Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ Ranma OneHalf: First steps ❯ Book One, Chapter Four ( Chapter 4 )

Ranma OneHalf: First steps Chapter four.

Ranma stepped out of cool air of the Fairways store into the muggy heat of late June. Feeling the heat from the pavement through the soles of his tennis shoes Ranma had a momentary flashback to summers in Nerima. Ranma chuckled to himself as he headed home.

"It's been awhile since I thought about that place." he thought.

Walking along he looked at the houses that lined the street and thought about Nerima. They would be heading back there soon he figured. Right now they were in Iowa as he and Akane finished up her training.

"I wonder if she's ready yet..." he thought. "I know I am." he added with a grin.

Turning down a side street Ranma started to take a short-cut home. As he walked he thought about the training trip they had been on for the last four years. During that time they had learned a lot and grown up as well. And some where along the line Ranma had found that being married to Akane was something he was looking forward to.

"As long as I do the cooking." he thought wryly. "Speaking of which..." he thought as he hefted a shopping bag as he contemplated dinner.

So engrossed was Ranma with the thought of dinner that he was caught completely by as he rounded the corner and came face to face with a large cat.

"YAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!CAAAAAAT!!!!" he screamed as he stumbled backwards onto his butt.

The cat jumped and ran hissing at his scream. Heart pounding, Ranma heart sat on the sidewalk in a cold sweat. Sitting there he took some deep breaths as he tried to calm down. Feeling better after a couple of minutes Ranma got up on shaky legs and headed home.

When he finally got back to the apartment Akane was sitting at the kitchen table reading a Ms. and drinking a cup of tea.

"Hey Ranma, what took you so long..." Akane trailed off when she saw his face. "What happened?" she asked as she got up from the table.

"C-c-c-c-c-cat." Ranma stammered out as he put the bags on the counter. "Take care of the groceries Akane. I gotta go calm down." he said as he stepped past her, heading to the bedroom.

After an hour he had calmed down enough to cook dinner. After a fairly quiet meal he and Akane did the evening chores and retired to their beds for the evening. Akane read for a bit before turning off the lights and going to sleep. Ranma however, remained wide awake.

Lying in bed he thought about the Neko ken. Or tried to anyways. He really didn't remember all that much. Whenever he went Neko he blacked out and couldn't remember his actions. The only memories did have was when he came out of it. Usually, he'd be a mess and more often than not in a tree or some other strange place.

And a couple of times he'd came out of it with blood on him, which scared him to no end.

"Advanced combat, my ass. All it did was make me uncontrollable and dangerous." Ranma thought with a scowl. " I could kill someone and not even know it." he continued.

In the darkness Ranma looked at his hand silhouetted against the white of the ceiling. "Looks like this is one technique I didn't master." he thought as he flexed his fingers.

He lay there for several moments, his last thought echoing in his mind. Slowly his hand clenched into a fist.

"Like hell I didn't." he muttered with a frown. Rolling over, Ranma drifted off into a troubled sleep.

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That morning instead of going to the temp agency where he and Akane were employed Ranma stayed home and read the Advanced Combat Manual.

"Just another technique that would be used by a total idiot. Anyone who would teach this needs to have their head examined." Ranma read. "Gee, no wonder pops went for it. He is a total idiot." he muttered to himself.

Slapping the book closed Ranma tossed it to the end of the bed and stood up.

"This is getting me nowhere." he thought as he stretched. "Think I'll go practice a bit. That always seems to help."

An hour later Ranma was winding down in the backyard. Coming back to his start position he held it for a moment and then exhaled slowly, letting his body relax. He stood there for a moment and then straitened back up.

"Your very graceful." said a voice above and behind him.

Ranma turned and looked up. It came from the second story window belonging to his next door neighbor.

"Well, I am the best." Ranma said, puffing out his chest.

"I believe it. You move like a cat." added the neighbor.

As he shuddered at the mention of the word 'cat' something clicked in Ranmas brain.

"THAT' IT!" he yelled.

