Ranma ½ is the property and invention of Rumiko Takahashi. The following story is not produced for any monetary or personal gain. Its sole purpose is to entertain using the characters and plots developed by Takahashi. ALL rights reserved
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Shadows of the Land
Volume II : Family Ties
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Chapter 1: Birthday Bliss
/////// Author’s note: from here on, Ranma-chan will be described using female pronouns where appropriate////////
Kasumi and Nodoka were in the kitchen when a huge crash was heard in the Dojo. What could that be? Then, their hearts rose in expectation, each hoping the same thing. Soun and Genma had also heard the crash from their game and immediately set out to investigate, although in a very cautious manner not befitting martial artists.
***********
All of them dropped abruptly onto the middle of the Tendo Dojo from the portal above. Shampoo, Mousse, Ukyou and Ryouga landed in a bundle while Akane landed on Ranma. For the latter, they did not mind, but people were watching. Cologne and Jensu had managed to land gently to the side of the teens.
"Ranma you pervert!" shouted Akane.
"Yeah, like I’d want to do anything like that with a kawaiikune tomboy like you!"
Their bickering began to the delight of the other teens but was abruptly halted when Kasumi and Nodoka burst in from the main house, followed by Soun and Genma.
Jensu gave his thanks again to Cologne, shook his head at the others and disappeared into another portal.
Soun saw his daughter and grabbed both Akane and Ranma, hugging them tightly.
"Oh Ranma, you brought back my daughter safely!" cried Soun. He began to wail, and the tears were soaking a now transformed Ranma-chan and Akane. They started turning light blue from lack of oxygen. Ukyou, Shampoo, Mousse and Cologne thought that now was the most opportune time to leave. The girls knew that they could hunt down Ranma later. Kuno would have stayed, but the girls had already started to drag him off as he attempted to reach his goddess. Ryouga would have also liked to stay but after a couple of steps, he found himself on a road, and after a couple of more steps, he found himself in a forest.
"Damn you Ranma, this is all your fault!" shouted Ryouga as he blasted though the thick underbrush.
Meanwhile, Ranma and Akane were turning deep blue from lack of oxygen.
"Can’t…breathe…" muttered Ranma.
Finally, they were released by Soun, who handed the pair over to Nodoka. She in turn hugged both of them to near asphyxiation again. Luckily for both of them, Kasumi saw that they were looking a bit weary.
"Oh my auntie Nodoka, Ranma and Akane do look tired don’t they?" commented Kasumi
"Why yes child, I’m sure my manly son will have many tales to tell us tonight," stated Nodoka. Only after this statement did Ranma observe that the sunlight was already starting to fade. He wondered just how much of a time difference existed between Aina and Japan, and how long it took them to travel using the mirror.
"Oh my, Akane’s birthday is day after tomorrow, we should have some kind of party, shouldn’t we?" asked Kasumi
"Why yes Kasumi, that's an excellent idea, and we could celebrate Ranma’s as well," replied Nodoka emphatically.
Genma heard the word ‘party’ and started to dream of all the food. Soun was still rejoicing (wailing) that his daughter had come home, and Kasumi and Nodoka were busy organising an impromptu birthday party. That gave Ranma and Akane enough time to steal away to Akane’s room unseen, stopping only for some hot water.
"So Ran-chan, when…"
Akane was silenced when Ranma put his index finger to her mouth gently and motioned for her to follow him. He showed her something he had found a while ago: a small electronic listening device hidden within her room. He suspected that there were others. He moved to Akane’s dresser and pulled out a small radio. He turned it on. Satisfied, he motioned for Akane to speak. Akane was dumbfounded.
"How…how did you know that…"
"I saw it one day while I was in your room."
"So you were in my room, were you," said Akane in a menacing voice as she advanced on cringing Ranma
"No Akane …it was nothing like that…I mean uh not that I would want to but…"
He never finished.
Akane covered his mouth with her hand and whispered into his ear.
"Now you have my permission to come any time you want," whispered Akane with a sly smile on her face. Ranma was in a bit of shock.
Akane allowed Ranma some time to recover and thought it wise to change the subject.
"So Ran-chan, why didn’t you tell me when your birthday was?" asked Akane.
"Well pop wasn’t big on any of the ceremonial stuff so it’s just like another day to me," replied Ranma.
"So, you mean, you’ve never had a birthday party!" asked Akane incredulously.
"Well…uh …um…no, I can’t say that I have," replied Ranma. Wasn't that thing when he was younger where his father and him fought for most of a cake supposed to be a party?
