Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ Shadows are Stirring ❯ Murasaki tai Hatobairo ( Chapter 18 )
Chapter Eighteen: Purple Versus Raven
It took a few minutes for anything to really happen after Cologne's announcement and Ranma's collapse. The past combat and subsequent events took a lot to process. It was Pantyhose Taro who finally stepped up to break the silence.
"I must say, Tendo Akane... that was some kiss," he said gently, kneeling next to Ranma's battered form and looking over to the girl who was hovering over him by Dr. Tofu. "And that was some fight, as well."
"Thanks, Taro," Akane said with a grim smile. "And don't worry... I'm sure Ranma will be more than willing to listen to your request, once he's better. So long as you refrain from calling him fem-boy ever again."
"This not possible!" Shampoo suddenly shouted, causing both Taro and Akane to stand up and look over to her. Kuno and Kodachi were just behind her, both staring blankly at the group gathered around Ranma, as though they weren't sure what to make of anything. "Airen not kiss violent pervert girl like that! What you do to him?"
Akane looked over to her family squarely for a brief moment. He saw the tears in her father's eyes, and the supportive look from both Kasumi and Nodoka Saotome. Turning back to Shampoo, she stood up firmly and stared right into the Amazon's eyes. "I love him. That's what I did to him. Love him. Nothing more... nothing less."
"Not possible!" she repeated. "Kitchen destroyer hate Airen! Airen hate pervert girl! He no love anyone but me!" She drew her bon boris angrily and held them in front of her, turning with a curt nod to Cologne. When she looked back to Akane again, there was a fire burning in her eyes. "Shampoo challenge Tendo Akane! Challenge you for right to Airen's hand!"
"You are attempting to fulfill the Kiss of Death, great granddaughter?" Cologne asked, all traces of amusement gone from her face suddenly. "Taking hold of your honour and acting accordingly?"
"Yes!"
"I..." Akane stopped, not sure how to answer, exactly. She wasn't sure if she could take Shampoo yet, though Ranma's training had done a lot to help her. On one hand, she really wanted to ask for Ranma's opinion on the matter first - as her sensei, not as her fiancé - but on the other hand, this was exactly what she had been talking about with him just a few weeks earlier. And she had only improved since then. "I accept your challenge, Shampoo!"
"Then fight!"
"Hold!"
It was truly amazing the amount of force that Ryoga's voice carried over the battlefield suddenly. For one who rarely ordered anyone around, and the only phrase ever actually shouted was a death threat at Ranma, the act of raising his voice seemed to get everyone's collective attention.
"What pig boy want now?" Shampoo demanded, whirling her weapons around to face him. For his part, Ryoga simply pulled his bamboo umbrella off his pack - which was once again on his back - and took hold of two bandanas in his other hand, but did not back down.
"It would not be proper to fight her with those weapons," he said firmly. "She is unarmed. I will not stand back and watch a dishonourable challenge battle."
Akane looked over to her family during the brief distraction and caught Ranma's mother's eye. She motioned towards Ranma's still limp form, and then shrugged, trying to convey a message the best way she could.
When Nodoka stepped forward, it seemed that she understood perfectly well.
"Tell me, Shampoo," she interrupted Shampoo and Ryoga easily, drawing her family honour blade an inch from the sheath carefully to make sure she herself would not be interrupted. "What are the Amazon Laws on challenges and your opponents abilities?"
"What mother-in-law mean?"
"What I mean, Xian Pu," Nodoka said firmly, making sure to pronounce her name properly for once. "Is that the Amazons believe in fair combat, correct? Aside from Ryoga's fair comments, in an official challenge, nothing should be done to hinder your enemy before the match, correct?"
"Is true," Shampoo replied with a shrug. "How you know our laws so good?"
"Isn't that a standard rule of honour among most peoples of the world?" Ryoga pointed out. "For real challenges, and not sudden duels, everything should be fair, right?"
Nodoka looked away from Shampoo slowly to rest her eyes on her injured son. Akane had knelt next to him again, and was whispering something to Dr. Tofu, who appeared to be trying to reassure her about Ranma's condition. When Akane met her eyes, Nodoka smiled warmly to her. "Good. Then there is no problem in waiting for your challenge until Ranma is awake again, correct?"
"Shampoo expect Airen to see her defeat violent kitchen destroyer," she said proudly, putting her bon boris behind her again, where they simply vanished. "And when done, Airen marry me without question!"
"I'm glad you feel that way," Nodoka replied, though it was rather obvious to most gathered that she really didn't hear much of what Shampoo had said beyond her consent to waiting for Ranma. "And, since you expect your opponent to be in top form for the challenge, Akane will be staying with Ranma until he awakes."
"What?"
"That just isn't proper!"
"How would staying near Ranma help Akane at all?"
When silence finally fell, it was Cologne who first spoke up. "Are you referring to the fact that they can ki transfer, or the fact that they have been sharing a bed ever since the training trip?"
"I believe sleeping together started during the trip, actually," Dr. Tofu countered. "But they have only been sleeping next to each other... nothing more," he added, glancing to Soun quickly in warning before he could say anything.
Cologne nodded but did not reply to Dr. Tofu's comment. "Great granddaughter, you will return to the Nekohaten at once to begin preparations for the challenge," she ordered the Amazon girl. "I will join you shortly to help. Mousse... you may do as you wish until the time is right."
"But great grandmother!"
Shampoo was cut off by Mousse bowing low to the elder Matriarch of the Amazon tribe. "Thank you, Honoured Elder. I shall return when Ranma's progress is at the appropriate point for the challenge to be fulfilled."
Before Shampoo could continue, Ryoga had picked up Ranma and placed him on Akari's sumo pig's back. "Sorry Shampoo. But you conceded to the laws already, so you really have no right to complain."
It looked like she was prepared to argue further, but both Pantyhose Taro and Ukyo stood in her path suddenly, all but blocking even her view of Akane and Ranma. "Hey, sugar, if she tries anything, what do you think we should do?"
"I think a nice cold glass of water could cool things down, actually..." Taro replied with a brief grin to to okonomoyaki chef. "Or perhaps just a well aimed spatula or two. I'll seed the decision to you."
There was a brief silence before Shampoo turned on her heel and strode angrily in the opposite direction of the departing company. Cologne took a moment to bow and shake her head before hoping up onto her stick once more. "Please send them my best regards," she said softly, though who she said it to was a bit of a mystery before she, too, bounded off.
"He should be up in a day or so, right?" Taro asked calmly, looking away from the torn battlefield to Ukyo. "Nothing keeps him down for long, right?"
"Nothing except Akane's cooking," Ukyo replied, startling herself with her own joke. Looking away from the tall man beside her, she found herself staring at the rent left in the wake of the epic battle. Taro seemed to follow her gaze, but said nothing until the twin thuds of Kuno and his sister crashing into the ground in their states of shock shook the silence.
"Goes to show you, doesn't it?"
"Show us what?"