"What's it?" asked the neighbor, confused.

"The solution to my problem. Thank you very much." Ranma said as he bowed to the neighbor.

Grabbing his towel Ranma hopped onto the roof of the downstairs neighbors porch and clambered into his apartment through the open window.

That afternoon Akane returned home sweaty, tired, and covered in concrete dust.

"I'm home." he called as he stepped inside.

"How was work?" Ranma asked from the other room.

"Hmpf! The way they acted you'd think they'd never seen anyone summon a mallet before." Akane answered as he unlaced his boots.

"You had to summon a mallet?" Ranma asked.

"We were doing demolition work and the sledgehammer they gave me wasn't enough." Akane replied as he kicked off his boots and headed to the sink.

Turning on the hot water Akane let it run for a moment to heat up, and then stuck his hand under it. Instantly he reverted to a she.

"Much better." she said. Turning off the water she headed into the bedroom.

In the bedroom Ranma was sitting cross-legged on his bed. Akane glanced at him as she went to cardboard box that served a dresser and started to pull out a fresh change of clothes.

"I figured something out today." Ranma mentioned as she finished pulling her change of clothes.

"Oh, really? What was it?" Akane asked as she slid the box back under the bed.

"I've been using parts of the Neko Ken and didn't know it." Ranma said. Akane dropped her clothes in surprise.

"What?!" Akane asked as she spun to face him.

Sitting on the bed Ranma grinned. "It's pretty obvious when you think about it. My speed, my agility, think about it." he said.

Akane stood there for a minute as she thought about what Ranma had said.

"You know, that does explain a lot." she said. Bending down she began to pick up her clothing. "So where do the bad manners and the attitude come from?" she asked.

"Eh, I blame the panda." Ranma said with a shrug. "Any ways, I think I may have a cure for it." he added.

"For your baka tendencies? This I gotta see."Akane said with a raised eyebrow.

Ranmas expression turned serious.

"No, for the Neko Ken." he said levelly.

Akane looked at him for several seconds. "Your serious." she said.

"Uh-huh. But to do it I'll need your help." he replied.

"Why?" she asked.

"Because part of it will require me to go into the Neko Ken." Ranma answered.

Akane tossed her clothes onto her bed and stalked forward towards Ranma.

"Are you insane? This isn't Nerima Ranma! The last time you went Neko you nearly got shot!" she shouted. "Why on Earth would you want to do something that stupid?" she continued.

"Because the way I am now I'm a bomb waiting to go off, Akane. It's only a matter of time before I hurt someone.' he explained.

"But I've always been able to bring you out of it, so there's no need for this."Akane replied.

"But you're not gonna always be there Akane. And there ain't gonna be kindly old ladies around either. That's why I gotta do this." he told her.

Getting off the bed Ranma walked over to Akane and looked her in the eye.

"I've lived with this fear for years Akane, and it's time I faced it like a man." he said. "And I want you there because if I'm wrong you'll be able to keep me from hurting myself or others." he added.

Akane looked at him for several seconds. "Are you sure this is gonna work?" she asked.

They stood there for several moments until Ranma nodded.

"Okay. I'll do it" she said.

"Thank you." Ranma answered.

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The next morning Ranma was sitting cross-legged under a tree in the backyard. He'd been there since before dawn, meditating and preparing himself for what was to come. He'd been centering himself, making sure he was absolutely calm before he began the soul of ice technique. As he sank into it the air around him started to cool and moisture began to condense on his skin.

When the sun was a quarter of the way through it's zenith Ranma took a long, slow breath and released it. Closing his eyes he spoke.

"I'm ready." he said, his breath clouding in the warm air.

Sitting there he heard the sounds of Akanes footsteps as she walked over to him and sat down. He waited until she was comfortable before he opened his eyes. In front of him sat Akane wearing her usual too baggy jeans and t-shirt and with her hair in a ponytail. And she was holding-

- A cat.

