Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ Grand Theft Auto: Nerima ❯ Space Cowboy ( Chapter 15 )
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
Space Cowboy
He was dreaming now, nothing too special about it though. Just a bunch of images to keep his mind busy before he woke up to face the world once more. He'd been so burnt out that he couldn't help but sleep well for the rest of the night and well into the afternoon. He'd woken up a couple times but blocked out the sun and pulled a mystery blanket over his face to escape back to that comfort he needed. However it was ruined at about one in the afternoon when he rolled off his little bed and onto a small, yet outstanding rock below. “ARGH!”
He pushed himself up and realized that his back was stiff along with a terrible hunger pain in his stomach, but his attention was taken away from that when he tried to pull his legs up and felt another pain that just didn't make his day. “OW!” He'd forgotten about the puncture wound on his calf as well as the mile high road rash he had happening on the other leg. Ranma gave up and fell on his back again, right back onto that rock and moaned. He frowned as he looked up at the wooden ceiling with a half tear in his eye and knew at that moment that it was going to be a bad day. “Today's gonna blow…”
“You're a noisy when you wake up, you know?”
Ranma rolled his neck and turned his head to the voice. “Technically I haven't even got out of bed yet and I already feel like crap…” Ranma saw his reflection in a mirror just a few feet away and saw all the bruises and gashes on his face. “And I look like five miles of bad roadwork…”
Happosia shrugged his little shoulders and said. “Well you did manage to catapult yourself off a police barricade, so its expected that your landing wasn't the smoothest, I'm just concerned that you haven't been keeping up with your practice if a tiny fall like that could hurt you this badly.”
Ranma thought about it for a little bit and said. “Whoa… I was convinced I was going to see Elvis.”
“What?”
“Never mind… And you're right I haven't been keeping up.”
“May I ask why?”
“I was bed ridden for two months and before that I had no one to keep me in shape.”
“I call it laziness myself.”
Ranma was still flat on his back and let out a breath. “Yeah, probably… I guess I should thank you or something.”
The old man let a puff of his pipe blow out of his mouth and said. “No problem. I saw my best student in need of my help so I merely helped him in a time of need. I am still disappointed at how easily you were defeated. You're going to need to start training again my boy.”
Ranma finally managed to sit up and got an arm on his bed. “Howling monkeys are more likely to come flying out of my ass old man. I'm too busy for that crap right now.”
“Still and ungrateful brat I see…”
“Think what you want old man, but I found out something that I don't think you know yet.”
“Oh?”
Ranma managed to lift himself onto the edge of the bed and let out a breath of relief when he planted himself on it. “I found out that no matter how much martial arts you know, and no matter how hard you train it, hone it, and focus it, you still won't be able to walk that well after taking a bullet.”
Happosia raised an eyebrow and gave Ranma a look. “You're sure about that?”
Ranma patted his chest and said. “Thanks for patching me up, but I'd like to burst your bubble by saying that these were made with a gun. I'm lucky to be alive old man.”
“Your actions say otherwise.”
“Oh, boy here comes the lecture…”
“Hmph.” The old man crossed his arms and stuck his nose in the air. “I remember having a rude foul mouthed student but he was tolerable back then.”
“That was then this is now, don't confuse the two old man.”
“So that's how it is?”
Ranma nodded. “Yup. I've been told that every one in some way has managed to stick a big old knife in my back, so I'm sorry if I'm coming off as a bit of a jerk right now.”
“Did you even listen to any of them Ranma? You must have known what happened to that poor Amazon girl.”
“I heard… I can't say I don't care, because I do. She helped me so I'm gonna return the favor by killing a bad man.”
The old man laughed lightly. “I hope you don't think that's going to make things better, do you?”
“Ranma started to stretch out his arms and cracked his back. “It's the best I can do, I guess. But really, what more can I do?”
“You can open your ears and hear what happened. Maybe you'll find out something to forgive them.”