"How far some things can drive us. Fem-... I mean, Ranma has managed to do the one thing that no one has ever been able to do, and he wasn't doing it out of spite or malice, or even a sense of justice for all those Happosai has harmed," Taro said softly, looking back to Ukyo. "He did it for a far greater cause than I have ever known."
"I think there might have been some justice involved," Ukyo countered. "But I understand what you're saying. I wouldn't have been able to fight that well... I've never had such a true cause either." She then paused for a moment as though considering something, and then shrugged. "Care for something to eat, Taro?"
"I'd like that... thank you."
-----------------------
"So you really have no idea?" Nabiki asked squarely. She was standing in the living room of the Saotome household where they had brought Ranma. Even though he was still living with the Tendos - and undoubtedly would be for quite some time to come - the house where he had spent the first few years of his life had been closer to the fight.
For her part, Akane didn't even answer her sister's question this time. It had been asked more times than she cared to think about in the past few minutes. Of course, it didn't help that she had been completely in the dark along with everyone else.
"It is a strange phenomenon, you have to admit," Dr. Tofu pointed out as he released Ranma's wrist. He had been checking his pulse to see if it was still steady - as expected, there was no question. "But then... the entire training is a little unusual, too."
"Unusual isn't the word I'd use for it, Doctor," Nodoka said firmly, her voice hard as ice. Whenever they started talking about Ranma's training, her voice always held an edge to it. "Barbaric... idiotic... foolish beyond belief..."
"We get the point," Ryoga dared to interrupt her. Although he knew about her honour blade, he was not concerned with it at the time. "The Neko-ken is the worst possible move... but somehow Ranma managed to control it. The question is..."
"How?" Akari cut him off. "And just what did he do back there, anyway? I heard that old ghoul mention something about him being a blooded warrior, but I'm not sure what she meant by it."
"She meant that he has killed another in the throes of battle." All eyes in the room save two sets swirled to the entrance, where a tall man in white robes with long black hair was standing - Ranma, who was unconscious, and Akane, who was still watching Ranma, did not look up. Mousse's glasses were resting on his nose, so he could plainly see each of them. "It is the term used in our village for a warrior who has performed such an act. A male with such a status holds the same rank as the female warriors. Depending on the reasons behind the kill, as well as who was killed, there are times when a blooded warrior is even higher than a female."
"He killed before?" Akari asked in surprise, turning back to the still prone Ranma. She could see one of Akane's hands clasping one of his firmly, while the other was on his chest, rubbing gently. "When did this happen? And how is he living with himself? From what I've seen of him, I'd be surprised to know that he doesn't care about that anymore..."
If there had been a profound silence earlier in the room, it paled in comparison to the effect of her last words. This time it was actually Akane who broke the silence. "I almost died," she whispered, though her words easily carried. "In fact, I can't say for certain I didn't... at least for a few seconds. But Ranma brought me back in time. He just had to kill to be able to do it."
"He killed to save... your life?"
"He killed to save all of our lives," Ryoga corrected her, placing a hand on her shoulder gently. "If he hadn't destroyed that enemy then, then we would not be here today. And it was not an easy decision for him, nor one that has been without consequence. He has already paid heavily for it, in body and in mind... could you imagine what would happen if he were to be praised for the deed he so despises having committed?"
"Who did he kill?" All eyes in the room swiveled over to Soun Tendo as he asked the question in a hushed voice. It was actually the first intelligible thing that he had said after they had arrived - beforehand, all he had managed was a fountain of tears and proclamations of joy. "Who did he kill to protect you... to save my youngest daughter?"
"It was..." Ryoga faltered. There was no real way to describe Saffron easily... and it wasn't exactly a point in his life that he enjoyed examining any more than any of the others who had been there.
"He was a demigod," Mousse provided solemnly. "Half mortal, half Phoenix, he was born to be king over his nation. He held the power of flames and life in his hands, and he misused them. It was thanks to Ranma's incredible power... and his love for your daughter... that Saffron was destroyed."
"Oh my..." Kasumi's usual expression actually caught the others off guard, and they all looked over to her to find her staring at Ranma and Akane.
Ranma's hand that was held in Akane's was clenched tightly, and there were tears in Akane's eyes. On Ranma's face, where there had just been fatigue and pain before, there was now a narrowly masked grimace, as though he was being forced to think about something incredibly unpleasant.
"We should stop talking about this now," Nodoka suggested softly as she turned back to Mousse. "It may be a tad late by this point, but I welcome you to my home, Mousse, and so long as you are friendly to those within it, you are always welcome."
"Thank you, Lady Nodoka Saotome," Mousse said formally, bowing slightly to her. He then looked back to everyone else. "I suppose you are wondering why I'm here in the first place, right?"
"The thought did cross our minds, yeah," Ryoga admitted. "I thought you took off the moment that old ghoul let you off your leash."
Rather than look angered by the statement, Mousse actually looked amused as his eyes shot from Ryoga to Akari and back. "I would question who among us is on the leash, actually," he said with a straight face. "But that would not be why I came. I wish to speak with you, Ryoga. It concerns Ranma and... a few other things." He sighed as he saw Ryoga glance quickly to Akari and take a small step to the side as though to shield her. "Of course, Akari is welcome as well."
"So long as we don't go too far," Ryoga admitted with a nod. At the questioning glances he received, he shrugged. "I don't want to get caught in the rain, and I promised Ranma that I would protect Akane if necessary if the worst had come to pass. Now... I don't believe that has occurred, but I'd still like to keep watch over this house until Ranma is on his feet, which will give Akane back her focus."
"The baka still thinks I need protecting?" Akane growled, standing up as she released the hand she had been holding. "I thought we were passed all that!"
"He thought you would be against Happosai," Ryoga corrected. "And if Ranma fell to him, you have to face facts... we would need all the help we could get on the matter." He bowed to her slightly before standing from the mat and helping Akari to her feet and following Mousse out the door.
There were about three seconds of silence before Nabiki's voice sounded again. "I still don't get how he went Neko-ken and still had complete control!"
"Nabiki!"
"We made a deal."
The second statement was so quiet compared to the loud shout of almost everyone gathered in the room that it went practically unnoticed until Akane felt a hand on hers again. She looked down in surprise to find Ranma's hand in hers again. Looking to him quickly, she saw his grey blue eyes looking back at her.
"Hi," he whispered with a small grin. "Whadid ya think a that?"
"Baka!" Akane screamed, collapsing onto him and hitting him hard in the chest with a solid fist. "Baka! Baka! Baka! You... you..."
"Baka?" Ranma provided helpfully.
Before she could hit him again, Akane suddenly found her free hand linked into his and him pulling her closer to him. A blush rose in her cheeks, as she knew that they were not alone by any stretch of the word, but her thoughts went right out the window as their lips connected again lightly... briefly... before he pulled away again.
"I love you, tomboy," he whispered to her.
"I love you too, my baka."