"My poor Ranma…" muttered Akane under her breath as she hugged him. Ranma didn’t know what to make of it, he certainly hadn’t heard what she muttered, but he sure didn’t mind hugging Akane.
Akane for once realised what Ranma had to put up with being with Genma for ten years. She had been all excited about her birthday and the accompanying party even a month before the occasion, and here was Ranma, not even caring if it was his birthday or not. Just like at Christmas, Ranma just respected the occasion. He just acknowledged the fact that he was older and celebrated his birthday as any other day. Akane had heard Nodoka earlier and resolved to make this the best birthday Ranma ever had.
************
Kasumi was enthralled to have her baby sister and Ranma back. Father had gone to his room with Uncle Saotome and was celebrating Ranma and Akane’s return the usual way, with sake. Auntie Nodoka had left the house in search of some articles for the birthday party.
Kasumi wondered what had happened between Ranma and Akane. It had been about two hours and still no fighting. That was highly atypical of the two. This kind of silence either meant that one or the other was out of the house, or they were trying their best not to get each other angry. Before they had left, their arguments had decreased to almost a normal level, though most of the credit for that had to go to Ranma. Now there was silence. Kasumi was curious. No one ever thought she did anything but housework, but those books from Dr. Tofu were enlightening.
Kasumi had heard someone in the bath earlier. She checked: no one. Maybe Ranma was in the Dojo: no one. Maybe Akane was around in the back yard: no one. She checked Ranma’s room: no one. Well, one last place. She peeked into Akane’s room, and smiled. Finally she had found them, and they were actually talking to each other on Akane’s bed without trading insults.
She had noticed all the things they did for each other. How Ranma always fought for Akane. How Akane was always worried about him, even though she tried the hardest never to show it. Theirs had been a long and very strange courtship. She wondered what would have happened if their parents hadn’t forced them together. Well, enough thinking for one day! Kasumi hurried back to prepare supper.
"Akane, Ranma, supper will be ready in a while," informed Kasumi as she opened the door to the two teenagers.
They both looked like deer caught in a pair of headlights. Kasumi giggled quietly to herself and left the room.
Kasumi sang a merrier tune as she cooked. Supper was finished quickly enough. Kasumi went to call Akane and Ranma and found only Akane in her room. Akane rushed off to find Ranma.
As usual, Ranma and Genma battled for their food while Akane just glowered at them. Nodoka, who had returned from her excursions just in time for supper, silently disapproved outwardly, but inwardly glowed with pride as she saw her son match her husband’s efforts.
After supper, Ranma and Akane disappeared from the others' sights, each trying to look casual and failing miserably. Everyone in the household thought that they had had another fight although no one had heard any shouting for the whole day, well for at least most of the day. Everyone was wrong. They were evading each other for another reason; neither knew what to get the other for their birthday!
Roaming the living room, Akane thought of an idea and dashed up to her room, slamming the door. As an afterthought, she closed her window and drew the curtains. Ranma would not be peeking in at this.
Ranma was bounding from roof to roof, from store to store window-shopping. Shopping of course wasn’t his thing. He had never had reason to shop before, hell, all that he owned could easily fit in a camping bag. But that did not stop him, he would find Akane the best birthday present ever. It was the least she deserved.
Ranma had been running around for hours, had been in dozens of shops, but had found nothing. He hung his head in disappointment. Ranma walked down the road to the central market, with his hands in his pockets, depressed. He was about to give up for the day when something caught his eye. It was perfect. He had found what he was looking for in the showcase of the old store. He looked at the price and gasped. It was worth it though.
Ranma had saved some money from working in the Nekohanten and had kept that fact hidden from Nabiki for some time. He was proud of that, and he had just enough to buy the gift. Withdrawing the money was no easy task however. He knew Nabiki had spies all over Nerima. He would have to be very cautious. Nabiki was, after all, a professional if anything else.
To serve the purpose, Ranma found a deserted alley and changed into his girl form. Ranma-chan looked at the dress in her hand. She frowned at having to use it, but it was a necessity. She was too visible in her normal clothing. Ranma-chan tied her hair up in a bun and put on a cap. She decided to try and walk as casually as possible to the bank.
Interestingly enough, she realised that she passed some of her classmates on the way to the bank, no one recognised her. Ranma cautiously withdrew the money and then quickly raced to the store. After buying the gift, Ranma rushed home and changed. He needed to add something to it. Ranma looked at the only picture he had. He would have to destroy it, but he knew it was worth it.
