Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ Ranma 1/2: The Truth and the Tempest ❯ Training Day ( Chapter 9 )

[ 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. Things are going to start to heat up shortly; whether they will in this chapter or not, you’ll have to read on and find out yourself. Enjoy.]

Ranma ½: The Truth and the Tempest

Chapter 9: Training Day

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A cool breeze passed through the night air. The moon hung high in the sky, like a great eye gazing down upon the sleeping populace. A lone dog barked in the distance, perhaps the only creature awake on the streets at midnight. Had someone walked past the spare room of the Tendo household at that moment, they might have noticed a faint blue light pulsing in the window.

In the center of the room, a square roll of fabric had been laid out, its surface covered with a large hexagram pattern four feet in diameter. Each of the six points of the star within the circle was adorned with a distinct kanji character: Earth, Air, Water, Fire, Light, and Darkness. Runic characters along the outer ring seemed to pulse with a light of their own. On the door and on either side of the window, paper wards had been placed perfectly vertical, with pentagram sigils at the top and additional kanji at the bottom. Shingen’s duffel bag lay open in one corner of the room, its apparently mismatched contents spilling onto the floor. There were some spare clothes, a tanto with jade inlay along the hilt, an ivory crucifix on a rosary, an ornate box containing what appeared to be calligraphy tools and several jars of ink, and a small assortment of hematite pendants on red cord. There was also what looked to be two larger strips of paper, one blank, the other adorned with archaic scripture and ornate runes, fancier than those on the window wards or the square rug on the floor. Shingen was sitting cross-legged in the middle of the hexagram, his eyes shut and his index and little fingers extended on each hand. The soft blue light illuminating the room was radiating from his body and the hexagram as he sat absorbed in a deep trance.

Around him, the room had disappeared into nothingness. His mind had left the physical plane for a moment- but he was not alone. Another mind was there, talking and listening. An older mind, one that he knew better than any other. Part of Shingen’s mind pitied the majority of the world who could not communicate via the astral, as Hunters could.

“So this is where we are now, Father,” Shingen was saying. “I haven’t examined his aura closely enough yet, but there is something that tells me his curse and the chaos stream affecting Nerima may be part of some greater scheme. I know what needs to be done; I’m just not sure if the technique will work properly.” He bowed his head. “All I know is I have a duty to help him, and not just because of his condition.”

The older man’s astral form nodded slowly. “I warned you about acting rashly, my son. I was afraid you might lose sight of your goal; your impatience and your dedication have done this to you in the past, you know. However… as no permanent injury was inflicted, and you have already begun the process of amends, I do believe you have acquitted yourself honorably. I trust this ‘Ranma’ you speak of has accepted your apologies?”

Shingen nodded. “Even before I swore my oath. I was surprised, especially after I had attacked him as fiercely as I did.”

“Indeed… and he has endured a curse from that very place I sent you to destroy, as well…” The older man paused in thought, then looked up again. “You say there are others besides him, all of whom have been infected?”

“The family mentioned that in addition to him, there are at least four in this ward alone.”

“Interesting. This definitely has all the makings of a plot set in motion… though by whom, and for what purpose, I cannot say.” The older man’s astral form shimmered for a second. “Each of the five will need to be treated, then, hopefully as soon as possible.”

Shingen’s astral form straightened up, gazing back at his father seriously. “Father, will the technique work?”

“That depends entirely upon their participation and your skill, Shingen. You have the materials and you have studied the technique, have you not?”

“I have no true practice, I only know the theory of the Spirit Purge, Father. As for the materials… I do have one ward ready, one you scribed yourself. I can duplicate it easily, but…”

“Yes?”

“I only have enough parchment for one more ward, Father. And even then it will take three days to scribe and dry properly, that only takes care of two people. I haven’t the materials for the three more wards I’ll need.”

“I see…” said the older man. He looked back at Shingen with a small smile.