"Damn straight I'm yours."
The sound of a throat being cleared brought both back down to earth, and Akane shot up in embarrassment, trying to look anywhere but at anyone else in the room. "What was is you whispered before that heart warming display, son?" Soun asked. It was hard to say who was more shocked - Ranma at being called son by Mr. Tendo, or everyone else that Soun hadn't broken out with his waterworks yet.
"Before..." Ranma stopped for a moment and then nodded his understanding. "I said we made a deal."
"That's what I thought you said," he admitted. "But I have to say... what you said afterwards caught me by surprise even more."
Ranma closed his eyes slowly and took a deep breath before opening them again to look straight at the man before him as though he was the only other one in the room. "I meant every word."
"I know."
"Would you two stop it?" Nabiki screamed, turning on Ranma again. "Would you just explain what the hell happened back then?"
"Somethin the great Nabiki Tendo doesn't know bout?" Ranma asked with a grin, squeezing Akane's hand as he spoke. "Alright, alright, I'll explain the best I can."
Apparently, Ranma knew that he didn't have the skills on his own to defeat Happosai the way he was that morning. He knew it had to be done, but he wasn't sure how he could do it. He had taken off as soon as he had uttered the challenge, and had started walking through town, trying to figure out a way to win.
It was next to the Ono Family Clinic and after his trip to the Nekohaten for the waterproof soap that it suddenly clicked... though it had nothing to do with Dr. Tofu, or even Kasumi. It had to do with an incident that occurred almost a year earlier when Akane had broken her leg and he had gone in the window to speak with her. He was late thanks to a group of cats.
And that was it. Cats. The Neko-ken. He had his answer, the key to defeating the grandmaster and pervert of the School of Anything Goes. The unbeatable Neko-ken. But he wasn't stupid... he knew the greatest weakness of the move was the complete inability to maintain control.
So he did the only thing he could think of doing. He made his way to the battlefield as fast as possible, and knew that he was at least two hours early. He saw down in the middle of the field and closed his eyes to meditate. It took nearly half the time to search within himself for the daemon that was released upon the sight of his fear.
It took almost as long to be able to come to an understanding with it. When he found it, the neko within him tried instantly to burst free, to take control of their body, but his hold was too firm, and the animal had no chance of escape. He then made the simple request, a request that he knew was his only chance. If the neko refused, then he didn't have a chance, and he knew it.
"I want to be able to protect Akane."
Mate?
"Yes... our mate. I need ta be able ta protect her. And I need yer help. Yer strength. Yer power. Yer speed. But my mind."
Protect mate this way?
"Yes."
Human side promise? What human suggest make us no longer exist... just us as one.
"I know."
You must unleash me... and then I will agree and give into you... my human side.
"Then, when the time is right, I will give into ya... my neko side. And together we cin protect our Mate."
Purrfect.
It was only then that Ranma had opened his eyes and settled on the fact that it was almost noon. He had hoped to be able to do a quick warm up before the match, but that was no longer possible. The beginning would have to be the warm up. He just had to tell Akane what was going on first... at least, as much as he could in case the old freak was listening in. She just had to trust him.
"And ya did," Ranma finished. "So it all worked out in the end."
"So that's why you had to ask Akane to trust you, right?" Nabiki reasoned. "Because if she thought that she had to snap you out of the Neko-ken, then it wouldn't have worked, right?"
"Exactly."
"But how did you know Happosai would bring out a cat in the middle of the match?" Dr. Tofu asked after a moment of silence. The story had fascinated him, and he wanted to take the time to examine Ranma's ki now that he was no longer prey to one of his curses, but he knew it was not the time.
"Simple. The old freak would try anything to weaken their opponent. He tried to get me to change to a girl, too, remember? He knows that my girl side is weaker."
"You sure he didn't just want to grab you?" Soun pointed out.
Ranma shook his head. "That wasn't his intention, I'm sure of it," he replied. "He knew how serious tha match was, and he wasn't bout to throw it just fer one quick grab. Not when he thought he had the chance at so much more if he won."
"Speaking of grandfather... or rather, just Happosai, where is he now?" Kasumi asked quietly. "Did anyone see to making sure he would follow through with his side of the arrangement?"
"He won't be moving fer a while anyways," Ranma pointed out. "At least a couple a days, if not much longer. And then... yeah... he'll get outta Japan. He ain't stupid enough not ta now." He then looked up at Akane who had yet to say anything after his story about the Neko-ken. She looked down to him slowly, as though only just aware that he was staring at her.
"Mate?" she whispered, though Ranma wasn't sure if there was ice or fire behind the word. "What did you mean by `Mate'?"
Ranma really wished that he knew if she was pleased or beyond angry before he had to answer that. As it was, he couldn't read the emotion on her face, either. "My neko side called you that first," he pointed out. "And I know it isn't true yet..." He then pulled her down to him and whispered the last bit into her ear. "But I hope it is one day soon, don't you?" He then closed his eyes and prayed that that had been the answer she had been hoping for.
She pulled up from right next to him and nodded discretely. "Yes," she mouthed before looking up. "So..." she said in a normal voice. "Any idea when this challenge is actually going to take place? I assume not today, right?"
"No... Ranma is not at his full potential yet," Dr. Tofu pointed out. "It would only be fitting for him to get at least one night's sleep first. And I mean full night, too, young lady," he added with a grin to Akane, whose face reddened almost instantly at the accusation.
"They wouldn't do that," Nodoka interrupted suddenly. "They have decided to wait until the wedding night to act upon their impulses of such a nature... even though I told them that this house was available if they needed private space to... explore."
"Mom!" both Ranma and Akane said at the same time in surprise at her bold words.
"Mom?" Nabiki and Kasumi both said in shock.
"You knew?" Soun asked immediately.
"I believe Nabiki, yourself, and I are the only ones in the room who were caught unaware by this development," Mousse's voice said from the doorway suddenly as Ryoga and Akari came back in looking a bit more solemn than they had earlier. Mousse then pushed his glasses to the top of his head. "It does not appear that Ranma is awake yet," he said calmly, though a smile was starting to play at his lips. "At least, I can't see that he has yet. I suppose the challenge will have to wait another day, then."
"Thanks Mousse," Akane said quietly.
"I owe you two at least that much," Mousse replied softly before turning to leave - promptly crashing into the doorframe in the process before putting his glasses back down while carefully not looking towards Ranma. "Until tomorrow, then."
It was apparently Ranma's turn to clear his throat, because everyone in the room turned to him next. "I take it Shampoo issued the challenge?" Akane nodded rather than say anything, and Ranma sighed. "Right then. Ryoga... take Akane into the dojo to work on her punches from the left again. That can't be an opening tomorrow." Seeing the shock in Akane's eye at such a demand, he cut her off. "I will not allow my student and fiancée ta be injured when the mistake is easy ta fix. I'll apply the special cream in the morning, as well as give ya a good back rub, ta make sure you are loose enough for the match. But until night falls, I want ya training... alright?"