Later that day…
Nodoka entered the house. She had retrieved her unopened gift from the Dojo. She had already decided on what to give her future daughter-in-law. However, now was not the best of times to give a gift of such importance to Akane. Nodoka had first worried that Ranma did not want to marry Akane, but after being around them for a while, she could see that it would be the inevitable result. After the disaster of the first wedding, she realised that there was no way that those two could get married unless she intervened. Things were just too complicated otherwise. She was surprised when Ranma meekly came up to her in the Dojo.
"Yes Ranma?" asked Nodoka.
"Mom, I’d like to ask you something"
"Hmm…"
"I was doing some reading and I found out something and, you know, well I was wondering, who is the head of the Saotome Clan?"
Nodoka froze. That was not a question she was expecting.
*********
Some years ago…
Nodoka was depressed, she had not seen her son nor her husband in six years. Her only reprieve was that Genma had promised to bring him back as a man among men. She couldn’t see how Genma could mess that up, then again…
She received a letter in the mail that day,
To all Clan heads,
In order to ebb the flow of crime within the country, the Judicial Body of Japan requests that all Clan heads appear in court to license the weapons necessary in the running of their respective Dojos.
Yours respectfully,
Hotaru Sako
Chief Judiciary Officer
Nodoka went before a judge and explained to him her situation. The Judge had taken pity on her and had awarded her the position of Clan Head of the Saotome Clan until her son returned.
********
Present day…
Nodoka opened her mouth then smiled.
"Actually Ranma, you are the head of our Clan."
"Nani!"
"Well, in your father’s absence, I was appointed Clan Head until you returned. You have returned, so you are now the Clan Head."
Ranma was visibly shocked. Nodoka left him there to regain himself. She was very impressed with her son. He had a curse, many fiancées, many enemies and many flaws he had inherited from his father, but through it all, he had managed to keep himself afloat and was quite a ladies man. Yes, he really was a man among men.
Ranma was now digesting what his mother had told him. As Clan Head, he had many responsibilities, but it also made what he wanted to do a lot easier. He had asked her on impulse just to cement his plans. Ranma had started to plan most of the stuff he wanted to do. Cologne had taught him the importance of doing just that and Ranma had found himself relying on her advice time and time again.
Just then someone entered the house.
"Ranma!" shouted Nabiki, "you’re back!"
Akane came running down and hugged her sister. Now that everyone was present, the epic tale of their adventure started, albeit with some name calling and a lot of parts being left out.
Soon after, both Ukyou and Shampoo visited looking for Ranma. They were handed invitations to the party by Kasumi, who told them that Ranma was out, and indeed he was. After the story, he had decided to go for a nice stroll in the park, to relax. The girls didn’t want to quarrel with Kasumi of all people, her smile was enough of a weapon. It went without saying that Kasumi was not one to be argued with. They left without seeing Ranma, muttering under their breath.
Later that night…
Ranma woke up he had tossed and turned for most of the night. He checked the sleeping panda at his side. Sure enough, his father was sleeping loudly on the other futon. He was probably dreaming of food. Ranma slipped out through the window noiselessly. Cautiously he approached the other side of the house.
Akane had left her window open. He entered silently through the window and checked for any signs of a certain pig. He would have to do something about that later. Akane was also tossing and turning. Ranma put his hand to her shoulder and gently shook her.
"Wha…"said Akane sleepily. She saw Ranma and tried to encourage him into the bed by holding his arm. Ranma had different plans; he had to talk to her. He tactfully moved away from her and away from the bed. Akane tried to follow, but her legs were trapped under the covers. She was bent on the bed, her feet trapped and her hands on the floor preventing her from falling down. Her shirt had fallen to the level of her breasts, leaving her midriff exposed. Ranma took pity on her and helped her out of the bed, trying his best to suppress his giggles. He offered her a hand and placed his other hand on her exposed tummy, savouring her warmth.
"Ok Ranma," Akane said annoyed, "what did you wake me up for?"
"We need to talk about Ucchan."
"What about her?" asked Akane, still annoyed.
"Well, I have to tell her about us now, she would be devastated, and I don’t want to hurt her, I don't want to lose my best friend. What am I going to do?"
"I...I really can’t think of anything," replied a sombre Akane, "but can’t we leave that off for another time?" pleaded Akane.
"I guess we can think of something later."
Akane brought her hand around Ranma’s neck and stared into his face.
"You have a price to pay for waking me up you know?"
"Oh, and what is that?" he asked playfully.