“I have no doubt in your ability to perform the technique, son. Knowing you like I do, even if you only know the theory you should be able to succeed. Once the Spirit Purge is completed, though, is when the real task begins… but I’m positive you’ll know what to do when that happens.” The older man paused. “As for materials… that’s another issue. I will have to consult with the rest of the clan- although, if memory serves, your sister should be in possession of an abundance of supplies; you well know how skilled she is with runes and wardings.”

“Isn’t Reika in Osaka right now, hunting a polluted variant of kitsune?”

“That she is, but something tells me this issue is far more important.” A vexed look crossed the old man’s face. “The chaos stream around Nerima may have a more sinister purpose, Shingen. I have already begun to see signs.”

Shingen’s astral form blinked. “What kind of signs?”

“I’m not entirely sure as of yet,” the older man said, his astral form beginning to fade. “I will continue to keep watch, though; the stars are in motion, and there is a weight beginning to settle on my mind. Something is coming… a great tempest, indeed… but for now, it is too late to think on it. I am tired. I am sure you are, too.”

“Then I will take my leave of you, Father,” Shingen replied, bowing as his father did. “I will be on guard, and be true to the Code. I will not fail you.”

“I know, my son,” came the whispered reply as their astral link ended. “I am proud of you.”

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The early morning sun crept through Akane’s window bit by bit, as though hesitant to wake the sleeping girl within. The air held a slight chill, and a light breeze played across the curtains. Akane lay beneath a thin blanket, a peaceful smile on her face. She rolled onto her side, letting out a soft sigh as she did so. Her eyelids fluttered, still clinging to sleep. “Ranma…” she murmered, moments before an errant shaft of sunlight passed over her face. She winced, then slowly opened her eyes and stretched her hands out, reluctantly letting her dreams slip away. Glancing at her alarm clock, she realized it was still a few minutes before it was supposed to go off, but oddly enough she didn’t feel sleepy enough to turn over and shut her eyes. In fact, she felt well-rested.

“Wow,” she said to herself as she sat up in bed. “I don’t think I’ve slept that well in a long time. I wonder what was different…” Then she remembered the night before, and her smile returned. “Hm. Maybe it was the goodnight kiss.” She eased out of bed and stood up, stretching as she did so. “Or maybe it’s because of what he said… or both.” A slight flush crossed her cheeks as she remembered their moment alone in the dojo, in particular their first kiss. The flush disappeared, however, replaced by a look of annoyance as her alarm clock started blaring. She slapped the snooze button, sighed and opened her closet to get her workout clothes. Remembering what Ranma had said about training, she almost grabbed her yellow gi but decided against it. I can always come back for it if I need it, she thought as she doffed her pajamas, slipping into her shorts, sports bra and a tank top. This is better to move in, anyways.

It wasn’t long afterwards that she was standing just outside the front door, slipping on her running shoes and doing some quick stretches. The cool morning air sent a shiver racing down her spine, and she rubbed her forearms briskly. “I wonder where that baka is…” she said to herself in a playful tone, stretching her arms high over her head. Just as her arms were at their highest point, a set of hands came around her face and covered her eyes.

“This baka is right behind you, tomboy,” came her answer in an almost juvenile tone of voice. Akane yelped, swatting Ranma’s arms away as she whipped around to face him. She growled in mock-irritation, prompting him to hold his hands up in an ‘I surrender’ gesture; this in turn prompted her to stick her tongue out at him, a gesture which he returned readily, followed by both of them snickering and breaking down into laughs.

“You know, you could’ve just come out the front door instead of surprising me like that,” she said as their laughter came to a halt. “How long were you there, anyway? I couldn’t tell you were behind me till you pulled that ‘guess who’ stunt.”

Ranma shrugged. “I only just got up a little while ago myself, I wasn’t there long.” He straightened the collar of the blue sleeveless Chinese vest he’d chosen to wear that morning.

“You weren’t spying on me using that Umisen-ken of yours, were you?” she asked, a slight teasing tone in her voice.

He shook his head. “Nuh-uh. I was just movin’ slow, that’s all. An’ I promise you, I wouldn’t even think of usin’ the Umisen to spy on you.”