"Do you think I can beat her, then?"
"If you keep your arm down and your temper under control... I think you could beat anyone in this room... but me of course." Akane could only stick her tongue out at that last minute addition before leaving down to kiss him.
"Thanks for the vote of confidence."
"I mean it, Acchan."
"There's only one problem, Ranma," Ryoga pointed out. When Ranma looked away from Akane to the lost boy, Ryoga looked around. "This isn't the dojo, and I doubt I could get there without getting lost."
After everyone else picked themselves up off the ground, Akari took a firm hold of one of Ryoga's elbows while Nabiki took hold of the other and picked him up deftly to set him on Akari's sumo pig. The pig, who had just been sitting in the corner as though waiting for another order, grunted lightly and then turned to the exit.
"I'll make sure he gets there," Akari offered. "Just make sure you get there too, Akane."
"And we'll get Ranma home," Soun added. "He'll be in your room when you are finished."
Again surprised by the lack of waterworks, Akane could only nod at her father before giving Ranma a quick peck on the cheek and taking off after her sparring partner.
-------------------
In the darkness of the night, a set of eyes opened slowly. The blue grey that had once been there had turned more blue, and held an almost feral quality to them. In fact, even though it was quite dark still, Ranma could easily see everything else in the room.
Including the young woman that he held in his arms. She had been completely exhausted after her training with Ryoga - though she did manage to tell him that Ryoga was worse off than she was, a fact that had brought a smile to his face. Now that she was sleeping peacefully in his protective embrace, that smile had faded to a grim look.
Slowly and carefully, Ranma inched his way out from under Akane before standing up as silently as possible and tucking the blankets back around her. The night air was a little chilled, after all, and she was only wearing a light pair of pants and a sports bra... a fact that Ranma was quite pleased with indeed. He was only wearing his boxers and had revealed in the feel of her skin against his as they both drifted off.
Now, however, his mind was not on how little either of them were wearing. It wasn't even in the room at all. He flexed his arms briefly and winced. His left shoulder was a little sore still, but otherwise he seemed to be back to his peak again. The battle had not been a simple one - even though he had redirected the Hiryu Shoten Ha into the devastating counter attack, he still had felt most of the effects of the powerful first blow.
Even his own well being wasn't on his mind, though. It never really was anymore... he rarely thought about taking care of himself. He had faked it well enough that afternoon, but the fact of the matter was that he was worried about Akane and her upcoming match.
In a fair fight, he knew Akane would actually have the upper hand this time. She had been training harder than he had thought she would be capable of, and was easily becoming one of the more powerful fighters around. Nowhere near his level, of course... but who was?
He allowed himself a small grin as he looked back to his sleeping fiancée. Her raven hair was splayed out on the pillow beneath her head like a halo, and he took a deep breath to keep from going back to the bed right away.
The big issue with the fight was the fairness, though. Shampoo had never failed to attempt to use some sort of potion - or even shampoo itself - the take down her enemies, and had tried more times than he could keep track of to use magical herbs to trap him to her. Would she try something like that tomorrow, even though people would be watching?
And had she received any of the training that Cologne had promised him? If she had even half of what that old ghoul was capable of, then Akane was in for a difficult fight. Akane's ki reserves were much greater than Shampoo's thanks to the fighting and training that they had done in the shadow valley, but Shampoo had much more experience in using them.
The big question he had to ask himself was not an easy one. Could he fight Shampoo's fire with flames of his own? Could he cheat for Akane like Shampoo would undoubtedly cheat for herself?
With one last feral look to Akane, he closed his eyes and sighed. He knew the answer to that question already. He just hoped she could live with it later.
------------------
"Promise me, Ran-chan!" Akane was pleading with him and she knew it, but it didn't matter, not right then. "Please..." She looked into his eyes and saw a great fear mirrored back at her. "Just like you made me promise."
Ranma took a deep breath before nodding slowly. This was going against his own promise to himself that he had made in the dead of night last night, but he couldn't refuse her. "I will not get involved unless it takes a turn for the serious worse. If I think yer life is in danger, Acchan, I ain't gonna sit back." That would have to be good enough. The challenge was only a few minutes away from starting, and he could feel his own nerves tightening more now than they had for his own fights.
"Can I ask for something else from you, Ran-chan?"
"Name it."
"Can I have your trust for this fight? You asked me to trust you when you had to fight Happosai, remember? Would you trust me for this fight, too?"
Ranma closed his eyes and bowed his head for a moment, as though trying to come up with the appropriate response. He felt many sets of eyes on him suddenly - several of which he could identify easily. Akane was watching him, he had no doubt of that. Her challenger was also watching him closely, as though hoping he would suddenly yell at Akane. He looked up and met Shampoo's eyes from across the arena.
He saw a fire there that he had never seen before, and looked away quickly, and back to Akane. "Ya got it. You always got it." He then leaned forward and kissed her on the forehead. "I love you."
She smiled up to him and kissed him on the lips before he could get any further away. "I love you, too," she replied. "And now I intend to fight to prove it." As she turned towards the ring, she looked back to Ranma one more time. "After this is over, I intend to get into a rather long, possibly violent tickle war with you."
"I look forward to it."
Once she was in the ring itself, Ranma took a step back to better keep an eye on things. He had no idea how they had pulled it off, but a massive fighting ring had been set up on the baseball diamond overnight. Not only did it cover up the damage that he had caused yesterday, it also made for stricter rules in the match.
"What did she mean by tickle war, Ranma?" Ryoga whispered to him, making sure no one else could hear the question. The crowd was much smaller for this match than it had been yesterday - only Ranma's fiancées, his family, and a few close friends were there to watch.
"Ya wanna eat that ash now, er am I gonna hafta force it down yer throat after she's won?" Ranma asked in return. Ryoga looked away from him quickly, and Ranma chuckled, feeling a bit of the tension in his body being released by such an action. "How'd it go yesterday?"
"I can move again," Ryoga said. "Which is saying something. Akari managed to get me here, too." He considered himself very fortunate these days to be able to call Ranma a good friend... especially given how he had managed to get him to talk to Akari again.
"Think she'll be okay?"
"Are you questioning her abilities now, Ranma?" Ryoga demanded, subconsciously pulling free several of his bandanas at the slight. "When she just asked for your trust so openly?"
"I know she can beat Shampoo," Ranma replied. "So long as the fight is a fair one."
"You don't think it will be?"
"I don't know. But I can't do anything if it isn't, because of that blasted promise I just made to her!"
"Calm yourself, grandmaster," Taro said from behind the two. "It would not due for your student to see such a display of anger just before the fighting begins."
"Don't worry, Ranma," Ryoga said before Ranma could turn his anger at the situation towards their interruption. "If she starts cheating, I'm not bound by any such promise."
Ranma nodded after a moment and closed his eyes. "I'll owe you one, too."
"Nah. We'll just call it even."
