Akane. All I did was jump up here to fight with
Pop, just like normal."

"Oh my." Both Ranma and Akane turned around and saw
Saotome Nodoka staring at them, one hand on her cheek and the
other clutching a box.

Ranma blushed and promptly fell to ground, the blue aura
dissipating. "Ugh! Ohaiyo, 'Kaasan."

Nodoka nodded. "Ohaiyo, Ranma-chan, Akane-chan."

Akane nodded to Nodoka and turned to Ranma, offering her
hand to give him help up. He smiled at her and accepted it. At the
moment they touched hands, a flash went off in their minds that
awakened a memory long hidden from them.
*********

~Vejiita-sei, Main Arena, Quite awhile ago.~

Ranma blinked and looked around. He noted he was in an
open-aired stadium. There were pairs and groups of people
surrounding him, fighting against each other. Everyone had some
sort of armor on, from being full suited to just a stomach-plate.
There were different sizes and shapes, but everyone was fighting.
He looked down at himself and saw he wore the same type of armor,
with a black jumpsuit underneath. His tail was wrapped around his
waist.

His eyes wandered around the stadium; the stands were
overflowing with people yelling and cheering loudly. A pillar stood in
the center of the ring, high above everyone else. Ranma squinted
and could barely make out three people on top, watching the
matches. His danger sense kicked in, and barely ducked a kick to
his head. He turned around and returned it to the tall skinny male
that had attacked him. He quickly took the inexperienced fighter
out.

Ranma never felt so good! He could feel the spirit of the
fight flow through his blood, and it pumped him up. The adrenaline
pulsed and surged through his system as he attacked the next
nearest warrior. He couldn't believe how easy it was to take all the
other warriors out. He attacked the next, and the next, until it was
only him and one other male left.

A horn blew and the other male turned to face him. He was
huge; Ranma felt very small next to him. He had faced similar-sized
opponents before, but he still felt insignificant next to the hulking
male. He had muscles upon muscles, and unlike the other warriors,
he had no pants on, and a full set of chest armor. Ranma looked up
and up into his face; a bushy mustache adorned his cruelly smirking
mouth, and sweat shone on his slick head, the hot sun bouncing off
his baldness. An announcement went over the loudspeakers and the
crowd erupted in cheers and applause. He watched as the huge bald
man waved to the crowd and strutted over to the pillar. Ranma
followed him and stood next to him nervously. The man kneeled and
bowed his head. Ranma mimicked his action; he felt it was what he
was supposed to do.

He was startled when the pillar started to descend from its
height. It touched the ground and the crowd went silent. Ranma
saw a small pair of feet come into his line of vision, and felt a tap on
his shoulder. He looked up and stared into the prettiest brown eyes
he had ever seen. Actually, where had he seen those eyes before?

Akane.

The girl in front of him with the long, deep-purple dress, a
thin band of gold encircling her head, and tail waving gently behind
her, was Akane.

'Akane' spoke to him, and he didn't understand her. He just
looked at her quizzically. She spoke again, in a language he didn't
understand. Heck, if she spoke in English, he wouldn't have
understood her, so taken in by the sight in front of him. She
scowled at him and repeated what she said. He tried to tell her that
he didn't understand what she was saying, but those words didn't
come out. He said something entirely different, and in the same
language she spoke.

"Yes, my Princess." Ranma was startled that he understood
what he said. Other words becoming clear to him as well.

"Your heart is mine, for mine." Akane spoke to him again,
holding her right hand outstretched, palm down.

He bent his head again in a bow, then stood up and looked up
into her eyes. "My heart is yours, for yours." He put his left hand
under hers, palm up. Her eyes softened a bit, and she continued.

"Your mind is mine, for mine." A bright light started to form
around the two.

"My mind is yours, for yours."

"Your body is mine, for mine." The light started to pulse
brightly.

"My body is yours, for yours."

"Your soul is mine, for mine." The pulsing rose to a frantic
rate.

"My soul is yours, for yours." The light flashed brightly once
and settled between their outstretched hands.

They both spoke at the same time. "We are one: heart,
mind, body, soul. To be apart is being halved; together, we are
complete. Eternal and unchanging. Nothing will sever the Bond."
With the last word, they brought their hands together with a loud
clap and the light disappeared. They pressed their hands on each
other's chest and the light flared again, sealing the newly-created
bond and ending the ceremony.

The crowd went ballistic. Not many people witnessed the
Bonding ceremony of a female member of the Royal Family, since not
many were ever born. And for one to be so young, it just wasn't
heard of. The other three people on the ground: the King, Ranma
guessed, and Akane's father; a young boy about the same age as him
and Akane, looking almost identical to the King, and the tall bald guy
were staring at the two of them in shock.

The boy spoke, sputtering his words out incredulously,
scowling as deep as possible. "Seiika-chan, this was supposed to be
the choosing of Royal Honor Guard!"