Tell her you’d rather use it to spy on someone who’s actually cute… make a joke about visiting Ucchan’s or Shampoo’s, you know you love to see her lose her temper… Ranma winced, his eyes going wide for a brief second before shaking his head about and pinching the bridge of his nose. Dammit, what the hell is wrong with me? Why do I keep getting these urges to tease her when I know I don’t really want to? What am I talkin’ about, I think I can guess why… at least if what Shingen says is the truth… well, tough luck! I’m not gonna make a joke like that! I’m not gonna make her lose her temper over that!

“Ranma? Are you okay?”

He glanced up, the throb in his temple dissipating. “Yeah… yeah, I think so,” he sighed, swinging his arms back and forth. “Just having a little internal debate.”

Akane blinked, a concerned look on her face. “Do you think… maybe it’s the infection?”

Ranma nodded. “Possibly. I dunno. All I do know is that something just tried to make me hurt your feelings… y’know, say something before thinking about it. Well, I just happened ta think about it first. No harm done.”

Akane nodded. “Well… I guess that’s a good sign… Are you sure you’re going to be okay?”

“Don’t worry ‘bout me, Akane, I’ll be alright for now. Anyway, we’ve got something else to do right now. You wanna start finding out how good you can get at the Art?”

She nodded happily. “Damn right I do! What did you have in mind? Early morning sparring? Maybe a few katas?”

“Actually, first I was thinking we need to loosen up a bit. I noticed you’d already done some stretching, so I thought we’d start off with something easy… and fun.”

Akane blinked. “What would that be?”

“Nothin’ much… just a game of Tag.”

Akane stared at him, wide-eyed. “TAG??? Are you serious? What kind of training do you call that?!?”

“Hey, there’s nothin’ wrong with a game to warm things up, is there? Ya know, get the muscle kinks out and all? Besides, after the last few days I thought we could use a little fun.”

Akane groaned. “I thought you were going to take this seriously…”

“I AM taking this seriously, Akane.”

“Then why are you suggesting a kids’ game? We’re too old for junk like that, we’re just a few years shy of majority age, you know.”

“Yeah, don’t remind me…” He set his hands on his hips and looked at Akane in a defiant manner. “Okay, how ‘bout I throw a little wager into the mix as well? We race in a loop, startin’ at the front gates and endin’ there. If you catch me before we get back, you win. Ya don’t, I win… and the loser has to treat the winner to lunch.”

Akane shook her head, partly in astonishment, partly in amusement. “This is ridiculous… you got me up at the crack of dawn to play games?”

Ranma smirked. Now to reel her in… “What, scared you’re gonna lose?”

“Lose? At a game of TAG? You gotta be joking, Ranma.”

“Come on, you know you’re gonna wind up losing, that’s why you don’t wanna do it.”

Akane bristled. “Excuse me?? I was running just as fast as you yesterday, unless I’m very much mistaken! Or were you lying to me?”

“Are we gonna argue all morning, or are ya gonna put your money where your mouth is, ‘kane?”

“Fine! You want to play games so badly, you’ve got yourself a bet, baka!”

“Now that’s the tomboy I know and love!” Ranma chuckled, just as he stepped in and lightly tapped her shoulder. “Tag! You’re it!” he quipped, spinning on one heel and dashing out the front gates.

“Huh? HEY!!! That’s no fair, you got a head start!!!” Akane hollered, scrambling out the gate and pounding down the street after him. “Get back here, Ranma!!”

“Gotta catch me, Akane!” he hollered back. He turned and sprinted down a side street, looking back to see Akane pick up the pace, her sneakers pounding the pavement and her bare legs flashing in the early morning light. Gods, she really is an amazing sight when she’s running, he thought to himself as he ducked down another side road, colliding with a trash can as he did so and knocking it into Akane’s path. I never woulda told her that back before, she’d have clobbered me then, called me a ‘pervert’ or something… maybe I’ll tell her once I’ve finished pushing her limits this morning. Directly behind him, Akane was barreling towards him at breakneck speed; he glanced back in time to see her clear the fallen trash can with the skill of an Olympic hurdler. “Just you wait, Ranma, I’ll get you yet!!!” she yelled, and he thought he detected a hint of a laugh in her voice. He noticed she was starting to close the gap between them, and started pushing himself to the limit. “You call that running, ‘kane? I’ll bet Mikado Sanzenin moves faster than that, even without ice skates!” A groan of irritation was his reward, and suddenly the side street ended at a T-intersection near the canals; green chain link fence loomed before them.