Their conversation was called to a halt by Cologne's loud voice calling for silence. Looking back to the ring, they saw Shampoo on one side, with Akane on the side close to them. The old ghoul was balanced on her stick on one of the ropes.
"Who can be deemed honourable enough to judge this match?"
Ranma felt a hand on his shoulder before he could take a step forward. "You can't offer," Mousse said softly to him. "You are the prize, remember? She would say that you have a vested interest."
"I do, though!"
"Exactly. Suggest your mother," he suggested.
Without stopping to consider why Mousse was helping him suddenly, Ranma took a step forward. "Lady Nodoka Saotome."
There was a brief murmur of surprise, as well as Nodoka herself looking to Ranma in shock before Cologne called for silence again. "Very well. Will the head of the Saotome Clan please make her way to the edge of the ring?"
Nodoka pulled the silk covering off her family honour blade and let it flutter to the ground behind her as she walked forward. She thought that showing the blade so openly would only make sense in this case.
"Will you serve the Amazon role of judge for the challenge to your son's hand, Nodoka Saotome?" Cologne asked with a slight bow to the younger woman. Ranma's mother nodded firmly and Cologne leapt from the rope and landed behind her. "Then the match begins and ends by your count."
To many of the spectators, the match began without warning. Although neither combatant was nearly as fast as Ranma or Happosai had been the day earlier, they both still had incredible speed.
"Shampoo crush pervert girl!"
"Not in this lifetime, you Chinese bimbo!"
Shampoo's blue aura flared around her as the two clashed together - trading off attacking and defending - while Akane's currently vibrant red aura had surrounded her. With a sudden duck and spin, Akane had lashed out and caught Shampoo in the stomach with a fierce kick, which sent her flying backwards into the ropes of the ring.
"Her skills have improved greatly," Ukyo said softly from behind Ranma. It was apparent that she was trying to get his attention to say something, but the match held all of his focus without question.
Another clashing together once Shampoo had picked herself up sent Akane high up into the air from a powerful fist in the stomach. Steeling herself against the pain and the lack of air in her lungs, Akane spun around hard as she came down, imitating a move that she had seen Ranma do on more than on occasion during their morning sparring.
She dodged two direct assaults before crashing into the Amazon with a knee, knocking them both into a heap in the middle of the ring. Shampoo was up first this time, and did not give her a chance to recover before attacking again.
This time, a resounding thud echoed across the battlefield when she hit the floor of the ring hard. She lay still for a moment to catch her breath, but was forced to roll to the side to avoid Shampoo's foot.
When she did pull herself off the ground and back to her feet, the two started circling again, as though watching for an opening. Akane was pleased to note that Shampoo had a distinct style to say when she was ready to fight, while she had managed to copy Ranma's lose style so she was always ready.
The moment Shampoo stood slightly from her prepared state was when she struck next. She ducked to the side of the first sloppy punch, and then drew her left hand back for a hard strike to the chest. Her body responded as it had been trained lately, and she kept herself covered as she knocked Shampoo back into the ropes again.
As Shampoo clamoured to her feet again quickly, Akane took a step back. Her opponent was dressed in a blue fighting gi, while she had taken a pair of Ranma's pants, which fit her properly, and one of her school blouses. The white and blue did not match the aura that she was exuding, but she really didn't care.
"Fine. Kitchen destroyer no make this easy," Shampoo warned as she came in again. "Time to stop pulling punches."
"Speaking of pulling punches..." Akane said fiercely as she shot forward and rolled to the side of Shampoo's obvious attack. "Here's one that can't be pulled! Ifuriito Butsu!" Her ki seemed to surround her right hand as she hauled back and struck hard. Shampoo screamed out at the contact at her side and went down instantly, rolling hard on the floor to put out the sudden flames despite the pain that such movement caused her.
"Undiine Hangeki!" Shampoo countered when Akane took a step towards her. Her feet were surrounded by her own blue ki as she pushed off hard to strike Akane in the chest with both feet. Akane cried out despite herself at the pain that gripped her, and she fell back hard.
When Shampoo's fists were coated in her ki for the next attack, Akane did the only thing she could think of as she leapt backwards. Focusing her aura, she separated herself from it and left a wall behind as a temporary shield while she tried to figure out how she was going to end this. None of the moves that Ranma had learned from the Amazons would work, she knew that much. So what else was there?
"You make this harder than should be!" Shampoo shouted as she pushed passed the practical flaming wall. When the two faced off against each other again, the Amazon pulled out her bon bori and attacked with as much force as she could.
The motion itself was what gave Akane her idea. Stepping back to give herself the room to act, she pulled out her own weapon... a weapon that she hadn't ever used in actual fighting, only to end arguments. This time, however, the mallet seemed to have a complete physical form, just like Shampoo's two weapons. With a mighty swing, she broke one of the bon boris in half across the large surface, causing Shampoo to cry out in either pain or fright, though she couldn't say just which.
Akane cried out herself when the second of Shampoo's weapons connected with her left arm. The resounding crack told everyone who was watching exactly how much damage had been done, and her mallet fell to the ground as she knelt heavily, clutching at her broken arm in a feeble attempt to take the pain away.
Somewhere in a far off place, she heard Ranma's voice screaming to her. Suddenly realising that he was shouting to her from the side of the ring, she looked over quickly. "The ki shield isn't just for blocking attacks!"
"What?" Akane shouted back, but she missed the answer as she rolled backwards and pushed off the corner pole with both feet to launch herself at her opponent again. She connected with Shampoo's right shoulder with her own, toppling the other girl easily as she rolled to a stop, breathing heavily and trying to block out the pain and the fact that she essentially had one useless arm.
When she saw that Shampoo's arms were coated in blue ki again, a sudden thought occurred to her. Ranma's words were making sense... she could use her ki shield to keep her broken arm in one piece so she could still use it. It would probably hurt like hell, but it couldn't be any worse than it currently was anyway.
She didn't think, really. She just reacted as Shampoo attacked again. In an instant, her broken arm was surrounded by her ki as she brought it up to block the first punch that was thrown, and then used her right hand to knock the wind out of her opponent, as well as lift her clean off her feet to land ten feet away.
"I always said she could hit like a mach truck," Ryoga muttered to Ranma, who ignored him just as he had ignored Ukyo earlier on.
A pink ribbon caught her fist as she went in for the finishing attack that would knock the Amazon out cold. Caught off guard, the ribbon was suddenly pulled taunt and she found herself flying backwards to crash into one of the poles in the corner again. Looking up, she heard Kodachi's insane laugh before she saw her new enemy.
"Mom, call the match!" Ranma shouted angrily as his battle aura flared up around him, forcing those closest to him to back up several steps. "Kodachi isn't her opponent, and Shampoo is down!"
"I know what I'm doing, Ranma!" Nodoka called back coldly, not turning away to meet her son's fierce glare. "She will be alright."