Ranma laughed sarcastically and found his magnum. After giving the revolver a spin he spoke with his head shaking. “How can I forgive Ryouga old man? What about my story? Every one knows that little nut shell.”
“What happened to her was unforgivable I'll admit, and I'll even admit that Ryouga deserves punishment for what he's done, but you must realize that the world doesn't revolve around you boy. That's just a fantasy for people who are either full of themselves, or have no one to turn to.”
“You hit the nail right on the head with that one old man. I have no one to turn to anymore. How can I know that they won't do what Ryouga did?”
“Because every one but the Amazons and a few selected people don't know that you are still alive boy. How do you suppose they were able to identify the body found at the scene as you?”
“Dumbasses? Technical error?”
“Doctor Tofu made a few calls and arrange for your father to identify the body as yours.”
“Dad? Why would he lie about me?”
“He lied to protect you until you could recovered.”
Ranma had to roll that around in his head for a little bit. It didn't make sense to him. “Why Pops though? I thought he hated me.”
“You have to open your eyes boy.”
“They are open, and I'm not seeing anything.”
“Open them wider then. He's one of few that didn't take any bribes to sell you out. He was trying to keep you away so you wouldn't end up like you did on that night.”
“Ok… Why not mom? How come she couldn't do it?”
“Wider Ranma. As lousy as your father is he is still a father nonetheless. He's done many stupid things before, but what he'd never do is hand you over to some one that wanted to kill you.”
“We're talking about MY dad right? He's thrown me to the wolves more often then I can count.”
“But how many of them were times you couldn't make it out? I think it's called tough love.”
“Ok, I'll try an accept that, but again, why not mom?”
The old man shrugged. “She didn't know her son. All she knew about her son was that he was a psychopath and all the stories you left behind in all those places you raised Hell in.”
Ranma felt like he'd just been jabbed in the stomach but he was getting used to it. “Ouch…” Ranma gave it a bit of thought before he went on. “I guess it's easy to sell out a psychopath you've never met before…”
“She just wanted to see you. Even if that meant in police custody.”
Ranma scratched his head and picked at his leg for a second. “I guess that's why she was spooked when she saw me.” Ranma kept picking at his scabs and went on. “Thinking back on it now I must have given her a number when I beat the living daylights out of Pops.”
“Well I can't say he didn't deserve it, however he's hardly been a match for you for a long time now. I think if he wasn't drunk he could have defended himself a little better.”
Then Ranma stopped for a second. The old man had just spoken a small little detail that could have been easily overlooked, but he said it like he was there. How did he know his old man was drunk when he gave him the beating? “How did you know he was drunk old man?”
“It's just what I heard.”
“From who?”
“Why does it matter boy?”
Ranma gave the old man an icy glance and said. “It matters a lot old man.” Ranma aimed his gun at Happosia and asked kindly. “Am I being paranoid old man? I can't help but think that you know something I don't.”
The old man smiled and let some smoke pass out of his nose. “I know a lot more then you ever will boy, and where I get my information from is one of my secrets.”
“I'm not in the mood to play games old man. I've been sold out by every body so far, what's different about you?”
“Now you are being paranoid boy. Why would they even bother dealing with a washed up old fart like me? I didn't sell you out boy, and I can assure you that. Now tell me this. If you shot me what would you do?”
“I'd probably celebrate.”
“Do you even know where you are? Do you know your way back into town? Do you even know where I keep the food around here?”
Ranma's eye twitch and then the hammer came back. “I'm sure I can find everything fine.”
“Not on those legs you can't.”
Ranma looked down but only for a brief moment and in that time the old man gave his pipe a shake to let the burning ash inside to fly out and fall on Ranma's wound. “ARGH!” Ranma swept it off quickly but as he did so the old man pulled the gun right out of Ranma's hand and gave it a looking over. “HEY!”
“This is a fine gun you have here boy. Very old school if I do say so myself. Now you're going to listen to what this old man's going to say or you're not getting it back.”