Now things get a bit hairy, thought Ranma as he turned on a dime and dashed left, running parallel to the fence. I hope to gods this works… “Looks like you’re buyin’ lunch today if ya can’t catch me!” he shouted, just before leaping up onto the fence and continuing to run.

“Oh, you better think twice about that, Mr. Saotome!!!” Akane shot back. “I’m not gonna lose to a stubborn baka like you!!” At that moment, she did something that ordinarily she wouldn’t have done. Had she been thinking straight, she would have laughed off the idea, or flat out recoiled, but she wasn’t thinking straight. All that mattered was catching up to Ranma. Catching up to her crazy fiancé and proving him wrong. Thus, she didn’t even notice herself plant her feet on the pavement, scarcely felt herself leap- and flip- a good fifteen feet in the air and paid no attention to the fact that she was now running along the fence rail directly behind Ranma, and all without wobbling or once losing her balance.

Ranma kept running, shooting the occasional glance back and making goofy faces as he did so. He could hear the slap-slap-slap of her sneakers getting closer, not faltering once, and he grinned to himself in elation. I knew it! I knew she had it in her; she just isn’t letting herself do all that she can!!! In the blink of an eye he was off the fence, and she was right behind him. “You think you’re so fast, buddy, you’ve got another thing coming!” Akane cried out, her voice now a mixture of annoyance and amusement; as much as she hated to admit it, trying to catch up to him was actually becoming fun. Days before, she would have been infuriated by the barrage of quips he’d been tossing back at her, but for some reason she found she couldn’t get as mad as she used to… especially with the faces he’d started pulling. A smug look crossed her face and she pushed herself even harder, ignoring the burning sensations in her leg muscles. She didn’t notice or even care when their path took them along another fence rail, across a brick wall and into a playground; she barely batted an eye as Ranma sprang over the jungle gym in one leap and she followed suit, jumping almost as high as he had.

Their chase continued out of the playground, over a series of trash cans and a dumpster, until finally the two of them were sprinting across neighboring rooftops. Ranma kept glancing back nervously, hoping his distractions weren’t wearing off, continually surprised at the ease with which Akane was roof-hopping… until finally he landed on the flat roof of a three-story office block, turned around to get another reassuring glimpse and realized Akane was practically on top of him. A second later, her palms collided with his chest, pushing him back onto the rooftop as she rolled forward, the two of them tumbling end over end until Ranma was lying flat on his back with Akane sitting on top of him, straddling his stomach.

The two of them paused for a moment, each one catching their breaths, before Akane leaned forward, crossing her arms and leaning her elbows on Ranma’s chest. “Tag. You’re it… and I win,” she said with a smirk.

Ranma blinked, a proud smile spreading across his face. “Yeah, you win all right,” he said, and Akane blinked in surprise as she noticed the look he was starting to give her. “That… that was absolutely incredible, Akane.”

“Huh? What’s so incredible about chasing you all over town because of a silly game?”

Ranma reached up and took hold of one of her wrists, his expression becoming serious. “Akane, do you have any idea what you just did?”

She stared at him, slightly confused. “Um… I was chasing you… and then I caught you…”

“Were you chasing me in a straight line?”

“Hell no, you kept changing directions on me and jumping over…” She stopped in mid-sentence. She blinked as she mentally retraced what they had just been doing, gasping as she realized the unorthodox route they had just traveled. In the moment, she hadn’t given it a second glance, but now that they had stopped a look of utter surprise began to settle on her face. She glanced around, noticing for the first time that they were on top of a building, then stared back into Ranma’s eyes in amazement.

“Ranma… did I… did we…”

He gently squeezed her wrist. “Yes, you did. And you did it a lot better than I expected.”