"Damn it!" Ranma cursed, punching the ground in front of him. "This ain't right! She ain't suppos'ta take on two at once! And here I am tied back here, and I can't get in there ta help!"
"There are certainly some underhanded tactics at use in there," Taro agreed, taking a step forward. "But I believe your mother intends for Akane to defeat both of her so-called rivals in one foul swoop so she does not have to go through it again."
"I don't care!" Ranma cried, whirling on the boy from China. "Akane's in trouble up there! Shampoo cheated with those bon boris that she pulled, and we all know that Kodachi doesn't fight fair!" He turned back to the fight to find Akane standing in a corner, staring down both the sister Kuno and Shampoo, who had recovered again. "Screw promises!" he cursed, crouching to leapt into the ring to help.
"No, Ranma!" Kasumi's shout caught him off guard, and he looked back to her sharply before she went on in her usual softer tone. "You know that she will never forgive you if you break your word to her."
"But she's in trouble!"
Ranma turned as he felt something thrust into his hands. Looking down, he found himself holding Ryoga's umbrella and saw his pack on the ground at his feet. "To make up for my attempts on Ranma's life, I will now save the life of the woman he loves."
Rather than go for the stronger Shampoo, Ryoga actually tackled Kodachi from behind, which effective ended the stream of black roses that were showering down on Akane. The black powder that accompanied the petals was not a welcome sight, but there was nothing he could do about it right then.
It seemed that Kodachi Kuno did not appreciate his efforts at all.
"Now pervert girl will die," Shampoo said viciously, stalking towards the struggling Akane. Akane couldn't breath - one breathe of the powder had apparently sealed off her lungs, though for how long, she really couldn't say. She shook her head to try and clear the effects, but that only managed to make her dizzy... whatever the powder had been, it was very powerful.
Just before the Amazon could land a single strike, Ranma's words came back to her. The ki shield isn't just for blocking attacks. With what sounded like a growl from deep in her throat, she threw her shield up around her, taking care to pass it clear through her first.
The bright red energy knocked Shampoo clean off her feet and twenty feet through the air, only to skid to a stop against the far side of the ring. Standing a little unsteadily, Akane took a deep breath to fill her lungs with clean air again before starting forward. She stopped right above Shampoo's fallen form, and was startled to see the other girl sobbing desperately.
As though she sensed her opponent standing over her - and she probably did, the way Akane's ki was flaring around her broken arm - Shampoo looked up and met her gaze carefully. After a brief moment, she looked away and tilted her head back, exposing her neck completely.
All of Akane's anger at the girl evaporated at the sight in front of her. Shampoo was willing to give up her life since she had lost. She knew that she couldn't win, and so was forfeiting the challenge. Kneeling carefully, Akane reached forward to put a hand on her opponent's shoulder as a form of comfort, but was jerked back suddenly.
She felt a burning sensation around her middle, and looked down to find herself wrapped in the blasted pink ribbon again. Looking across the ring, she saw Ryoga lying on the mat twitching - apparently having received a faceful of some toxin or another.
Without warning, she felt her own muscles suddenly clamp up, refusing to obey any of her commands. She had felt like this once before, when she had been caught by a black rose in her last fight with Kodachi over Ranma. She had no doubt that this time was caused by the same thing, too.
"I have defeated the wretched Akane Tendo, my darling Ranma!" Kodachi called, suddenly coming into view above Akane's frozen form. "Now that the challenge is out of the way, let us find a priest so we can be wed right away!"
Akane growled again, just as she had earlier when she used her ki shield to cleanse her of the effects of the previous toxin. This time when her shield passed through it, it had no effect on her state. She can't have him! she thought desperately to herself. Even though she knew it was in vain to fight the paralysis, she couldn't just lay back and be declared a loser now... not after she had beaten Shampoo into submission - literally!
Her hand moved very slowly, but it was moving. A little closer to her target... just a little closer. The crazed gymnast looked down in surprise when Akane grabbed her ankle, but didn't have time to react before being flipped onto her back, landing hard on the mat next to her enemy.
"How dare you fight back?" she screamed, leaping back to her feet.
Only this time, she met a little resistance in the form of two well-placed feet from a powerful kick from Akane. Kodachi lifted off the ground and flew backwards to crash down again hard as Akane landed kneeling on the floor again. She was fighting against the toxins in her body with every ounce of willpower that she held, and found herself able to move, even if it was a little slower than she would have liked.
She couldn't help but grin as she heard Ranma's shout. "I always said you were a stubborn one, didn't I?" There was something in his voice that took her a moment to place... joy at her victory? Pride? Something... stronger?
She lost the ability to think when Ranma was suddenly holding her close, his arms wrapped around her. She collapsed against him instantly; her entire left side felt as though it was on fire thanks to her badly broken arm. She tried to hold him in return, but found she couldn't manage it. Instead, she was forced to turn with Ranma as he looked over to his mother.
Nodoka had apparently just called the match to a close when Kodachi ended up knocked out thanks to her last kick. That explained Ranma's sudden appearance. She fought against the pain so she could try to follow what was being said around her.
"I knew she could do it," her father was saying proudly.
"Akane can do anything she puts her mind to, father," Kasumi replied.
"I think anyone else would have been stopped by Kodachi's paralysis. I've never seen someone so stubborn before!" She wanted to look to find the source of the voice, but couldn't break free from Ranma's tight embrace.
"Why didn't you stop the match when Kodachi tried to mess things up, mother?" Ranma demanded, shattering the joyous mood that was surrounding them.
"She had to deal with both of them sooner or later. I thought both at once made the most sense," Nodoka said. "Besides, this proves that your training methods work extremely well, Ranma."
"But..." Ranma started, but was cut off when Akane forced herself onto her toes so she could press her lips to his again to silence him. He quickly melded into her, ignoring those around them almost instantly as he responded to the feeling.
"Thank you for trusting me," she whispered before letting the pain take her. Her last conscious thought was about how similar the outcome was to Ranma's match yesterday - both managed to speak with the other before passing out to the pain.
-------------------
"I swear to you on my honour and life as a martial artist."
It took a few seconds for the words to register in Akane's foggy mind. She was just waking up, and it was obvious that someone was talking nearby... wherever she was. The words sounded strangely formal, especially coming from Ranma, so she decided to keep her eyes closed and pretend to still be unconscious so she could figure out what was going on around her.
"Thank you, son," her father said after a moment. "You don't know how much that means to me to hear that. It has been far too long since anyone has..."
"I know," Ranma cut him off. "But like I told you, I'm not just anyone. I'm Saotome Ranma, Grandmaster of our School of Anything Goes. I would never abandon her training unless she asked me too... and then only with a damn good reason. And I would never abandon her even then."
She felt the bed she was in shift a little, and was surprised to feel the extra weight wrapped around her left arm. Wiggling her fingers on that hand very carefully and slowly, she realised that her arm was in a cast. That was about all she figured out before she noticed that someone had sat down on the bed right behind her, and was now running a hand through her hair.
