Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ Ranma 1/2: The Truth and the Tempest ❯ First Steps ( Chapter 7 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

[Author’s Note: The characters and setting herein- with the exception of one or two O.C.’s of my own design- are the property of Rumiko Takahashi. Without further ado, enjoy.]

Ranma ½: The Truth and the Tempest

Chapter 7: First Steps

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Akane glanced up at Shingen nervously. “Was that all true?” she asked. “If someone falls into a Jusenkyo spring… they become possessed?” Frantic thoughts began passing through her mind, memories of when she had been attacked by Saffron’s caretaker Kiima and thrown into a spring herself; this time, it wasn’t the memory of her near-drowning that shocked her as much as what Shingen was saying. “W-what about the empty springs… d-do… do they do the same…” she stammered.

He shook his head, slightly confused. “No, a spring with no original victim is- or actually, was- a blank slate with no ‘pattern’ to allow a demon passage, in a sense. Nothing could pass through it to inflict a curse before it had found such a pattern. It’d really be the only type of safe spring, though I can’t for the life of me think that there were very many ‘uncursed’ springs left in that valley.” Why would she ask a question like that? he wondered silently.

At that, she breathed a small sigh of relief- which quickly vanished as she remembered who was really at risk. “So since Ranma got knocked into the Nyannichuan… then that means he was…”

“If he fell in directly, I’m afraid so. Like I said, a splash of the water might cause a transformation and nothing else, but full immersion in the valley springs is another story,” he replied, shaking his head. “The fact that his aura shows signs of disruption is evidence enough that something is wrong. It’s definite evidence of his curse, to say the least; I just couldn’t read it clearly enough to discern the cause.”

Nodoka shuddered. “My son… I should have never let that man take you away…” she whispered before taking a deep breath and standing up. “Is he in any serious danger?”

The sound of boards breaking and a fierce scream of rage echoed from the training hall.

“I dunno about him, but judging by that reaction our floorboards may be in serious danger,” Nabiki chuckled warily, her smile rapidly dwindling as the joke fell flat.

“Physically, at least, Jusenkyo victims are hardly ever in danger,” said Shingen, folding his arms. “The real danger comes from within… once infected by a demonic mind, their will may eventually begin to falter, altering some of their behavioral patterns. Eventually it could lead to personality changes- or even severe psychological breakdown.” He glanced around the room. “Keep in mind, though, I’ve only read about incidents such as these in the Hunter record scrolls. I only ever faced one Jusenkyo victim before I came here, several years ago when I was last on an assignment in China. In that case, the victim had been cursed for many years by what Father called a Yin-Yang spirit; it had polluted his mind to the extent he became an entirely different man when he transformed.”

“What do you mean a different man?” Akane asked. More sounds akin to stones breaking wafted through the air.

“From what I could discern, his true nature was a brash swordsman. When he changed forms, though, he turned into a short, feeble man with the personality of a meek monk. My mission didn’t concern him, though, so I wrote it off and never found out if he’d recovered. In truth, I’d completely forgotten about that incident until you mentioned the springs.”

Akane blinked, putting a hand to her head. “I think Ranma and Mr. Saotome mentioned being captured by someone like that months ago… something about a guy who fell in a Spring of Drowned Priest. He was part of the ‘Jusenkyo Police‘, I think.”

Shingen nodded. “It could very well be the same man…”

“Then does that mean Ranma’s mind might start to go, too?” Kasumi asked.

Shingen shut his eyes for a moment. “That all depends on several things, Kasumi-san,” he said eventually. “One, the strength of the victim’s willpower, and two, the amount of time that has passed since the infection first took hold. Do any of you know when he fell in the spring?”

Akane looked up. “That would have been about a month or two before he first arrived here, I think.”

“And that was?”

“Just over a year ago, from what I’ve been able to learn,” said Nodoka.