Akane closed the distance between them and mouthed her response, literally. When they broke, Ranma looked at his fiancée lovingly.
"How’s about I stay here for the night?"
"I was going to ask you the same thing," replied Akane.
Ranma and Akane peeled off the covers, jumped in and pulled them back on. Akane’s bed was a bit small, so Ranma went up against the wall and Akane cuddled into him. They wrapped their hands around each other and fell asleep. This time, there was no tossing or turning.
Ranma and Akane got up early that morning in time to evade detection thanks to Akane’s alarm clock. Akane gave Ranma a slight kiss as he bundled out of her room groggily through the window and back into his.
Genma-panda woke up to find his son sleeping beside him. Genma got himself some hot water from the kitchen and a bucket. He splashed an already awake Ranma with the cold water. Ranma-chan attacked her father and threw him into the back yard. There they continued their morning ritual.
Akane looked on at the duelling pair. Only now did she realise how much Ranma held back when he wasn’t really fighting an opponent. This Ranma was totally different than the one that had fought against the shadow. This Ranma was taunting his father and was enjoying the bout he was engaged in. Neither allowed the other the upper hand, but neither wanted to really attack with all their might so they settled for whoever threw the other into the pond first.
Akane had that evil smile again as she observed at the duelling pair.
"RANMA NO BAKA!" shouted Akane from her room. The shout had the desired effect. Ranma lost his concentration and was batted into the koi pond.
Ranma-chan got out and glared at Akane with her lips pouting. Akane thought she looked too cute. Akane pulled out her school uniform and hurried downstairs for breakfast. Ranma took a shower and changed. He was late for breakfast again. He vacuumed up his food and rushed out of the room with Akane in tow.
When they left the vicinity of the Dojo, the streets were clear and Akane joined Ranma on the fence.
"Ranma I can’t blame you for running on the fence any more, it fells so…so free." She could actually run on the fence now sicne she had opted to wear tights underneath her skirt.
"Yeah, I know what you mean," he replied smilingly.
At that pace, they made to school just before the school bell rang. Invitations were already given out to the party via Nabiki, and for once, there was hardly any commotion for most of the day. Shampoo had not appeared, Ukyou had not attended class today, and Ranma and Akane seemed to be evading each other. The day passed quickly for once. No one had seen or heard anything from Kuno.
************
Ukyou had found out about Ranma and Akane’s upcoming birthday party and found herself without a birthday present for either of them. She wasn’t too sure that their birthdays were on the same day, but most likely, Nabiki had ordered that they only had enough money to have one party. Who else but Nabiki would want to combine two birthday parties!
Ukyou found herself skipping school to find a present for Ranma and possibly one for Akane.
She searched everywhere looking for something, anything for Ranma, but she couldn’t find anything. Disappointed, she headed for home when a small voice at the back of her mind told her to go into a partially run down shop.
The place had a rustic aura to it. All sorts of queer objects decorated the walls, most of them with ‘Do not touch’ signs on them. Ukyou looked a gleaming piece of jewellery in front of her.
"Hello dear, how may I help you?" asked a voice.
Ukyou jumped as she had been taken by surprise then fell at ease. An elderly woman approached her, balancing her weight on a cane as she hobbled away from the counter.
"Ahh…that there is a fine piece of jewellery, an excellent piece of craftsmanship," said the woman as she looked at the brooch Ukyou was staring at, "but I think it is out of your price range."
Ukyou then looked at two shirts over in the far corner. One looked like it would fit Ranma almost exactly, while the other, which had a more feminine taste to it, looked as if it would fit Akane. Both of the shirts had a black background. The more feminine one had a highly stitched design of a great bird on it. The bird was covered in pastels of red and orange feathers. Ukyou had to admit that the stitch-work was exquisite. The other shirt had finely embroidered on it the outline of a fierce dragon. Ukyou could only see the head of the dragon on this side and part of the torso. From the dragon’s mouth came blazing fire, and the dragon’s eyes were a fiery red. The rest of the dragon was a glimmering bluish green.
"That my dear girl is an excellent gift for two."
Ukyou knew Ranma would love the dragon design and Akane probably would cherish the other shirt. Even though they were competitors, she felt a strong kinship with Akane.
"How much?" asked Ukyou.
When Ukyou found out the price, she jumped in excitement, it was almost a steal. Ukyou bought the shirts and almost ran out of the store before the woman could change her mind.
