Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ Dark Pasts and New Beginnings ❯ Chapter 2 ( Chapter 2 )

Chapter 2 Her Story Unfolds

She could feel her whole body aching as her mind came back to the living. She squinted and tried to open one eye, then the other. Her sight was met with a huge blanket of sparkles in the sky. 'The stars…' she thought, as she tried to remember what she was doing outside. Then her eyes widen as the events that transpired came back to her. She tried to sit up but she was forced to slump back to the bed roll she was lying on with a groan. She brought her right hand up to her face in a vain attempt to rid herself of the terrible headache that was coming on. Then it registered in her mind, 'Bed roll? What the…' her hand came away from her face and she looked towards the direction that she could feel heat coming from.

A fire was smoldering to her right. A makeshift spit was put together over it, but nothing was being cooked. She took a longer look now at her surroundings. It seemed as though it was late at night, probably 10 or 11 o'clock by the looks of it. She groaned as her head throbbed again and her hand came up to her face. She closed her eyes and tried to remember how she had gotten away from Kuno's men.

Then it hit her. She remembered a man before she blacked out. He had said something that made the ninjas pause, and then all had went dark for her. 'I wonder if he...' she broke off as she heard footsteps coming from the other side of the fire. She dropped her arm and tried her best to act a sleep.

She watched through a squinted eye as the same man from when she remembered came into the campsite. He still wore his straw hat and cloak, but now he held a brown bag of some sort. She watched as he sat on a log that he had probably pulled over by the fire, and then opened his sack. She licked her dry lips as she watched him pull out half a dozen quail, and begin taking off their feathers.

"If I was going to harm you, I would have already done it, miss." Said the man, looking up from his dinner preparation.

The girl's eyes shot open. "How…"

"Your breathing…and your ki was different from when I left." He stated as he went back to his job. "Just lay back, you've lost a lot of your strength. I'll be done with dinner soon."

She relaxed somewhat but still kept her eye on the man. She watched as he finished de-feathering the quail and reached for the spit. All six were jammed onto the makeshift stick in a row. Then, he reached into his small pack that she didn't notice earlier and brought out what seemed to be a few small, leather bags. He opened on and reached inside, his hand came back out with a small amount of what seemed like salt. He sprinkled the herb onto each quail equally, tied that pouch, and opened another. Two other spices were added to dinner before he finally replaced the spit back over the fire.

"What's your name." Said the man as he sat back down on the log. He watched intently as he rotated the food slowly, as to not overcook or undercook it.

"Umm…Akane, Akane Tendo." The girl said with a little trepidation. True he hadn't done anything to her, 'Least I hope not,' but that doesn't mean he wasn't going to sometime soon. She waited for him to introduce himself.

A minute…five minutes pass, but no return answer. Akane could feel her temper rising as her brow furrows. "Well…" she says to him, in an annoyed tone.

The man looks up at her, "Well what, dinner will be ready shortly." He said and gazed back down at the birds.

"Not the dinner," Akane huffs, "your name. Who are you?" She stares at him with a frown on her face.

Once again his gaze rises to her. "I'm just a traveler, on a journey." He says simply, as is she should have already known that.

Once again silence. If Akane could move right now she would have pounded the daylights out of this guy. "Grr, I have eyes. I could see you were that much. What's your name though?"

Ranma just smiles and continues to cook. After another five minutes Akane just 'huffs' and lays back down, staring at the stars. A wonderful smell in now waffing over in her direction. She licks her dry lips and grimaces at her parched throat.

<Bomp> She looked down into her lap and sees a leather bag, used for carrying water. She immediately reaches for it and opened the cork top. She seemed to guzzle down the savory liquid forever. Finally with a 'sigh,' she drops the top of the bag from her mouth and replaced the cork.

"Thanks." She says to the man at the fire. He just nods and removes the spit. She watches as he pulls out a small dagger, and cuts into each one, seeing if it was ready. He nodded to himself.

The next thing she knew, Akane had a stick of her own, supporting two of the quail. She looks up and watches as the man returned to his log. She smiles graciously when she caught his eye. One timid bit, and her eyes shot wide. 'Delicious!!' she screamed mentally. She then proceeded to ravage the cooked birds.

The man's heart had skipped a beat when the girl, Akane, had smiled at him. Then he smiled as he saw her tear into her dinner. He began eating his own.

Ten minutes later, they both were done and were just staring at the fire, Akane still on the bedroll, and the man on the log. "Why were they after you?" The man suddenly asked, looking towards her.