Shingen nodded. “Then he’s better off than I thought. The scrolls detailed a chronicle of one victim who adjusted fairly quickly to the change; from what I read he lived for many years before his mind became noticeably impaired. There were others, of course, who were reported as going mad the moment the curse struck… it all seems to depend on the strength of mind of the victim.”

“So Ranma might not be in serious trouble yet?” Akane asked, a small light dancing in her eye.

“I’d say so; I certainly felt a powerful force of will coming from him in our erroneous duel. That doesn’t mean he‘s in the clear, mind you; sooner or later something’s going to have to be done.”

“Does that mean you can do something? That there‘s a way to help him?”

Shingen paused before turning to answer Akane again. “I’m not entirely sure at the moment. I’ll need to do some thinking on the matter- and I may have to consult with my father. On top of that, I’m still not back to my full strength yet, so even if I’m right, it’ll take time before I can do anything.” Another series of crashes echoed through the hallways. “I think somebody had better check on him and make sure he doesn’t kill himself before I get a chance to help.”

“I’ll go,” said Akane as she dashed out of the room. The sound of a door opening and shutting reached the ears of the four people still sitting or standing in the tearoom.

For a long moment, no one said anything.

“So…” Nabiki murmured. “Not really your normal Monday night chit-chat.”

“I still don’t believe this is happening,” said Nodoka. “It was bad enough with the curse alone, or the other girls and his rivals, and now demons as well?”

“Believe me, I’ve seen far worse than this happen in my life, Nodoka-san,” said Shingen as he began to pace again. “Many people aren’t even aware of incidents like this cropping up in Osaka, Kyoto, Hokkaido… it happens more often than you might think. There are benign and malicious spirits roaming all over the place, only the majority of the populace isn’t aware in the slightest. Most of the time we don’t even need to get other people involved; it just looks like this is one of the exceptions.” He shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans. “The fact is, there’s a war going on out there. The Hunters have been fighting it for generations, even though our numbers are few and far between these days. Every war has its casualties.”

“And Ranma just happens to be one of those casualties, is that what you’re saying?” said Nodoka bitterly.

“I didn’t say that, Nodoka-san. He’s not lost yet… he just happens to have been caught in the pull of the chaos stream. Why that happened, I can’t say. But with a little bit of work, I think I can do something for him. Stop the infection before it spreads, if you will.” Shingen took a deep breath. “Something tells me this may well be part of the disturbance my father sent me to investigate. I knew our meeting was no coincidence.”

“I do hope you can do something,” said Kasumi. “He really has had some hard times up to now, and not always because of his curse. Even simple misunderstandings seem to cause him no end of trouble, what with the endless parade of people challenging him to duels, or other women showing up out of the blue. Sometimes it amazes me that he’s lived with it this long and hasn’t done something drastic, like leave town altogether… or worse…” She trailed off.

“I know; he told me some of what he’s dealt with while we were on our way here,” Shingen replied. “I was amaxed myself. A lesser man would have easily cracked under the pressure of what he’s been through- especially now that I know the cause of his transformation. His willpower must be incredible.”

“It is,” Nodoka murmured. “But even the strongest warrior has a weakness. I may have missed out on eleven years of his life, but he’s still my son.” She wiped her eyes absently. “I know he hurts inside, even if he doesn’t show it. I just wish I’d been there for him when he needed me the most…” A sudden hiss caught her attention. Shingen’s finger flew to his lips, his eyes darting left and right as he stepped towards the shoji doors of the room. “Shingen? What’s going on?” she asked.

“I’m not entirely sure,” he said in a low voice. “I felt something for a moment… something very powerful, but I don’t quite think it was an oni or even a spirit at all.” He stepped over to the table silently and grasped his naginata. “If you will excuse me, I think I’d best check this out.” He slid the doors open just wide enough to pass through and slipped into the backyard.

“Oh, my… I hope there’s nothing serious going on…” Kasumi whispered.

The solitude of the moment was quickly broken when two drunken Anything Goes Martial Artists barged through the front door, baying an Osaka drinking song at the top of their lungs. Kasumi cringed. Nabiki rolled her eyes, and Nodoka shut hers in irritation, her left hand gripping the saya of her katana.