Ranma didn't have much choice so he just sat holding his throbbing leg. “Fine…”
“I'm telling you this only once boy, I never really got involved with this whole situation. It doesn't really concern me if you know what I mean.”
“Greedy as always I see.”
“It's rude to interrupt. Now ever since you ran away everybody you left behind has been sliding into troubled times. I'm sure you've seen this by now.”
“Not my problem.”
“It is my boy. It very well is your problem.”
“They stabbed me in the back. Why shouldn't I walk away?”
“Because this whole thing started with you walking away Ranma. You turned your back on them first, so now you're left to face the consequences of your actions.”
“I remember being chased out and having not much other choice then showing them my back, but hey, what do I know?”
“You still ran boy and since you started you've been spiraling downwards. You've committed crime, you've abused people's lives, and you've abused yourself with drugs and alcohol.”
“I believe that's my problem and none of your business. I don't bust your balls when ever you smoke old man.”
The old man lightly tossed the gun back into Ranma's lap and spoke. “I suppose it isn't my business, but maybe I should start making it my business.”
“Great timing old man.” Ranma started clapping his hands. “I love it. Come in after every things been done, so why didn't you think about getting involved before?”
“Because this is your fight Ranma. This is your responsibility. I gave you the training and discipline to take care of your fights and you went and screwed it up.”
Ranma was starting to have enough of this chastising and found a large old stick he could use as a cane. “Yeah, I guess I screwed up. Lord knows I can't save any one anymore either, so I guess I'll just go out an get shot then.”
Ranma managed to get to his feet a kept his weight on the stick. “Where are you going boy? You're in no shape to be walking around the woods in the middle of nowhere.”
“I'm going to somewhere that isn't here. Don't follow me old man.”
“I wasn't planning to boy.” As Ranma found something that was like a door he pushed it open to have the sunlight smack him in the face. Before he stepped out the old man asked a question. “I'm curious boy. Have you visited your lady's grave yet?”
Ranma's eyes went wide for a brief second and then they went cold. “Why would I want to go see a mound of dirt with a rock sticking out of it?”
“I see… So what about that girl Ukyo? Aren't you going to help her?”
“She doesn't need my help…” Ranma stood at the door with his head hanging down into the open air.
“You know… She was never in a coma.”
“I probably could have guessed if I'd bothered to think about it.”
“She's still in the hospital though. That Jasper character has kept her drugged up and sleeping for months now. Don't you want to go help her?”
Ranma thought about it for a little while and started to walk out with a cold shoulder to the world. “That's Ryouga's department. Not mine. If he can't be bothered to save her then I shouldn't be either.”
Happosia shrugged his shoulders and spoke when Ranma was out of earshot. “If that's how you truly feel then so be it boy, but I don't believe for a second that's what you think.”
Ranma was lost in the sticks feeling his way through it as best he could. His legs were stiff in the jean shorts the old man had put on him, and one leg he couldn't bring himself to use. It was rough traveling and he was thinking hard again. Thinking about what the old man had said. Thinking about the position he'd put every one in. The old man was perverted shit disturber but he was defiantly right about a few things. Ranma had turned his back on every one first and now he was traveling down the wrong road to recovery. Going crazy and doing drugs are for people that can't cope with reality. Maybe he couldn't cope any more, maybe he was crazy, but for now he had his alone time and he was using it to think. The unfortunate part was that he was angry again. He thought with his head up his ass when he was angry and this time it was no different then every other time he'd done it. Got mad, stomped off, and blame every one else for all his worldly problems. It seemed to work to well for him.
He eventually got himself onto an old dirt road and was walking up hill. Why he didn't go down hill was a mystery to him. He didn't know why he wanted to go up hill, maybe he was trying to make his life harder on some subconscious level, but it didn't matter much to him right now. He just wanted to walk and to his surprise, after he was all stretched out he was finally able to get both feet to touch the ground and move a little faster. He still limped with each step but things were picking up. By the time six o'clock came around he'd managed to get to the top of the dirt road and found that it was actually a lookout over Nerima.