"You'll be good to her, too, right?" Even though Ranma didn't respond to that question from her father, she could practically hear the glare that he sent his way. "I know." There was another pause for a moment, and then the bed shifted again as Ranma stood up. She heard them both move a little, and peaked one eye open just a little to find that the two of them were embracing in front of her. "I can hardly wait until we can welcome you officially into the family. Even if you do decide to have Akane take your name... you will both be Tendos in heart at least."
"Thank you, sir."
When the two pulled apart from the closest father-son moment she had ever witnessed Ranma have with anyone - including his own father - she closed her eyes again quickly just as Ranma started walking around her bed to sit down behind her. She heard the door to the room open and then close again, and then Ranma shifted so he was lying down next to her. She was startled to feel that he was under the blankets with her without warning, but he was just holding her loosely, as though reassuring himself about something.
The time when she had had her eyes opened had told her a couple of things. First of all, it was the same day that she had fought with Shampoo, judging by the clothes both of them were wearing. Aside from that minor fact, though, she knew that she was in the Ono Family Clinic again. Presumably Dr. Tofu had tended to her injuries, as she doubted Ranma would trust anyone else to do as good a job. That thought almost brought a smile to her face, if not for the fact she was still pretending to be asleep.
"Hey tomboy, listen carefully ta what's being said outside the room," Ranma suddenly whispered into her ear as he slowed his breathing a little to make it easier to listen. "And yeah, I know yer awake and just pretendin not ta be. I'm not sure how much ya heard, but I love you, and that's the main thing ya need ta take from my talk with yer dad."
Not sure how to answer that, Akane simply pressed into him a little bit and then started listening a little closer to their surroundings. He thought she should listen to something... but what?
"Is that so, Doctor?" That was Kasumi's voice, without question. She was here, at the Ono Clinic, and Akane was still in one piece after Dr. Tofu had treated her.
"Sadly, yes," came the reply from Doctor Tofu. "Didn't you ever wonder why everyone always recommended my clinic if all I ever did was dance with skeletons?"
"I'll admit, the thought did cross my mind," Kasumi said. Akane held her breath a little. The two of them seemed to be having a normal conversation, and Dr. Tofu wasn't going crazy. In fact, they seemed to be discussing that very fact. "And I was quite concerned when you left town a few months back. I was very pleased when you returned. It seemed that everything was finally back to normal once you got back."
There was a small chuckle, and then the sound of a bit of movement, as though the two were sitting down just outside the room. "I actually left to try and get over my inability to talk with you. I failed, though, but couldn't stand to be so far away in the end, which is why I returned."
"Then what has changed, Doctor?"
"You know, Kasumi, I think I'd be much happier if you just called me Ono, rather than Doctor all the time."
"If you are sure that's alright... Ono," Kasumi said. Akane could picture the large smile on her oldest sister's face, and couldn't help but smile a little herself.
"In answer to your question... it was actually Ranma that helped me. Not that that should be a strange thing, as he does seem to have an odd way of helping almost everyone he meets, but this time, I don't think he even realises that he did. It was simply because of the way he and Akane were getting along suddenly."
"They were like fire and oil sometimes, weren't they Ono?" Kasumi said with a giggle. "They always had to be kept rather separate or one would set the other off, and then everything always got out of control!"
"Indeed," Dr. Tofu replied as Akane let out a little giggle at the analogy. It actually made sense, sadly enough. She snuggled a little closer to Ranma, glad that things had finally changed for the better between them. "But after that training trip, I could see something had changed. I wasn't sure what until the whole ice incident, and then I could see it plain as day."
"So how exactly did that help you learn how to talk to me without..."
It was Dr. Tofu who laughed this time. Apparently, rather than say he had acted crazy, she must have made some sort of hand motion which set him off for a moment before he got back under control. "It was the oddest thing, actually. I saw how much time those two had wasted pretending that they didn't care about the other, and thought it was the stupidest thing in the world for love to be squandered like that. And then, be it by the Kami's grace or something else, I looked up and found myself looking in a mirror."
"A mirror?"
"Yes, a real mirror. I saw myself staring back at me, and somehow, the topic changed slightly. I realised that I had wasted so much time acting like a complete fool around you that it was just circumstance that someone else didn't come along who saw you for the wonderful person that you are," "Dr. Tofu said. "So I started to train myself to keep my control. It took me a while... and it was only a couple of days ago that I felt confident. You may have noticed that I was at the match between Ranma and Happosai?"
"Of course I noticed, Ono," Kasumi said. "You made sure that Ranma was alright after the match. I also saw that you were standing just a little aside from directly in front of me, as though to protect me if need be. And you weren't acting nearly as crazy as I was almost used to seeing you."
"And then I got the courage to talk to you."
"Hmm," came Kasumi's reply. After a moment, the sound of the two of them standing up came through the closed door, and they started to walk away slowly. "Remind me to thank Ranma later."
"I can do that."
It was then silent again for a few minutes until Ranma's breath on her ear told her that he was about to talk to her again. The fact that one of his arms was supporting her head - his hand loose directly in front of her - while his other was wrapped around her and pressed against her tummy did not go unnoticed by her.
"Neat, huh?" Ranma whispered to her. The whisper was so quiet that she doubted that if there had been anyone else in the room they would have been able to hear him. "I thought ya might like that. I noticed `em talking earlier, and Kasumi was here when he wrapped yer arm in that cast. He said it should stay on for at least four weeks, by the way, but I'm betting it'll be less than that."
Akane didn't say anything, or even move at all in response to his words. She was thinking about what Kasumi and Dr. Tofu had just been talking about... it seemed that she wouldn't be the first of her sisters to be married after all. Not with the way things usually went with Ranma putting things off, anyway.
That thought went right out the window when she felt the arm that she was lying on shift a little, and she took in a sharp breath of surprise when she felt his hand on her breast. He had slipped under her shirt without her even noticing, and was now caressing her left breast, toying with her already hardening nipple painfully slowly. His other hand was on her bare stomach, making light circles now instead of pressed right up against the skin. The sensation caused her to shiver lightly.
"If you mind, I'll stop," he whispered to her. "But I thought I'd do something for you before I told you the rest of the fallout from your fight." He didn't say anything else then, but just continued in his efforts. She had to concentrate hard not to whimper or moan at all, though she desperately wanted to. She needed to feel more... more anything! "Just pull away a little, and I'll stop right away."
She pressed into him hard then, as though trying to mold her body to his. He chuckled quietly and continued as he started to speak again. "Shampoo's hurt pretty bad by the outcome, though she's not too bad off physically. She does have a couple a pulled muscles, and her right leg is cracked, but not completely broken. She'll be slower for a few days. Cologne and her had a big fight just after we got ya here, though. Seems the old ghoul thought they should go home now that they aren't trying ta catch me, but Shampoo refused. She's not staying for me, though. She's staying because she wants to make it up to you, and because she wants to learn more about life outside her village. Now that she ain't focussed on me so much, she'll have the chance. She's just going to be doing it alone... Cologne went back to China a few hours ago, and Mousse just vanished after the fight. Guess that means I ain't gettin that training she promised me... so we'll just have ta keep working together fer both of us, alright?"