Akane shook her head, still in shock. “But how? I mean, I can’t… I’ve never been able to…”

“You never allowed yourself to, Akane,” was his gentle reply. “I told you yesterday, you’ve got amazing potential to improve, but you just haven’t been using it. You haven’t been able to because you tell yourself you can’t.” He sighed, a brief flicker of guilt crossing his face. “An’ I’m sure I didn’t help much back when I used to tease you about your skill. But you just proved you can get better. Hell, you were running that fence rail without so much as a wobble!”

Akane’s face brightened. “I… I guess I was, wasn’t I?” she murmured. “I didn’t even notice I was doing it, though; I wasn’t thinking. I just wanted to catch up and… and…” She looked at him again with a flash of realization. “Is that why you were making all those jokes? To keep my mind off what I was doing?”

“Um… more or less… I figured if you focused on beatin’ me, you wouldn’t be telling yourself you couldn’t do what we just did,” Ranma replied. “The fact is… an’ don’t take this the wrong way… sometimes ya think too much about what to do, an’ that’s what trips ya up. Yeah, it’s important to think about what you’re doing, but if ya think too much and overanalyze, you’ll never do what ya need to do. Brains is good, but sometimes instinct is better. That’s my first lesson to you, ‘kane… Don’t think. Just do. The talent’s in there, you’ve just gotta use it.”

Akane paused in thought. “Don’t think, just do?” she asked. “Is that all there is to it?”

“Well, obviously we’ll have to take some time with training and memorizing some moves together, but once you’ve learned something, don’t be afraid to use it. Remember, we are the school of Anything Goes, after all.”

She nodded slowly. “Yeah, you’re right about that… I still can’t believe I did that, you know. I didn’t think I was good enough, or that I was too clumsy; I never expected to be jumping rooftops or fences like you do.” She paused. “Do… do you think I could do it again if I wanted to?”

“I know you could. Just remember, don’t think about it. Just do it. That’s what I do, anyway.”

She smiled even brighter. “And here I thought you were just fooling around with a kid’s game,” she giggled as she leaned forward, pecking him lightly on the lips. “Thank you.”

Ranma chuckled, then stopped as an awkward look crossed his face. “Um… Akane?”

“Yeah? What’s the matter?”

“As much as I hate to tell you this, we probably should get back home… and I can’t do that very easily with you on top of me…” Akane blinked, then turned bright red as she noticed for the first time the position she was in, sitting on top of him with her bosom pressed against his chest. A familiar urge welled up inside her, wanting to scream pervert at the top of her lungs, but she pushed the urge away as several thoughts hit her in succession. One, she had shoved him down and sat on his stomach, not the other way around. Two, aside from giving her wrist a gentle squeeze, he had kept his hands to himself the whole time. Three- and most surprisingly- she realized she didn’t really feel that uncomfortable. She hadn’t even been aware of their position until he pointed it out.

“Umm… yeah, you’re right about that, I guess…” she stammered. “Guess I tackled you harder than I thought, huh… Sorry.” She quickly shifted her weight, moving off of him and standing up awkwardly.

“Don’t worry ‘bout it, Akane. I wasn’t really complainin’ that much,” Ranma quipped, laughing nervously as he got up. Akane flushed crimson again and was about to lightly swat him when they both heard a sound that turned their blood to ice. A very high-pitched, obviously maniacal laugh, which was quickly accompanied by the sight of numerous black rose petals wafting through the air.

Both turned rapidly to see the source of their distress standing on the building’s climate control system, ribbon at the ready and a murderous glint in her eyes. “KODACHI!!!”

“How DARE you, you trollop!!! Attempting to seduce my poor beloved Ranma-sweetums on a rooftop! And in broad daylight, no less!” The black-haired gymnast snapped her ribbon taut between her hands. “Oh, and dare I mention the grievous insult thou hast inflicted upon my dear brother? He cannot walk from one room to the next without discomfort, and do not try and deny it was you who wounded him! He speaks of naught but you day and night!”

“Like I care!” Akane shot back. “And what are you talking about, I wasn’t seducing anyone!”