She almost jumped at the break in the silence. "Its…its nothing really. Just some guys trying to take advantage of me or something probably." She said hoping he would believe it. Evidently he didn't since he was now raising an eyebrow at her.

"Really now…a dozen trained ninja is after you and you are trying to tell me that they just wanted to rape you?" he asked, as if it was the dumbest thing he had ever heard.

Akane let out a deep breath and looked up towards the man. She almost gasped now that she had a good view of his face. 'So blue…' she thought as she stared into the endless blue eyes. A minute later she dropped her line of vision. "Well…those were some of the ninja of Tatewaki Kuno, the leader of a local daimyo that has grown in power since the last revolution. He is an insane man that was hell bent on taking over Japan, and he wanted me by his side…

~Flashback~

We see a carriage parked outside a large, walled in house. Guards stand watch with swords at their hips around the entrance. A sign hangs to the right of the entrance that read: Tendo Dojo. The scene changes to inside the walls, where we see a middle aged man in a dark gee, with a mustache and long black hair, speaking to another man. The man was eloquently dressed in samurai garb, and he holds his head up high as if to say he was better then all who sees him.

"So, Tendo-san, I have come once again to ask for hand of the beauteous Akane. For truly one so pure was made to for one such as I." stated the man.

"She has already told me, as I have told you many times before Kuno-san, she doesn't wish to marry you." Said the other man, now identified as Tendo.

Kuno's brow furrowed and his mouth snarled in rage for a moment, and then he seemed to calm himself. "Very well, but hear me peasant, the fierce Akane Tendo will be mine." He said, turning back towards the carriage.

"One way or another…" Tendo heard as the gate closed. For some reason, hearing that man say that made his blood run cold.

~End Flashback~

"Ah, I see. An eccentric, lovesick, megalomaniac, all rolled in one. A vital combination you got there if you ask me." stated Ranma as he nodded and poked at the fire.

"Yeah. Well, it happened a few days later…"

~Flashback~

Soun Tendo was sitting in the dojo mediating. His daughters were all busy with whatever they do during the morning, and so he was trying to relax a bit. He could hear his oldest humming as she made her way around the kitchen. Akane was out for her morning run and Nabiki was, who knows where. A sound brought him back to the world.

<THUMP>

He got up and made his way outside. What he saw made his blood run cold. An arrow, with a message tied to it, was imbedded in the side of the house. He walked over and with trembling hands removed the note. He opened it and read, and his face went pale…

To Soun Tendo,

I told you peasant, that I always receive what I want. I have graciously taken your daughter off of your hands, so do not worry for her safety. If there is any attempt to pursue or 'rescue' the fair maiden…your family will be no more.

Soon to be son-in-law,

Takewaki Kuno

~End Flashback~

Ranma nodded his head as she finished her story. "So now, you escaped and are trying to make it home…" He says.

Akane nodded her head. "Yes, that's why they were after me."

Ranma stares at the fire a bit before looking up to her. "And where does your family reside?" he asked, looking at her.

"Central Tokyo, it's…a large dojo. My father hasn't taught much since our mother passed, but it was once the largest in the city." Akane says, looking down at her hands at the memory of her mother.

Silence prevails for some more minutes. Then, "Very well, get some sleep. We will need to make an early start in the morning." Says Ranma getting up and making his way to a nearby tree. He sits down and leans back against it, with one knee to his chest. He bows his head and rests his sword against his shoulder.

"Umm…where are we going tomorrow?" Akane asks in a small voice, settling down into the bedroll. She felt kind of embarrassed taking the man's sleeping roll from him.

"Why Tokyo of course. Your family must be worried sick." He states matter of factly.

Akane's eyes shot open wide and a large smile makes it across her face. "Thank you so much…Umm…" She trails off, not knowing what to call him.

" Its Ranma…" he says with his eyes still closed.

Akane smiles again, "Thank you Ranma."

So they both settle down for the night. Ranma knew that more of this, Kuno guys men would be tracking them, but he was determined to get this woman back to her family, even if it meant killing every last one of them…

Author Notes:

GUAAAAAAAAAHHHH <pulls hair out>. COME ON PEOPLE THIS IS NOT A KENSHIN LOOK ALIKE. Many people keep saying it, but just cause hes an ex assassin in medieval Japan doesn't make him Kenshin. I love "Rounini Kenshin" to death, but if I wanted to make a crossover, I would say it. ( : P ) Besides, Ranma still kills people, no Sakabato and he doesn't say 'Oro'.

Anyway, now that's out of my system, I'd like to thank you all for stopping by and reading. A new chapter will be out soon.

Next up: The road to Tokyo

Thx

Eternal Flame