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Akane slid the doors of the training hall open just enough to squeeze through. Stepping in, her eyes widened; the place looked like a tornado had gone through it. The remains of half a dozen bricks lay in crumbs not three feet from the doorway. A sparring dummy had been broken in half at the midsection, and again at its ‘neck’, its cotton padding strewn about. Two larger cinder blocks lay pulverized in opposite corners of the room, and several boards that hadn’t been used in building repairs had been shattered to toothpicks. Another cry echoed through the room as she entered, followed by the crunch of wallboard giving way. Ranma stood across the room from the door, his right fist embedded in the wall and his shoulders shaking; Akane quickly noticed two identical fist-shaped holes on either side of him.

“Damn him…” Ranma spat quietly. “Damn Pops, damn that guide, damn those springs… Dammit all to hell!!!” He yanked his fist out of the hole he had made and slapped his palms against the wall hard, causing a considerable quantity of dust to drift down from the rafters. “Perfect… just perfect, ain’t it? Somebody upstairs must be laughing at me. The court jester for every last one of the Kami; that’s all I am, ain’t I?” he shouted to nobody in particular. “Sa… Saffron wasn’t enough… A… Akane almost dyin’ wasn’t enough… they gotta take away everything else, too? They gotta tell me that not only is the Nannichuan gone, it wouldn’t have worked anyway, an’ not only am I cursed, I got some kinda demon infection in me or something?!? Dammit, CAN’T I EVER GET A BREAK???” He shuddered, then collapsed to his knees, clenching his fists, gritting his teeth against the tears that were running down his face. “No…” he said in a weak voice. “I don’t get breaks… never have, never will… I’m just a joke, a walking freak of nature…”

Akane’s heart shattered as she heard him. Ranma, you’re wrong! You don’t have to beat yourself up over this, it’s not your fault! Gingerly she padded her way across the room; he didn’t even notice her approach, not even when she had stopped and kneeled right next to him. His breathing was slow but harsh, and from her new vantage point she could just make out fresh bruises on his knuckles. As softly as she could, she reached over and rested her hand on his left shoulder. He flinched at her touch, but didn’t recoil.

“Please don’t talk like that, Ranma… it’s okay…”

“No, it’s not okay,” he shot back harshly, causing her eyes to widen. “It’s bad enough I’m half girl in the first place, now that guy’s telling me I’m possessed as well… how can that possibly be okay?” He heaved a sigh, continuing to stare at the floor. “You might as well accept it, Akane, I’m nothin’ more than a freak. An inhuman freak… I don’t even know if I am who I think I am anymore…”

Akane gritted her teeth and bopped him on the top of his head with her palm, then grabbed his chin and lifted him up so she was looking right in his eyes. “Don’t say that! Ranma, if you believe any of what you just said then you are the biggest baka I have ever known! In the first place, Shingen said there might be a way he could help you, and in the second place, even if he couldn’t do anything you think that would make any difference to me? Look at you, you’re falling to pieces! The Ranma I know wouldn’t let something this bad get him down, he’d get back up on his feet and find a way around it! The Ranma I know isn’t a quitter, and never has been since the day I met him! So what if there’s more to this whole curse nonsense than we thought! I told you before, I don’t care about that curse anymore!” Her expression softened as she brushed several loose hairs out of his eyes. “It’s the man inside that matters to me; I thought you knew that. Believe me, I don‘t think you’re a freak… and I wish I’d never called you one in the first place.”

Ranma swallowed hard. “But… if he was telling the truth, then there might be something else inside… something neither of us wants…” He placed a hand on Akane’s shoulder. “What if I’m being influenced already? What if this isn’t even the real me talking? What if… what if I wind up hurting you…”

“If it wasn’t the real you, would you be asking yourself these questions?” she asked gently. “Look, Shingen said this ‘infection’ or whatever it is sometimes takes years to do anything noticeable. You’ve been with us for over a year now… and you’re still the same you. Maybe you’ve changed one or two things over time, but so have I… well, at least I hope I’ve changed a little.” She took his hand off of her shoulder, running a finger over his bruised knuckles. “It’s who you are at heart that matters, and you’ve never really changed that.”