“You liar!!! I saw the two of you in an embrace mere seconds ago; thank the Kami I chose to stretch my limbs this morning, or who knows what you might have done to my darling Ranma!”

“Who the hell said I was your darling Ranma to begin with?” Ranma groaned. “We don’t need this right now, Akane, let’s get the hell outta here,” he said in a low voice. “They’ll be waitin’ for us back home, an’ if we get caught up in another fight before school...” She nodded once in response.

“For luring my sweetums with your underhanded means, peasant, not to mention your ill treatment of my brother, I shall have my revenge!!!” Kodachi proclaimed, twirling her ribbon in rapid circles and laughing her hideous cackle. A quick hop and she was airborne, lashing out in Akane’s direction. Akane bolted, darting towards the edge of the building with Ranma right alongside her. She could just make out a series of lower buildings just ahead, and a wave of doubts began to claw at her gut. She glanced at him, worried, but he only smiled and nodded in return.

“You can do this, Akane!” she heard Ranma say in a firm tone. “Just focus on getting home! Don’t think, just do!”

Akane gritted her teeth, her eyes narrowing. The edge of the building got closer. Don’t think, just do… don’t think, just do… I did it once before, I should be able to do it again! Don’t think… just… DO!!!

She pushed off of the edge of the building with all her might; she was vaguely aware of the sensation of being airborne, could see Ranma right next to her… the next thing she knew, she had landed on the next building over, stumbling slightly as her legs absorbed the shock, and was still running. Directly behind her came the sound of maniacal laughter and the clack of Kodachi’s shoes hitting the ground, but for the moment Akane blotted it out. I did it!! her mind sang, her heart soaring. Not the best landing in the world, but I actually did it! And Ranma said this was just a warm-up today; maybe I’m not a klutz after all!

“Never fear, my sweet prince! I shall save you from that vile Tendo harlot!” Kodachi sang as she half-sprinted, half-danced right behind them. The next few minutes became nothing short of chaos defined as the three began a hectic chase across the rooftops of Nerima. Akane and Ranma bobbed and weaved across successively lower and lower buildings, and with every rooftop they crossed, Akane’s worried glances became fewer and her smiles grew more dominant. A snap of a ribbon at her heels caught her attention, breaking her elation for a second, then with a quick leap she and Ranma had ducked off the house they had landed on and descended into the alleyway. A few seconds later, the sound of a trash can being crushed under a laughing gymnast’s weight reached their ears.

“Geez, that freakshow is relentless!” Ranma growled, gripping Akane’s hand tightly as they dashed down the alley.

“She and her whole damn family; can’t we just sock her in the face and go home or something?” Akane replied, sweat beginning to run down her temples. Just then they heard Nerima’s most feared battle cry waft down from the street just ahead of them.

“What a haul! What a haul!!!!”

Ranma glanced at Akane, an evil grin crossing his face. “I’ve got a better idea; hold on tight!”

“What do you… ack!!!” Akane gasped as Ranma swept her off her feet and into his arms. With a quick spin, he kicked at a nearby pile of garbage bags, aiming in the direction of the crazed Kuno sibling who was closing in on them. The bags ripped open, showering Kodachi with a deluge of random garbage; Kodachi was unperturbed, shielding her face with one hand while she spun her ribbon in wide arcs, cleaving the assorted trash into powder. Glancing up again, she only saw the end of the alley in front of her, and Ranma and Akane nowhere in sight.

“Ah, playing hard to get, my love? How delightful, but you know you cannot hide in an open street!” she laughed, prancing out into the street, then stopping to look around and find where Ranma had gone.

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“My oh my, this has been most productive indeed!” Happosai chuckled to himself as he bounced down a side street, burglar bag on his back stuffed full of underwear. “Just the thing to shake off the sleepies! Now if only I could find a pretty lady to snuggle up to, and make this the perfect morning…”

His train of thought was briefly interrupted by several loud crashing sounds emanating from a nearby alley. He slowed down a touch out of pure curiosity, followed by his eyes sparkling with joy at the sight of a lithe, athletic young woman clad in a skin-tight leotard leaping forth from said alley. She appeared to be searching for something, or someone, with extreme urgency.