With the cold detachment brought with the soul of ice Ranma looked at the cat. It was a small, gray, tabby with green eyes. It sat there with an air of slight annoyance on having to sit and be petted when it really wanted to be fed.

He looked into its eyes and a memory of the Pit flashed in his mind. Suppressing the impulse to push the memory back, he let it play out. Ranma remembered being thrown into the pit and then being swarming by the cats, biting and scratching as they tore the sausage off him.

His forehead furrowed into a scowl and his hands clenched into fists as he remembered being thrown back in again with dried sardines tied onto him. And then with salted sardines. And the final time, with fish cakes tied to him the fear had overwhelmed his ten year old mind and he had let it take control...

Ranma let out a low growl as the panic at the back of his mind tried to push it's way forward. He pushed it back as he forced himself to remember what had happened after that. The cats bit and clawed at him as he went rigid in fear. Then the fear had overwhelmed his conscious mind and his screams had turned into growls.

Ranma flipped forward onto all fours and shook the cats off him. They immediately backed off, recognizing a threat. He paced back and forth in the pit, growling and lashing out at any cats that got too close.

A creak in the floorboards and strange sounds above him drew his attention upwards. He was dimly aware of them as being from the one who had caused the pain. Ranma jumped up and smashed through the wooden floor, landing in a crouch in front of his father. Ranma hissed and attacked....

Ranma stiffened and arched his back.

"NNNNGGGGGRRRRRRrrrrrrr....." he growled before he passed out.

Akane released her hold on the cat and let it go as she watched Ranma slump over to the ground. She sat there for a few breathless moments before she found the courage to speak.

"Ranma?" she asked.

Getting no response from him she tried again.

"Ranma?" she asked again.

With a slight frown Akane leaned forward slightly.

"Here kitty-kitty." she said.

At his lack of response Akanes frown deepened. Getting up, she very carefully approached him and rolled him over. She sighed in relief as she saw that he was still breathing and was in fact in a deep (and apparently unpleasant) sleep.

"Ranma you baka, what have you done?" she asked him.

Cradling his head on her lap Akane sat and waited.

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After what seemed like an eternity for him the dreams began to fade and lose intensity. Slowly Ranma began to achieve consciousness and he became aware of his surrounding. From the window by his bed he heard the wind softly blowing through the trees and cars driving by the house.

Somewhere in the distance a radio was playing and he could hear the neighbors next door discussing something. There was creak in the ceiling as someone in the upstairs apartment walked across the room.

Cracking open his eyes he looked up at the bedroom ceiling. Seeing how the light was coming in Ranma realized that was mid-afternoon.

"Must've been out for a while." he thought.

Holding up his hands Ranma examined them. As he looked at them he saw no scratches or cuts, which meant that he hadn't gone Neko. Lifting his head, he looked at his clothing, which was free of rips and tears.

"Clothes aren't tore up and my hands are okay, so I guess I didn't go Neko. That's a good sign." he thought.

The sound of a faucet being turned on grabbed his attention.

"Akane?" he asked.

The faucet abruptly stopped and Akane nearly ran into the room. Skidding to a stop she looked at Ranma.

"Ranma, you're awake!" she exclaimed.

Ranma nodded. "Yeah. What happened? Did I go Neko?" he asked as he sat up.

Akane shook her head. "No. You sort of growled and passed out." she answered.

"I passed out?" Ranma asked her.

"Yeah." Akane answered as she began to walk over to him. "After you didn't wake up after an hour I was worried that you had gone into a...coma..." she trailed off as she neared him.

Noting the odd look she was giving him Ranma tilted his head to one side and looked at her with a puzzled expression on his face.

"Something wrong, Akane?" he asked.

"Y-your eyes..." Akane stammered, pointing to his face.

Now it was Ranmas turn to give Akane an odd look.

"My eyes? What about my eyes? What are you talking about?" he asked.

"They've changed..." Akane answered.

"They've changed? What do you mean? I can see fine." Ranma told her.

"Ah- hold on." Akane said. Turning, she left the bedroom to go into the other room.