He stepped between a couple of overhanging trees to sit on a bench that had been set up for tourists. He almost laughed when he sat down and looked down at every thing below him. He realized that he'd been in this spot before back a couple years before the bench was there and he'd probably come out of some distant memory of how to get there. It was a nice little view and from the distant look he had and he noticed that the city didn't actually look all that different. A bunch of huge buildings were out and about in a few new places and large steam stacks from industrial factories made something of a smog ring hang above the city, but other then those things the place looked the same. The school was there and from where he was sitting he couldn't see the graffiti that littered it. He saw that busy part of town where Ukyo and Shampoo had their old shops. He saw that park where Akane had lost her hair and maybe it was the sun in his eyes, or maybe it was a trick his mind was playing on him, but he saw through the residents and trees the old Tendo dojo. The ledge had a perfect view of the side of the house that hadn't been burnt to the ground. He took a certain amount of comfort in that and got comfortable on the bench until the sky turned orange with the sun setting.
Beneath the crime and dirty dealings that made their way in to cover the city was the place he remember greatly. It was still that great old Kung Fu wing nut capitol of the world. The events had been postponed for something new in the city and that new thing had to be taken care of.
Ranma was tired but willing to stay awake but when he shifted his weight a little his butt hurt him and he went in to find out why. He reached into his back pocket and pulled out something he thought he'd lost a long time ago. It was his old wallet. He forgot it when he was chased out of the city and the old man must have nabbed it when no one was looking. `But why would he…?' Then Ranma nodded with a smile. The old man knew him well and knew Ranma was going to leave. He opened it up to find some good old cash inside. `You sneaky old bastard…' Ranma put his wallet away with a smile and now the day didn't seem so bad.
Ranma was getting ready to find a place to camp out for the night but he heard a big old truck puttering up the hill. The thing sounded like it was on the verge of breaking down and once it came into view it looked even worse, covered in rust and falling apart. A real man's truck. The driver turned around in the little dirt cul-de-sac. The man driving rolled down his window and greeted Ranma. “Hey there. I'm looking to get into Nerima.”
Ranma waved and said. “And I'm looking for a ride in.”
The driver laughed and said. “I think we can work out a deal then. Hop in.”
“Thanks.” Ranma climbed in and showed the tourist into town. They talked about stupid things that made them laugh while listening to some old country tunes. Ranma got out by a phone booth and thanked the man for the ride. He wanted to call his mom but as it turned out he didn't have any change on him. It didn't matter too much, he was in a good mood now so he started walking to a classy looking bar he'd passed by a few times since he'd come to town. He didn't really feel dressed for the place at first, but when he walked in he made a note that no one really cared. He sat down at the bar and ordered something that went down easy from a cute girl behind the counter. Just something to relax him and warm up his stomach. The lady asked him what happened to his face, but Ranma just lied to her and said he fell down some stairs.
The lady said “Bad luck”, and handed him a free shot. “That'll make ya feel better.”
He thanked her and took it down. It was something sweet mixed with something hard and it did make him feel a little better. Ranma ended up staying there for a while thinking about Sheela. He'd wanted to cry a few times but all the memories he kept thinking were nothing but good ones. He wanted to kick himself for saying he didn't want to go visit the grave. He'd said a lot of things that he never would have said if he were thinking straight. He'd blown up at Nabiki when she asked him for help and by now, with the money he'd given her she was more then likely out of town in some fancy place. He wanted to apologize but he wouldn't know how. He was still a little sour about every one selling him out, but not nearly as much as he was the night before. He'd had time to think about it on his walk and as much as it pained him to admit it, the old man was right. He had a certain amount of responsibility he needed to take but what he was finding hard to accept was that he needed to accept it alone. That part was some serious bullshit that needed fixing.