“Well, whaddya know!” Happosai mused, his eyes sparkling like a child’s on Christmas. “Looks like the Kami decided to be generous to Grandpa Happi today!” He bolted forward, a huge grin on his face; just as the girl turned to face him, he lunged forward and buried his face in her cleavage. “SWEETO!!!”

Kodachi’s scream of terror could be heard as far away as Kyoto.

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A few minutes later, Ranma had dropped to the ground not far from the house’s front gates, Akane still in his arms and both of them laughing hysterically.

“Oh gods… the look on her face… that was absolutely priceless!!” Akane gasped as Ranma set her down. “You were right, that was soooo much better than punching her lights out!”

“Less risky, too; better the old lech get a faceful of sleeping powder than us,” Ranma guffawed, before calming down a bit. “She’s probably gonna be sore as hell, though… but with any luck she’ll be too traumatized to do anything to either of us,” he added with another chuckle.

“Let’s hope so; gods, that couldn’t have worked out better,” Akane replied, stretching out and sighing as her laughter calmed down. “This was a lot more fun than I was expecting for this early hour.”

Ranma nodded, straightening up as well. “Me too, and a lot more productive than I expected. I’m really proud of you, Akane.”

Akane blushed. “Thank you, Ranma… that means a lot to me. Though I think I still need to work on my technique a bit, some of those rooftop landings kinda shook my ankles up.”

“That’ll happen a bit at first, it happened to me too when I started. We’ll probably have to work on your balance as well, but you probably shouldn’t try fence-running when we go to and from school.”

“Huh? Why not? If I need the practice, why shouldn’t I try it then?”

Ranma looked away, one hand awkwardly behind his head. “Well… if you’re walking the fence top in your uniform dress an’ a guy happens to walk past you an’ look up…”

Akane’s face went red. “Oh, I hadn’t thought of that.”

“I just wouldn’t want ya to be embarrassed, that’s why I suggested not doing it to and from school.” He paused. “Well, I suppose you could wear running shorts under your uniform or something…”

Akane shrugged. “It’s okay, I’ll work something out, maybe practice at home after school or something.” She took a deep breath, wrinkling her nose as she did so. “Right now, though, I think we need to get cleaned up; after all that running we’re both kinda ripe.”

“Yeah, I think you’re right,” Ranma replied as they headed for the doors. “Oh… um… one other thing,” he stammered. “Sorry I swept you off your feet like that earlier, when we were getting away… I know you don’t really like it when I do that, but I figured we could cover ground faster…”

Akane nodded slightly. “Well, I don’t like it too often, since it feels like I’m losing control,” she said in a slightly serious tone. She looked up, then smiled. “But… um… I guess I don’t mind it every once in a while. Actually… it’s kind of nice.”

Ranma smiled slowly. “So you didn’t mind?”

“I was surprised at first, but after that it wasn’t so bad. I dunno…” she trailed off, before shrugging and giving him a coy look. “C’mon, we’d best get cleaned up.” She jogged slowly through the gate, kicking her shoes off as she entered the front door. “I get the bath first!” she added with a giggle.

Ranma groaned theatrically as he followed her inside. “No fair, you got a head start!” he laughed. I swear, she never ceases to amaze me. I thought she’d have a ton of trouble just staying on the fence, that she’d start thinking about it too much and fall off; not only does she stay on the fence, with just a little more fine-tuning she could really begin to take off! He stopped in the front hall, smiling. She knows how to do these things, she just hasn’t been letting herself do them. I really shoulda offered to train her sooner; even if she’d smacked me back then it woulda been worth it. I know she doesn’t always like it those times I fight for her, when she’d rather fight for herself…

**So don’t fight for her. Let the others do what they will, she’s not worth the time or effort!**

What the… where did that come from? Dammit, I know that wasn’t what I meant to think!!

**You don’t need her, you never needed her! You’re a lone wild stallion, always have been and always will be…**

NO! I hate being alone!! I hated those damn training trips with my old man! I hated thinking I’d never find someone to love, and I HATE thinking that I nearly wrecked it between Akane an’ me! STOP PLAYING WITH ME!!!