Ranma sat there wondering what was going for a few seconds when Akane returned carrying a hand mirror.

"Take a look." she said, handing the mirror to Ranma.

"Okay now I can what your talking about..." Ranma said as he looked in the mirror.

Ranmas jaw dropped. His eyes were still the same blue-gray that they had always been, but the irises were now vertical slits rather than round as they'd been before.

"Huh..." he breathed.

Dropping the mirror Ranma holds up his hand.

"I wonder if..." he thought.

Akane jumped back in surprise when Ranma lightly swiped at the blanket on the bed and four neat cuts appeared. Looking over at Akane he gave her a grin, exposing his now prominent canines.

"I don't know about you Akane, but I'd say it worked." he said with a purr.

Akane just stood there as she tried to process what had happened. Finally her brain just gave up and shut down. Ranma looked at where she had fainted and shook his head.

"Man, you'd think after having all we've went through..." he said to him self.

Shaking his head, Ranma got out of bed. Walking over to her he knelt down and shook her awake. Akane awoke with a groan.

"I'm awake, I'm awake." she said as she batted his hand away.

"You okay?" he asked as she sat up.

"Yeah. Sorry about fainting like that Ranma. After what you did, it kinda got to be too much for me to handle." Akane said as she rubbed her eyes.

Ranma shrugged. "If you say so." he said. Standing up he offered a hand to Akane. "Anyways, wanna spar?" he asked.

Akane gave him a deadpan look as he helped her up.

"Are you serious?" she asked.

"Yep." Ranma said with a slight smile.

Akane rolled her eyes in reply.

"Your impossible, you know that?" she told him.

Ranmas smile cracked into a maniac grin. "Ah, that's why you love me." he said.

"Why you-!" Akane said as she took a swipe at him. Ranma ducked under the swing, then hopped backwards onto the bed and out the window. Smiling slightly despite herself Akane followed him out the window and into the backyard. ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ______

An hour and a half the later the sparring session ended in a draw, with Akane landing on her butt in the dirt and Ranma landing on his back in a puddle left over from last nights rain. Sitting up Ranma adjusted her pants and sports bra*, then stood up.

Stepping out of the puddle Ranma started to wring her shirt out as she glanced at Akane through the corner of her eye.

" Hard to believe how good she's gotten." Ranma thought. "She's a master now. Which means..."

"Hey Akane, I got a question for you." Ranma called to her.

"Hmm?" said Akane as she looked up from dusting her self off.

"How would you like to start developing your own techniques?" Ranma asked.

"I'd love to. Why do you ask?" replied Akane.

Ranma shrugged. "Because you're a master now, and I want to start to develop the combined school." she answered.

"Oh, okay.' Akane said as turned to go inside, then stiffened as the meaning of Ranmas words hit home.

Akane turned as Ranma walked up to her.

"Did you say that I'm a master and that you want to develop the combined school? " she asked, voice shaky.

Ranma nodded. "Now that we're going to join the schools I figured that we'd need to -ACK!" she started to say before Akane demonstrated her first new technique, the Tendo Bear Hug (tm)**

"C-c-c-cant b-b-b-b-breathe..." Ranma gasped as Akane danced around the yard giggling like a maniac.

"Huh?" Akane said as she stopped in mid giggle. Seeing that Ranma was beginning to turn blue she stopped and let go of her.

Ranma kneeled on the ground and let her breath come back, wincing at the pain in her ribs and back.

"I...guess...the strength training...paid off." Ranma gasped out.

"S-sorry." Akane said as she blushed red from embarrassment.

"It's okay." Ranma said. "You have every reason to be happy." she added with a smile.

Akane nodded and smiled back.

"I know." she said. "I'm as good as you are and we're finally getting marrie-"

"Don't say it!" Ranma hissed, putting her hand on Akanes mouth.

Giving her a deadpan look, Akane took Ranmas hand away.

"Come on Ranma, they're several thousand kilometers away in Japan. They can't hear you." she said.

__

In Nerima several people sneezed.