He went back into his thoughts until a little later on a man wearing a blue Hawaiian shirt walked in with an annoyed expression on his face. He sat down close to Ranma and ordered something hard to drink. Every now and again he'd open a little pocket size notebook and look around. Eventually he asked the cute girl behind the counter if she knew a guy named Paul. After she shook her head he looked like he'd given up and ordered some more booze. Since Ranma needed something new on his mind he asked. “Hey, are you looking for an English guy? A real crack head?”
The man in blue looked at Ranma with a relieved look and said. “Yeah. You know him?”
“Yup, he's over at a strip club down on seventh. Boris's place, you can't miss it. He should be in the back somewhere.”
The man got up, laid some bills on the counter and said. “Lady, get this guy a basket of wings or something.” He looked down at Ranma and said. “Thanks man, you did me a real favor.”
Ranma shrugged it off. “No prob. Oh, yeah. Paul talks faster if you dunk his head in a toilet.”
“Thanks.”
About fifteen minutes passed and Ranma had finished a basket of chicken wings. The man in the retro shirt came back in with a wet arm and ordered a basket of wings for himself. “So how'd it go?”
“The toilet works great.”
“You might want to wash your hands before you eat those things.”
“Oh, yeah…”
The two started talking, then they were drinking, and soon they were laughing. They gave hints to each other that they were both from the criminal world and soon they were telling each other about all the stupid things they've done. Occasionally one would say, “Dude! That was you!?” and the other would say. “Yeah, man. That was totally me!” The topic of cars came up and they were being loud, but the conversation was great to eavesdrop onto. A man they hadn't seen before said, “You're shittin' me!” and either Ranma or the retro man would say, “I shit you not.” Jumps and stunts were described as well as all the cars they've managed to total. The laughing continued well into the point were they became bar buddies hopping from bar to bar until they were finally kicked out. Their wallets knew no bounds when it came to drinking games, terminology, experimental beverages, and just getting smashed. They became best friends in one night and were soon holding each other up as they staggered around the streets. Ranma kept a slow pace with his cane giving the booze time to sink in and have its effects.
After a few hours the night became nothing more then images of neon and chugging contests, followed with strippers and card games followed with pool. Ranma smoked a big old Cuban cigar for the first time in his life and after he laughed through his coughing he said he thought he was going to die. After that it became of game of who could smoke the weirdest thing. Ranma won when he tried to smoke a napkin covered in vinegar and ketchup. If either of them threw up that night it was forgotten by morning when the sun struck hard at Ranma's eyes.
He was in a car, in the passenger side seat upside down with a leg through the steering wheel. It was unfortunate that he had to now find a way to maneuver his messed leg out of it and then some how get his other foot out of the driver's mouth without waking him up and starting an awkward silence. Then he started thinking. The driver was a new person he'd never met before and the guy he met last night was sprawled across the back seat with various bottles, CD's and car fresheners balanced on his head. Ranma got his legs back with out waking the driver up and woke up retro man in the back seat. “Hey. Who's you're buddy I forgot his name.”
Retro man in the blue Hawaiian shirt opened his eyes and looked at the driver for a second and said. “I thought he was your friend?” Then Retro Man looked at Ranma funny and said. “Nice shirt.”
Ranma looked down to see that he was wearing the same Hawaiian shirt as Retro Man, but instead of blue it had a red color scheme. “Whoa… We're like… Shirt buddies.”
“That's kind of cool… So who's the guy?”
“I don't know.” Ranma shook the driver awake and said, “Hey, who the hell are you?”
The man looked really confused and said. “You're not Mike. Aw man, did I take your car?”
Ranma looked out the windshield and pulled the visor down to block the sun. “This ain't my car.”
Retro man shrugged. “It's not mine.”
A three way “uh oh…” came out and they all vacated the car at unreal speeds. Upon a closer examination the car had been driven across an orchard and was now in a ditch looking like it was getting ready to flip over.
Ranma looked at the thing and asked. “Well whose car is it?” The other two stepped beside him, and then Ranma looked at the driven and then at their surroundings. “What the hell! We aren't even in Nerima any more! Where'd you take us!?”
The driver shrugged. “All I remember is asking where Mike was and then going home.”