“Are you alright, Ranma?”

Ranma blinked hard and shook his head a few times. Shingen was standing in front of him in jeans and a tan t-shirt, his brown hair pulled back in a ponytail and kept out of his eyes by his black bandanna. “You looked like you were spacing out there for a moment; is something up?”

Ranma sighed. “I dunno… how long were you standing there?”

“Not long. I just got up; noticed Akane was about to use the bath so I figured I’d do some stretching in the dojo. Sounds like you two got back from a jog or something.”

“Yeah… I promised I’d help train a few of her problem spots.” Ranma looked up. “Shingen, I got a problem…”

“What kind of problem?”

“I’m hearin’ this voice in my head…” He continued to detail the other times it had happened, the harshness of the words, the way it mirrored some of his own arrogance when he had first arrived in Nerima, how it seemed determined to drive a wedge between him and Akane. As he talked, Shingen’s eyes hardened and he put a hand to his jaw in thought.

“All I know is, I don’t like the way it’s talkin’ about Akane. An’ I’m not so sure it’s gonna stop that easily.”

Shingen nodded. “It sounds like the infection may be attempting to assert itself.”

“That’s what I was afraid of,” came the reply. “Does this mean I give up and go crazy now, save everyone time and money all around?”

“No, that’s exactly what you shouldn’t do,” Shingen replied harshly. “The fact that you’re resisting is a good sign; it could indicate the infection is starting to grow desperate. It may even sense impending confrontation.”

“So what do I do? Can you do anything about this yet?”

Shingen shook his head. “Not until later in the day; I still need a little more time. But for now, I may have a temporal solution… in fact, it’s something the others may need soon as well.”

He disappeared down the hall into the guest room, returning a moment later carrying a piece of hematite on a red cord. A foreign rune was engraved in the rock, which seemed to glimmer with a light all its own. “This warding stone was keyed to ward off mental assaults, either by hostile magick or an invasive spirit. I have several of these, in fact I have just enough for six people if need be. I suggest you wear this around your neck the rest of the day; its power should compel the infection to remain dormant until I can do something better.”

Ranma picked up the stone, looking at it with a doubtful eye. “I dunno, pal… I’ve had some very bad experiences with magic items in the time I’ve been in this town…”

“I understand that, Ranma, but I would not offer you this if I did not feel it would help you. Remember my blood oath and the tenets of the Hunter’s Code; I would not knowingly use the trappings of our work to do harm to another human. The warding stone has been used before, with great success; I swear it will not harm you or any other that wears it. And until I can procure enough materials to treat all those infected, these may become a necessity.”

Ranma looked at the stone a moment longer, then shrugged and slipped the cord around his neck. “Well, if it’ll keep me from having to argue with myself, I guess I can put up with it.” Just then the padding of footsteps in the hall could be heard.

“I thought I heard someone come in… Oh, good morning, Ranma!” said Kasumi as she poked her head around the corner. “And to you too, Shingen-kun, I didn’t know you were both awake this early.”

“I couldn’t sleep anymore, Kasumi-san,” Shingen replied.

“Same here,” said Ranma. “Me an’ Akane decided to go on a jog together.”

“Oh, that sounds nice!” said Kasumi with a smile. “I’m just fixing breakfast now, it won’t be too long.”

Nabiki plodded down the stairs, sleep evident on her face. “Too early to be so damn cheerful, sis…” she grumbled, wiping her eyes. Soun appeared as well, stumbling half-awake out the door to collect the morning paper. Another morning at the Tendo house had begun.

To Be Continued…

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Author’s note: Yep, another longish chapter. I’m finding the more I write, the more I flip back and forth between short and long chapters, and I hope this one didn’t ramble too much. I’ve got a lot planned, so this story may take quite a while. Future postings will be on hold until I get at least one review; I appreciate constructive criticism and so far I haven’t received any on this site. I post one one site first, then here, depending on my schedule.

Until next time, I shall remain… Neon RoninConverting /tmp/phpdVV0F3 to /dev/stdout