__

"I'd rather not take chances, unless you want a repeat of the last one." Ranma told her. They both shivered at the memory.

Grabbing Ranmas other hand Akane looked into her eyes and gave her another smile.

"So, what do you want to do now?" Akane asked.

Ranma thought for a minute, then looked Akane in the eye.

"Well, it's a Saturday, and since this is a special occasion, how about we go celebrate?" she asked.

"Okay." Akane said as she nodded.

Rain came down at a heavy rate and thunder rumbled occasionally through the sky as two figures came down the street, leaning on each other for support. From their erratic movements and their weaving side to side it was apparent they were quite drunk.

They erratically made their way up the street to where their building was. With much difficulty they managed to get their way through the front door and inside the building. Using extreme care they went up the stairs to the second floor where their apartment was.

Leaning the redhead against the doorframe, the taller of the two fished in his pockets for the key and found it after a small search. Fumbling, he got the key in the lock and the door open. Helping the redhead to her feet, they very carefully made their way inside. Shutting door behind them they successfully completed their mission: Make it home without waking the neighbors.

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The first thing Ranma was aware of was massive pounding in her head. That and her mouth tasted like something had died in it. Very reluctantly she cracked her eyes open and winced as the light stabbed daggers of pain into her head. Shielding her eyes against the light Ranma lay there and looked at her surroundings.

As she lay there she slowly realized three things: One, she was looking at her bed, which was empty. Two, she was naked in Akanes bed, and Three, Akane was lying next to her. A sudden snore from Akane also showed that she was a he at the moment.

"How the hell..?"Ranma thought as she went over the previous days events.

She remembered beating the Neko -ken, then her and Akane sparring. After that it was her telling Akane that it was time to join the schools, and them going out celebrating. From there her memories started to get hazy, but she remembered stumbling home in a rainstorm with Akane. They were soaking wet and so they had stripped out of their clothes.

By that point she could barely stand and so Akane had carried her into the bedroom, making it as far as his (Akanes) bed before he had stumbled and plopped them both down on the bed. She remembered being seized by a sudden impulse to kiss Akane and had did so. And much to her surprise, Akane had kissed back. From there hormones and alcohol had taken over and they had...

Ranma covered his eyes with his hand and groaned at the lowest possible volume.

"Oh man, we did it backwards." he moaned softly.

As she lay there Ranma decided that she could use a cup of tea and some aspirin for her head. As she tried to roll over she discovered that Akanes legs were tangled up in hers. Realizing that Akane was going to find out anyways, she reached over and gently began to shake Akane.

"Nnnnh...Ranma?" slurred Akane as he cracked open an eye. "Why are you in my bed?" he asked.

"We had sex while we were drunk last night." Ranma told him.

"Oh." was Akanes reply.

Ranma twitched an eyebrow upwards. "No yelling?" she asked.

"Aren't husbands and wives supposed to do that?" he asked.

"We're in our cursed forms Akane." Ranma pointed out.

Akane looked down at himself and saw what Ranma meant.

"Oh. Well I'll yell at you when we're not hung over." he told her.

"Okay." Ranma said.

Very slowly Ranma untangled herself from Akane and got out of bed, wincing when she sat up.

"That's it. No more booze for me." Ranma said as she shuffled into the kitchen.

"Me too." muttered Akane as he curled up under the covers.

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The first thing Ranma was aware of was a massive pounding in her head. That and her mouth tasted like something had died in it. Very reluctantly she cracked her eyes open and winced as the light stabbed daggers of pain into her head. Shielding her eyes against the light Ranma lay there and looked at her surroundings.

As she lay there she slowly realized three things: One, she was looking at her bed, which was empty. Two, she was naked in Akanes bed, and Three, Akane was lying next to her. A sudden snore from Akane also showed that she was a he at the moment.

"How the hell..?"Ranma thought as she went over the previous days events.

She remembered beating the Neko -ken, then her and Akane sparring. After that it was her telling Akane that it was time to join the schools, and them going out celebrating. From there her memories started to get hazy, but she remembered stumbling home in a rainstorm with Akane. They were soaking wet and so they had stripped out of their clothes.