Retro man heard something dripping and said. “What's that sound?”
Then Ranma smelled the air. “Smells like gas.”
The driver had lit a smoke during this Scooby-Doo hunt and tossed his match towards the car. “Dudes! This IS Mike's car, but where's Mike?” Everything went quiet for a second and then the car exploded into rapidly moving flames and that's when it came back to Retro Man.
“Oh, yeah we were gonna light this thing on fire and do a hundred down the highway. We covered it in WD-40 remember?”
Ranma shook his head as they watched the burning inferno. “No, I don't remember.”
“Dude! No way! Mike's gonna kill me man!”
Ranma started walking up the road and said, “I'm going to move away from the crime scene now…”
Retro man nodded and went in the other direction. “Yeah… Me too…”
Ranma turned around and said. “Hey! I didn't catch your name.”
“The name's Tommy. You?”
“Ranma. Thanks for the wings last night… And for leaving my bum hole alone as I slept.”
“No problem. See ya around kid.”
Tommy ran down the street, while Ranma limped up it leaving the anonymous driver alone as the flames hit the gas tank and exploded. He fell to his knees and cried. “NOOOO!!!! Mike's car! This fucking sucks! Now I'll never get that $10 he owes me!”
It was coming into the afternoon when Ranma found a nice old school banana seat bicycle up against the side of a little school and decided to take it for a spin. He needed to get to Nerima and it was the only thing available to him. Up until this point his hangover still hadn't gone away, but for some reason the fresh air was making him feel a little better. It would burn off eventually, but driving with a pair of shades on would have been so much better. As long as the bike ride lasted he was able to get some more thinking time in. He was wondering what every one was doing right now. Cleaning up his mess more then likely. The Amazon's were probably going to be close for two weeks after what Ranma had done. He started hoping that no one told Shampoo what he'd done, but Mousse was questionable. He'd forgive him if Mousse spilled the beans and told every one who's fault it was. `Then again I did tell him to tell the police I did it.' That whiskey bottle he had before had done it's deeds to him and he was probably a little drunk when he did that. He couldn't remember any more and two nights ago was now just a bad drug induced dream.
Then Ranma's mind changed. `If my night was that screwed up and if what the old man was saying is true, then I wonder what Ukyo's going through right now?' He came to a large sign on the side of the road and his face dropped as he read it. (Nerima: 43km) Ranma sighed and started peddling again. `This is going to take forever…'
Almost an hour later a dirt bike went shooting by him while he was resting on the side of the road and he had a hunch. `Not too many people travel that far on a dirt bike.' He decided to get back on and start peddling hard to make good time. Maybe there was a small community near by where he could jack a real ride. After pushing hard for about ten minutes he stumbled upon a small out of the way diner with a few old weather stained cars and buddies dirt bike in the parking lot. Ranma smiled as he wiped the sweat from his brow. He was hungry and he needed a ride.
The place defined a greasy spoon restaurant all in itself. The place was dirty, filled with old guys, bugs ran across the floor, the serving lady was really nice and really plump, and the food was all deep-fried and unbelievably good. A massive burger with a plate of fries and an enormous mug of beer for cheap sat in front of him and there was a big tip coming someone's way. He sat there thinking about all those times he and Hikori had come to these kinds of places to talk about how they were going to pull off a job. Little plans were drawn out on the table using the cups and napkin dispensers as building, and for some reason the saltshaker was always what they were after. The knife neither of them used was made into a pointer to draw out the imaginary streets while the little single serving container of peanut butter was portrait as their getaway car. It was always serious then but now it just seemed funny. Hikori would always get so far into it that he looked like a child playing with toys while Ranma sat there stunned at the story he was telling.