“But how can you be so sure that I won’t change?” he asked, glancing away again.

Akane smiled. “Because I know how much you hate not being in control. Just think of this as another challenge. Which is something else I know hasn’t ever changed… you never back down from a challenge.”

Ranma paused. His breathing gradually returned to normal and the mask of despair slowly fell away from his face. “Just another challenge?”

“That’s all it is. Don’t think about it so much. Just believe in yourself… I know I do.”

He looked back up into her eyes, seeing for the first time the mixture of concern, compassion and optimism that was radiating from her irises. She still believes in me…

“You know… you’re right. You’re absolutely right, it’s just another damn stumbling block in my way.”

“Exactly. Just don’t let it get to you.” She caressed the back of his hand with an almost feather-light touch. “Whatever happens, we can handle it. We’ve done it before, we can do it again. It’s gonna be alright.” And this time, I’m not lying to you or myself about how I feel, she thought with a warm smile.

Ranma nodded. “You know, it bears repeating- I dunno what I’d do without you.” Just then he winced, sucking in a sharp hiss of air as he pressed at the bridge of his nose, eyes shut tight.

Akane’s smile faltered. “Sinuses again?”

“Mmm-hmm,” he muttered.

“Maybe it’s a stress thing,” Akane mused. “Not surprising if it is. Here, let me try something.” She reached up and gently pried Ranma’s hand away from his nose, then began delicately massaging his temples and around his eyes.

“Huh… what’re ya doing, ‘kane?”

“When I was twelve… and was going through, um… ‘growing pains’, I used to get some pretty bad headaches,” she said softly, continuing her gentle ministrations. “This is something Kasumi used to do for me when it hurt the worst… not quite acupressure, but at least it brought the tension down.”

Ranma nodded slightly with his eyes closed, still somewhat confused as to why she was doing it. She never woulda offered to do something like this when we first met. Even before Saffron she would’ve sooner hit me than help me, even if I had asked… Slowly the tension in his temples faded under the soft pressure from her fingers. No, that‘s not true. She has helped me before, even if it was just gettin’ hot water. I never asked because I didn’t know how I felt about her back then… and I didn’t know if she cared, either. An’ I’m not about to start complaining now…

A slight sigh escaped him, prompting Akane to smile a bit brighter. “Does that feel okay?” she asked.

“Yeah… that feels nice…” he replied softly. A moment passed; he reached up and brushed the back of her left hand with his right hand. “Thank you.”

She blushed slightly. “You know, sometimes I wish you’d just tell me when something’s bothering you. I hate having to guess,” she said, almost a whisper. Her fingers brushed beneath his eyes with just enough pressure to feel soothing rather than painful. “Even if it’s not something I can help with. I don’t like feeling left out.”

Ranma sighed. “I guess I just don’t wanna look weak. Stupid thought, huh?”

“You’re not weak, I know that and so does everyone else here. You’re just a stubborn baka, that’s all…” He opened his eyes slowly and met her warm gaze with his own. “But you’re my stubborn baka.”

He smiled, then reached up and brushed his left hand across her cheek. “I wouldn’t want to be anyone else’s… my beautiful tomboy.”

Akane’s eyes widened. She had never heard him call her that in such a gentle way before, and she found it impossible to break away from his gaze. He was looking at her in a way she had only ever seen from two other people- her father, and possibly Dr. Tofu. There was no malice, no mocking laugh, no arrogance, no indifferent glare- only kindness. It was a look she’d only ever seen a few times from him, one that never lasted because of some interruption. It was as if he had opened his whole heart to her, shoving his bravado into the closet for the time being. Her heart began to pound in her chest, and she realized his was too.