By that point she could barely stand and so Akane had carried her into the bedroom, making it as far as his (Akanes) bed before he had stumbled and plopped them both down on the bed. She remembered being seized by a sudden impulse to kiss Akane and had did so. And much to her surprise, Akane had kissed back. From there hormones and alcohol had taken over and they had...

Ranma covered his eyes with his hand and groaned at the lowest possible volume.

"Oh man, we did it backwards." he moaned softly.

As she lay there Ranma decided that she could use a cup of tea and some aspirin for her head. As she tried to roll over she discovered that Akanes legs were tangled up in hers. Realizing that Akane was going to find out anyways, she reached over and gently began to shake Akane.

"Nnnnh...Ranma?" slurred Akane as he cracked open an eye. "Why are you in my bed?" he asked.

"We had sex while we were drunk last night." Ranma told him.

"Oh." was Akanes reply.

Ranma twitched an eyebrow upwards. "No yelling?" she asked.

"Aren't husbands and wives supposed to do that?" he asked.

"We're in our cursed forms Akane." Ranma pointed out.

Akane looked down at himself and saw what Ranma meant.

"Oh. Well I'll yell at you when we're not hung over." he told her.

"Okay." Ranma said.

Very slowly Ranma untangled herself from Akane and got out of bed, wincing when she sat up.

"That's it. No more booze for me." Ranma said as she shuffled into the kitchen.

"Me too." muttered Akane as he curled up under the covers.

After two cups of tea and a pair of Advil Ranma felt considerably better. Massaging the pounding in her head Ranma looked up as Akane shuffled into the kitchen. Picking up a cup he sat down and poured himself a cup.

"Hello." Ranma said softly.

"Nnnhhh.." Akane answered as sipped his tea.

Reaching for the Advil Akane dunked his fingers into her tea and then shook out two Advil.

"Hey, why haven't you changed?" she asked.

Ranma blinked and looked down at herself. "Huh? Oh, yeah." she said.

Dunking her fingers in her tea Ranma was surprised when she didn't change. Groaning softly she massaged her temples.

"Crap, I'm early this month." Ranma muttered softly.

Akane winced in sympathy as she sipped her tea. "That sucks." she said.

"Tell me about it." Ranma muttered.

They sat in silence as the sipped their tea and tried not to think. After finishing her tea Ranma stood up carefully and headed to the bathroom.

"I'm gonna take a shower." she said.

Akane nodded gingerly in reply.

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Two weeks later Ranma was still locked in her female form and hadn't menstruated yet. Worried, Akane made a appointment at the free clinic. Ranma proved resistant to the idea however.

"Akane, I'm fine. I don't need a doc to take a look at me." Ranma said as she pulled a laundry bag out from the closet.

Akane set her hands on her hips as she looked at Ranma. "Ranma, you've been stuck for two week and you haven't-" she began.

"I know, I know." Ranma interupted. "I'm fine Akane." she said as she opened the bag.

Akane sighed and massaged her temples. They had been having this discussion for the past two days and Akane was near her limit. Seeing as how her current approach wasn't working Akane tried a different approach.

"Ranma, you do realize if we're going to get married we have to be in our regular forms." she said.

Ranma rolled her eyes as she started stuffing laundry into the bag. "For crying out loud Akane I'm fine. This has happened before and everything turned out okay." she said with an exasperated sigh.

Akanes right eye twitched as her patience finally ran out. With an exasperated sigh Akane summoned her mallet.

"RANMA NO BAKA!" she yelled as she swung.

After a splash of water to change, Akane picked up the now unconscious redhead and slung her over his shoulder. Walking out he muttered under his breath about thick skulled bakas and how stubborn they could be.

Akane sat in the lobby of the free clinic and read a Time magazine while he waited for Ranma to finish her appointment. After reading it for a few minutes Akane put it down and picked up a National Geographic.