Ranma took a sip from his mug for Hikori and asked for his bill. The large lady commented on his nice shirt and placed a mint on top of the bill. He left the money on the table along with a tip and went outside. The parking lot was off to the side of the building where windows couldn't see and there was that lovely kick-start dirt bike he saw. Ranma put the banana seat bike in the dirt bikes place and took off down the road towards home sweet home. Whoever owned the dirt bike was smart because he'd duck tapped a single speaker radio between the handlebars that ran right off the bike motor. No batteries no problem. He turned the switch on and listened to the crappy station no one in the world knew about. It was some bad jazz station but Ranma couldn't help but nod to the beat of it. It took his mind off the long road ahead and made the trip seem short.
He'd never driven along a winding road all alone before and it felt kind of nice. The scenic route reminded him a little about growing up with his old man. On the road with a backpack on your shoulders and not much else to worry about except maybe food, but it was easy to come by if you knew how. Ranma started thinking about going back to the whole wondering life style and then he thought about something that almost knocked him right off his seat. “Holy crap! Pops was a mediocre dad!” That single thought had just skewed his entire perception of his father. He'd always thought of him as some cowardly half-wit that couldn't tell his ass from his elbows, but now it was something of an average outlook. He couldn't shake the thought off until he finally got back to town and pulled the bike over to think about what he was going to do next. Then another thought came to mind. `I guess if I didn't care then I wouldn't have come back here without thinking…' Ranma sighed again until he accepted that the dirty old man was right. He pulled the gas a little and thought. `I guess I should go hear what they've got to say… I guess I should find Akane…'
Ranma made a quick pass by Nabiki's place but he kept his distance. The area was closed off and there was a chalk line where her ex had been. He didn't want to attract any attention so he just kept moving. He didn't know where to look for Akane and she wouldn't be listed in the phone book for safety reasons. He needed some one that could tell him and the only ones he could think about were the other couple Tendo's just a few blocks away. When he got there he'd forgotten that he was officially dead and didn't think when he knocked on the door. A few moments later Kasumi opened the door and screamed. “Huh?”
“What is it Kasumi!?”
“Ghost!”
Ranma stepped in and tried to calm down Kasumi. “Hey! Listen I'm ali-.” Ranma was creamed across the head with a baseball bat from Soun and Ranma laid on the floor trying to shake it off.
“Who are you!? Stay away from my daughter!”
Ranma rolled over and looked up at them with squinted eyes, a frown and a hand against his head. “Hell of a swing you got there Mr. Tendo… I think you broke something.”
Soun's hair almost stood up on end and went down beside Ranma. “Good lord! You're alive my boy! How can this be?”
Ranma wanted to cry, the bat really hurt. “I need an ice pack…”
“Kasumi quick!” She shuffled off and Soun started asking questions. “Can you walk boy? Are you hurt?”
“Just drag me to the couch… I can't stand up.”
Soun saw the condition of Ranma's legs and almost yelled. “I think we'll call an ambulance. This looks horrible.”
Ranma shook his head and got up the best he could. “No! No medics and whoa!” Ranma tripped over his own feet and managed to knock a picture off the wall in his dazed state. “Sorry.”
It took a while to get Ranma to the couch but when he was on it he was starting to feel better. “Oh, god… You officially put an end to a relatively good day Mr. Tendo…”
“I'm sorry my boy. When I heard Kasumi scream I thought the worst.”
“I guessed as much…” Ranma still had that look on his face like he wanted to cry but he held it in.
“If there's any thing I can do-.”
“No, no. Don't worry about it. I'm tough.”
Kasumi was looking at Ranma's leg and said. “Oh, my! What happened to you?”
“Just got into a little scrap I'll be fine, I just came here to ask you guys something.”
Soun wasn't ready to answer questions; it was quite the opposite. “Where have you been Ranma? Every one thinks you're dead.”
Ranma held the ice pack to his head and propped himself up. “I've been with Cologne at her club. Recovering from being shot and all.”
Kasumi was confused. “But… You had a funeral…”
“You buried the wrong guy. Pops said it was me so I could have some healing time.”
“W-why would he lie?”
“It's complicated Kasumi but I'm in a bad situation right now. Thankfully Dr. tofu patched me up, so I'm ok now.”