This is a place we’ve been before, she thought. Just the two of us… no words spoken, no insults or punches thrown… and every time it was always interrupted by someone or something. She felt the feather-light touch of his hand on her face and shivered slightly. Is this it? Do we finally have our moment alone? What… what happens now…

“Akane…”

She blinked, shaken out of her reverie by him whispering her name. His smile faltered, almost nervously, and she noticed he was leaning forward bit by bit. He paused and continued to look into her eyes, waiting for her to make the next move.

A warmth spread through her and her smile returned in full force. He’s just as nervous as I am… I knew I should never have called him a pervert, his heart’s just too good… She edged closer to him so they were kneeling right in front of each other, gingerly cupping his face in her hands as she leaned forward. She saw his eyes shut moments before her own closed, just as her lips brushed against his. The sensation was faint at first, but electrifying nonetheless. A soft sigh escaped Akane’s mouth as she felt him lean in, capturing her lips in their first full kiss ever. She returned the kiss eagerly, pressing against him and wrapping her arms around his neck; he responded by pulling her in, one hand around her head and the other gently around her waist.

Mutual fear was quickly laid to rest; neither one had given much thought or high expectation to what kissing the other would be like. Ranma had feared she would be cold and indifferent, Akane had feared he would be brutish and rough. This was different from anything they had expected… it was gentle, warm, loving and even a bit hesitant. Most importantly, though, it wasn’t for anyone else’s sake but theirs. This was their time. Their moment. It wasn’t long before their mouths opened slowly and their kisses deepened, and it was hard to tell which one initiated it. They clung to each other, letting countless months of insults and unintentional pain fall away like autumn leaves as their lips and tongues became intertwined in a dance of fire. A single tear of joy ran down Akane’s face as she relished the sensations washing over her, dissolving all her old fears and insecurities as if they had never existed.

Eventually, the two of them parted reluctantly, each one savoring the feel of the other’s lips as long as possible. Their breathing gradually slowed as they opened their eyes again.

“Wow…” Ranma whispered, causing Akane to smirk a bit. “That was really nice…”

“Yeah,” she sighed in response. She looked up, remembering something she had just heard. “Did you… did you really mean what you said?”

Ranma blinked. “If you mean when I was calling myself a freak earlier, that was mostly venting…”

“No, that’s not what I meant, dummy,” she said with a giggle. A slight flush crossed her cheeks as she looked into his eyes. “You… you called me beautiful…”

Ranma’s face brightened. “Of course I meant that. Remember what I said last night when I thought you were asleep?” He brushed his hand across her face, wiping away the errant tear. “Cute doesn’t do you justice. Especially when you smile.” Another happy tear slid down her face as she leaned forward, resting her head on his shoulder and pulling him into a fierce hug, which he quickly returned. He stroked her short blue-black hair, resting his head against hers delicately.

“I love you, Akane Tendo…”

She sniffled, her smile barely visible, buried as it was in his shirt. “I love you, Ranma Saotome…” she replied softly. For a moment, the two just sat there in a tight embrace, oblivious to everything around them except each other. The emotional roller coaster that had been assaulting them since that afternoon seemed to have finally come to a halt.

That’s when they heard the sigh- a happy-sounding sigh, but with a definite hint of sadness. Their eyes slowly opened.

“My oh my… as much as I hate to admit it, that sight truly warmed my tired old heart…” said a very old, matronly voice from the garden end of the training hall. Ranma and Akane’s heads snapped up; glancing towards the doors that had apparently been opened without their knowledge, their eyes widened in shock to see a certain diminutive Chinese elder holding a cane in one hand and wiping her eyes with the other.

To Be Continued…

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A/N: Yes, another cliffhanger. This chapter was originally supposed to be longer than it is, but then too much plot might have been given away. Things are still heating up, but at least our favorite duo finally had their moment together.

Thank you all for your support. -Neon RoninConverting /tmp/phpJkBXBg to /dev/stdout