'Seiika' shrugged but didn't break eye contact with Ranma. "I
know, Vejiita-chan."

The King came over and knelt on one knee beside Seiika and
Ranma. He placed a large callused hand on her shoulder.
"Seiika-oujo-chan, you are sure about this? You realize you are
Bonded to Serori-kun here, not a warrior-bond, but a mate-bond?"

She finally broke eye contact with 'Serori' and nodded,
smiling. "I know, Papa. Serori-chan and I talked about this
beforehand."

The King raised his eyebrows and faced Ranma. "Serori?
What part do you play in this?"

Serori swallowed but did not back down. "Vejiita-Ousama,
Seiika-chan and I were in agreement with the Bonding. I was to win
today and she would choose me as her honor guard. We would
perform the mating ceremony, instead of the honor guard ritual.
We both wanted this." He stuck his chin out and looked the King in
the eyes, daring him to challenge the Bond.

Vejiita-Ou silently looked between the two and made up his
mind. He may not have liked it, but it must be honored. He stood up
and silenced the roaring crowd. He raised his hands and proclaimed,
"The Bond is Created. Let no one challenge it, for fear of Death
Itself."

The crowd erupted again, celebrating the union of the two
souls. Everything fuzzed and faded out as the memory ended.
*************

~Chikyuu, Tendo yard, Present~

Ranma and Akane blinked back into real time and stared into
each other's eyes, still holding hands.

"Seiika."

"Serori."

They sat there for a minute until a coughing noise startled
them out of their trance. They looked around them and saw that
everyone had gathered around them, staring at them in fascination
and confusion. They blushed and let go of each other's hands,
putting their hands on their chests, where they rested in the
memory. Ranma quickly stood up and went over to his mother.
"'Kaasan, do you know what happened to us?" Ranma held out his tail
for emphasis. "Do you know why we have tails?"

Nodoka looked at her son in the eyes and sighed. She nodded
once.

Akane spoke quietly. "We aren't actually your children, are
we?"

The three adults looked at each other and shook their heads.
Ranma looked from his mother, to his father, and then to
Akane. He moved closer to her and asked, "We weren't born on
Chikyuu either, right?"

All three shook their heads again. Kasumi and Nabiki gasped
aloud. "They're...aliens?"

"Oh, my." Everyone turned around and saw Ryouga standing
there, mouth gaping open, and dripping wet. "Ranma...Akane...aliens?"
He hiccuped and laughed deliriously. "Ha, ha, you guys. It is a joke,
right? Right?" His eyes darted from one person to the next. "The
tails are props for a joke, right?" Everyone kept staring at him, and
he saw Ranma shake his head and mouth the word, 'No.' He laughed
weakly and fainted on the spot.

"Oh, dear. Poor Ryouga." Kasumi muttered.

Nabiki blinked at her sister. "Poor Ryouga? Poor us! Poor
Ranma and Akane! They're the aliens here. Who knows, maybe we
are all aliens and one day the mother ship is going to come down
from the sky and take us all away back to the planet Zeldar or
something!" Nabiki panted, working herself into a frenzy.

"Vejiita-sei," Akane muttered.

Nodoka turned to Akane. "What did you say, Akane-chan?"

She spoke louder. "We're from Vejiita-sei. And our race is
called 'Saiya-jiin.' Ranma's real name is Serori and mine is Seiika."
She frowned, thinking about more details of their true identities.

Nodoka stared at Akane curiously, and shook her head. She
indicated in the direction of the house. "Why don't we go inside, and
we'll talk about it more there, all right?" Everyone nodded and
moved inside, Genma and Soun picking up Ryouga and depositing him
in the dojo on the way inside. Ranma and Akane lingered in the back
of the group.

"Ranma," Akane started slowly, turning to face him. "That
was you, in my dream, wasn't it? You were Serori..."

"And you are Seiika-oujosama, of Vejiita-sei," Ranma
finished, glancing down into Akane's face. "It was my dream as well.
Although, I don't think it was a real dream..."

"It really happened, and we were Bonded at two years old."
Akane finished for him, looking up into his face. "Wow."

Ranma stared in Akane's eyes, moving closer. "Yeah, wow."
Ranma placed his hands on her shoulders, and Akane rested hers on
his well-defined chest. They moved even closer together, Ranma
leaning down, and Akane standing on her tiptoes. Just as their lips
were about to touch, a voice called out from the doorway.

"Ranma-chan, Akane-chan, are you...? Nodoka stopped suddenly when
she saw and identified the position the two newly identified
Saiya-jiin were in. 'Oh, my! Don't let me interrupt you two!"

The moment's spell broken, Ranma and Akane blushed deeply
and giving each other a longing glance, hurried inside, brushing by
Nodoka without looking at her. Nodoka giggled like a school girl, and
picking up the box she returned for, went inside to join the rest of
the family for the discussion of a lifetime, and events that seemed
to happen a lifetime ago.
**********