He had gotten into an interesting article when a shadow fell across his magazine, Looking up Akane found a nurse standing in front of him.

"Mr. Tendo?" she asked.

"Yes?" he replied.

"Could you come with me please? Dr Ramirez wants to talk to you." she said.

Akane got up and followed the nurse as fear knotted his stomach. She led him to an examining room. Opening the door she pointed inside.

"Wait in here. Dr Ramirez will be by in a second." she said.

"Thank you." Akane said as he entered.

Inside the examination room Akane was surprised to find Ranma sitting on the bed. Walking over Akane sat down next to her.

"You okay?" he asked.

Ranma nodded. "Yeah. Got a slight headache though." she said, rubbing her head.

"The doctor find anything wrong?" Akane asked.

Ranma shook her head. "No. She made me pee in a cup though for some tests." she said.

"Oh." Akane answered.

They both looked up as Dr. Ramirez entered. She was a stocky, middle aged Latino woman with a no nonsense demeanor-and a very open and understanding mind. That's why Ranma and Akane had been going to her as their doctor for most of the year they had been in Iowa.

She stood in front of them and read the clipboard she was carrying for a few moments before looking up. Clearing her throat she spoke.

"There's no easy way to put what I'm about to say, so let me get to the point." she began. Taking a deep breath she continued. "Ranma, Akane, congratulations, you're going to have a baby." she said.

Ranma and Akane were both silent.

"They're taking it well." she thought to herself.

Outside the clinic birds took flight en masse, dogs and cats hid in terror, and small children felt afraid. Inside the clinic Dr. Ramirez was starting to become worried when she noticed a slight tremor with Akanes right eye.

It quickly progressed into a spasm and Akane began to shake. Fascinated Dr. Ramirez watched as Akanes battle aura manifested. She was wondering how Akane was able to do it when in the back of her brain her several hundred thousand years of survival instincts snuck behind her rational self and clobbered it.

Taking the controls her survival instincts got Dr. Ramirez out of there before Akane went critical.

"RANMAS PREGNANT?!" Akane screamed as her chi flared like a nova.

Outside passers by jumped as a section of the second story wall exploded outwards. Seeing the light coming out of the smoking hole they decided they urgent business elsewhere and left.

After calming down Akane Dr Ramirez told him what he and Ranma needed to know and gave them information they would need, including their options.

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Akane and Ranma sat at the kitchen table with a pot of tea between them. Silently they sat there and drank their tea. After two cups of tea Akane was the first to speak.

"So, what do we do?" she asked.

Ranma was silent for a few minutes before replying. "I-I don't know Akane." she said.

Akane picked up a Planned Parenthood brochure and slid it over to Ranma.

"Well, you can always get an abor-" she began.

"No!" Ranma said, smacking the table and making the cups and pot dance.

Akane jumped despite herself at Ranmas reaction. Surprised, Akane listened as Ranma continued.

"I won't do that." she said. "I can't" she added softly.

"Why?" Akane asked.

Ranma was silent for a bit before answering. "Akane, the code I live by says as a martial artist I must protect the weak." she began. "And I have to protect whats inside me." she said as she looked at her stomach.

Akane opened her mouth to say something but she remembered what she had read in Ms. concerning the abortion issue: It's a woman's choice.

Akane nodded. "If that's your decision, Ranma I'll support you." she said.

Ranma blinked in surprise at Akanes statement. "You're okay with it?" she asked.

Akane shrugged. "Yeah." she said.

"Okay." Ranma said as she poured herself some more tea.

They sat there in silence for a few minutes drinking their tea. Suddenly the silence was broken by Ranmas stomach growling. Ranma gave Akane a sheepish look.

"I think we should get some dinner." she said.

Akane nodded. "I think so." she said. "What do you want to have?" she asked.

Ranma glanced over to the corner where her fishing rod was propped up.

"How about fish?" she asked.

_________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ________________

End.

*yes, Ranma finally wised up to the needs of his girl side.

**which makes the Amazonian Glomp look like peanuts.