She stopped him talking then by reaching down with her good hand and taking hold of the hand that was lazily making circles on her tummy. Without another thought - save for how amazing she was feeling both bodily thanks to his actions and mentally thanks to the knowledge that Shampoo was standing up for herself and not trying to steal Ranma still - she plunged his hand down her pants, though kept him above her panties.
Both his hands froze instantly before she pushed into him gently again. Then, his left hand switched over to her right breast and continued to caress, while the hand down her pants turned a little to cup her completely, as though trying to absorb her heat before it started to press in a little in steady swirls.
Akane had to bite back a moan at how good it felt, and then a whimper as he suddenly stopped. It was only after he stopped and she started to calm down a little that she realised that they were no longer alone in the room. That fact actually made her burn a little hotter down low... the fact that what they were doing was forbidden for unmarried couples, and yet they weren't caught despite no longer being alone.
"Hello, Dr. Tofu. Kasumi." Ranma's voice was amazingly steady considering how vulnerable they both were if either of the two who had entered decided to pull back the sheets. He didn't dare move his hands from where they were, though, as he knew that they would probably see the movement and know what he had been doing. "I'm just keeping `kane warm until she wakes up."
"That's alright, Ranma," Dr. Tofu said. Akane could picture the smile on the kind man's face as he looked at the two of them, though she wasn't sure what her older sister thought about the arrangement.
"Make sure you treat my little sister well, Ranma," Kasumi said gently. "She is probably a little tender from earlier today."
"I can only imagine," Ranma replied. She could feel him smiling from behind her. He must have been pressed up against her closer than she had realised. "But don't worry, Kasumi. I will take care of Akane. I promise."
"Of that, I have no doubt. Keep her happy, too... little brother."
She felt Ranma bristle a little behind her, but before she could even question why, he chuckled. "Not yet, big sis. I'm not your little brother for another... three weeks or so."
"Oh, so you two have set a date already? I thought you would want to wait for Akane to wake up before making any decisions like that," Dr. Tofu said in surprise.
"We both wanna get married soon," Ranma said with a bit of a shrug - a feat that must have been a little difficult without moving either hand. Akane missed what was said next as she had to concentrate hard on not moaning or crying out in pleasure when Ranma's hand down her pants put a little pressure on, sending little waves of intense energy rushing up her body. "But it won't be before she gets her cast off."
"Someone is seeing to the plans, then? Are you sure it won't be crashed this time?"
"No one would dare," Ranma replied coldly. "They know what'd happen to `em if they were ta try it. Though it's hard to say who would get to deliver the blow... me or Acchan here."
"Acchan... that's cute, Ranma," Kasumi said, sitting down at the edge of the bed. Akane felt her sister's hand in her hair suddenly, and tried her best to look like she was still asleep, and not worried about the two of them being caught in their... tickling.
"You'll let us know when she wakes up, won't you Ranma?" Dr. Tofu asked as Kasumi stood up again.
"Of course," he promised them. "As soon as I know she's awake."
Once the two of them had left the room and Akane heard the door shut, Ranma's hand on her breast started up again, and then the tiny pulls against her heat started too. "You aren't awake yet, are you?" he whispered into her ear. She smiled and shook her head, biting back another moan. "Good. Mom's looking into setting up our wedding as we lie here, by the way. I hope that's alright." She nodded subtly, but still stubbornly kept her eyes closed. She wasn't going anywhere yet - and she was sure she would have to if she admitted to being awake.
When she felt Ranma's fingers tracing her heat through her panties, all her thoughts went out the window again. Reaching down, she pulled his hand out of her pants only long enough to slip him in again against bare skin and the soft hairs that she had down there. He froze again for a moment before starting up again. This time, he was even more gentle than he had been before, sliding his fingers down her opening slowly and then back up again before repeating the process desperately slowly.
"I love you, Acchan."
The whisper was all that penetrated her pleasure filled mind, and she pressed into him again in response, wishing that she could actually respond. Even if she wasn't faking sleep still, she thought that if she opened her mouth right then, she would either moan or scream Ranma's name at how amazing he was making her feel.
Then his fingers stopped sliding up and down, and she shuddered as she felt a finger penetrate her heat desperately slowly. The hand on her breast had stopped moving, and he stopped completely, as though waiting to see if she was alright with what he had done. She responded the only way she could, and pressed into his finger this time, driving him a little deeper into her before pulling back a bit.
He seemed to get the hint, as he started moving his finger in a similar fashion so slowly she could barely stand it. As he pulled out again, he curved his finger slightly and Akane couldn't help but hiss a little as another wave of energy coursed through her. It was a constant thing, now, slowly building to a point where she didn't think she could even keep breathing. She knew what was coming of course... she just hadn't expected it to be so intense.
At her hiss, he suddenly started pushing his finger in a little faster and harder, pulling out all the way each time before plunging back into her again. She didn't have the time to moan or scream before all the energy that had been building in her suddenly burst free, washing over her as wave after wave of pleasure struck her, each one leaving her gasping for breath. The only thing she was aware of was that Ranma's finger that was still in her wasn't going anywhere... as soon as the wave burst the first time, she had clamped down on him so hard she doubted he could pull out even if he had wanted to. And the way he was holding her as she was half convulsing in pleasure told her that he had no such intentions anyway.
As the energy slowly started to fade away, leaving her feeling exhausted despite not having done much herself, she could only smile. It was then that she felt Ranma pull his finger out of her, and feel a trickle of her inner liquid dribbling out of her heat as he did so. She could only imagine how his finger must look... it was probably dripping too. She had never felt that much pleasure from such an act before (an act that she would never admit to having done to herself before, no matter the circumstances).
She sighed softly as she relaxed into him again when he pulled out of her pants and placed his hand on her tummy again - this time on top of her shirt. The hand that was on her breast pulled out of her shirt slowly and remained a few inches away from her. She snuggled into him a little as she sighed again. "I love you too, Ran-chan."
Akane then fell asleep again without ever having officially woken up. She didn't really have to get up right then anyway... all she really cared about had his arms wrapped around her, and she knew he wasn't going to go anywhere right then either.
----------------------
Ifuriito Butsu: Ifrit's Punishment. One of Akane's ki charged attacks, her hand is coated in her aura, and she uses a flat palm to strike the enemy in the centre of the chest. When observed, it looks like she is directing flames rather than punching.
Undiine Hangeki: Undine's Counter. Shampoo's ki charged kick to counter Akane's Ifuriito Butsu. While it could be used as a direct counter to the flames of Ifrit, Shampoo uses this as a kick to strike Akane as she comes in while the Amazon is still down. When observed, it looks like she is directing a torrent of water rather than kicking.