Soun had to ask the question for Kasumi. “He's alright?”
“Yeah, he's in sort of the same position I'm in right now, but he's doing ok.”
Kasumi became worried. “He isn't hurt is he?”
“No, he's doing fine. But please guys I need your help. I need to find Akane.”
“Oh, she's not here right now.”
Ranma thought about that for a second. “Wait, what does that mean?”
Soun filled Ranma in with an update. “She's been living with us for a while. She won't say where she's been though.”
Ranma sunk into the couch. “Oh, thank god I don't have to keep looking. That hit took it all out of me.”
“I'm sorry my boy.”
“I would have been mad if you did it a second time. Don't worry about it. So when's she getting back?”
Soun scratched his head and shrugged. “She's got a job with shaky hours and a mind of her own. I'm just happy that she comes home.”
“Mind if I stay for a while then?”
“Certainly. Oh! Would you like me to call your parents down here?”
Ranma waved his head and hands wildly. “No! I'll see them later. I can only deal with so many people at a time right now.”
A couple hours passed and Ranma started filling in the two Tendo's about what had been going on. They had heard that Ryouga had shot him but they didn't believe it till he opened his shirt. Kasumi patched him up with caring hands and he was feeling a lot better after the throbbing in his head stopped. After they all talked for a while keys could be heard rattling at the door and then to sound of a sturdy deadbolt sliding back. Ranma heard Akane's voice as she entered the door and he got a lump in his throat. “Hi guys, I'm home. I picked us up some food.” There was a point in the entranceway that you could see a little bit into the living room and right into the kitchen. She passed by with a quick glance and kept walking into the kitchen to place her groceries in, but she stopped and took a step back when something out of place caught her eye. She leaned back and looked back into the living room where she saw Ranma laying on the couch all bandaged up and giving her a quick wave. After that the bags dropped and she stood there staring to make sure it wasn't a hallucination.
Soun pulled Kasumi's arm and said. “I think they'll want to be alone for a few minutes.”
Kasumi nodded and they left the room and Akane just kept staring. Ranma was becoming uncomfortable so he broke the silence. “So uh… How ya been?”
After he spoke to her she knew he was real and her eyes watered up and then she dashed towards him. She practically jumped on him and held him close. No words came out of her mouth just the sounds of a strong woman crying. He returned the hug and waited for her to let go. She pulled back to look at his face and sketched a gentle finger across all the scratches and cuts she saw. “Ranma…?”
“Yeah, I'm alive.”
She held him tight again and started sniffing. “I thought you were dead…”
“I know…”
“I'm so sorry about Sheela…”
Ranma felt another gut jab with that one and the lump in his throat became just a little bigger. “It's not your fault Akane. You couldn't help what happened… It's my fault ok?”
She put her face against his shoulder and soaked it with tears. She hit his chest lightly causing him to jerk a little. She felt him do that and had to know why. She opened his shirt to see a bunch of sewed holes in him and couldn't help by cry harder. “He did shoot you… I didn't want to believe it…” She hit his shoulder hard, and held onto him tight. “Why didn't you tell me sooner you big jerk…? Why didn't you tell me you were alive…?”
Ranma thought about that for a little while and he could only think of one reason. “Because I'm selfish jerk Akane…” Then that lump went right up to his eyes. “I'm sorry…” And there he was again. Crying in the arms of a woman he'd given the cold shoulder to. In his mind he was begging for forgiveness and begging for time to rewind and go back so he could correct everything. He knew none of his pleas would be answered and he knew she'd be dead forever. So all he could do now was hold onto what he had left and listen to every one he'd turned away from. He couldn't help but cry with her and as they cried the pain started to wash away. The one thing Ranma hated though was the thought that the dirty old bastard was right. He needed every one and they needed him.
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(Jamiroquai - Space Cowboy: There's a nice little break from the violence and regardless of what any one says, Jamiroquai kicks ass. If you liked this chapter then the next one's gonna knock your socks off.)