***********
Night dawned again on the Tendo Dojo. Much to the surprise of everyone else, Akane had locked herself in her room with Kasumi. Questioning glances were given to Ranma, who returned them with a ‘I didn’t do anything look’. Akane came out for a snack with a contented look on her face while the others stared at her. Ranma was the most confused of them all. He had tried to work out of Akane what she was doing in her room, but only met with a brick wall, literally, when Akane booted him out of the house. The rest of the household, including Ranma, went to sleep, while Akane and Kasumi stayed up late that night.
No one still had any clue as to what Akane and Kasumi were doing. Not even Nabiki could get past Akane’s defences. Much to her dismay, Nabiki could not talk her way past Kasumi either. Her bigger sister also refused to directly answer her questions with replies like ‘it’s out little secret’. Unsuccessful, Nabiki had been the last to retire for the night.
Saturday morning saw a hectic Tendo household. Ranma was up and running about decorating the Dojo for the party. Akane was sleeping soundly when Kasumi had checked and no one had the heart to wake her.
After about three hours of running around, everything was ready. Ranma had been given a good work out and enjoyed the extravagant delayed lunch he received. The guests should be arriving in about two hours. That gave Ranma enough time to relax and take a warm shower. For some reason the warning signals were starting to buzz in his mind. He hoped he could handle what would happen at the party, all his rivals and fiancées in one place. He shuddered, at least Kodachi won’t be there.
He passed by Akane’s room and entered. He gently closed the door behind him making sure no one saw him come in. He couldn’t see what it was that had taken Akane and Kasumi the whole night to complete. He walked over to Akane and glanced at the door and the window; no one was around. Over the last few nights, he had found a certain place at the small of her back which had the ability to tickle her awake. He searched for the spot causing Akane to twist and wake up.
"Morning Acchan, happy birthday," Ranma whispered to her and gave her a small kiss on the cheek. His job finished Ranma, left the room as silently as he had entered. He took his bath and carefully pocketed a small box he had deftly hidden away from the others (especially from the living embodiment of a mercenary, and an excuse for a father). If any of them saw his prize, he could imagine the resulting chaos. He checked to ensure the box was in his pocket and went out to see if his mother needed any help.
Ranma disappeared for the next two hours as he had to do some errands for his mother. By the time he came back, most of the guests had arrived and Akane was entertaining them. Akane’s friends had already arrived, most of them with escorts of some kind. He counted Hiroshi and Diasuke among the boys. Ranma disappeared among the boys who were pressing him for information on his last adventure. Ranma was left alone to weed out what he should tell and what he should skip. He was doing a torrid job of it since even he could tell that most of his tale had holes like Swiss cheese. He could see Akane was having the same conversation with her friends, but was fearing a lot better than he was.
Ukyou entered the Dojo to find the girls around Akane and the boys around Ranma. She made her way to the table were the presents were laid. She realised that hardly anyone remembered that the party was for both Ranma and Akane, after all, the invitations only mentioned a birthday party at the Dojo and everyone in Nerima guessed that it was Akane’s. There were a few presents from various girls for Ranma but a huge pile for Akane. Ukyou felt jealous for Ranma, then again, Ranma didn’t care much for material things. Ukyou laid down her presents on the table and went over to Ranma.
"Hi Ran-chan," shouted Ukyou through the crowd.
"Hi Ucchan," replied Ranma grateful for the save. He almost talked his way into a roomful of hurt when he had mentioned that he had been trapped in a room alone with Akane.
Ranma almost reached Ukyou when he felt something grab onto him from behind.
"Airen, Shampoo bring you very special present. Bottle of instant Nannichuan. New batch last longer."
Ranma was about to reply to that when Ryouga burst through the door and saw the Chinese Amazon draped over him like a tight fitting jacket.
"Ranma how dare you behave this way at Akane’s Birthday Party!"
Ranma wondered how in kami's name did Ryouga find out about the party AND find his way to the Dojo. Miracles do happen he guessed.
"Vile Saotome, I shall rescue the pig-tailed goddess from your wretched hands!"
Drats, he really could've done without the wannabe samurai.
Now the total focus of the party had shifted towards the scene around Ranma. Akane was glowering at him as were Kuno and Ryouga. Mousse had just entered and saw Ranma trying to pry Shampoo off himself.
To Ranma’s complete surprise, Nabiki came to his rescue. She walked between Ranma and the advancing boys.
"Ranma we have a problem. The bakery’s truck broke down again and they can’t deliver the cake, so would you go and get it please?"
Ranma looked at Nabiki amusedly. "So how much will this cost me?" he asked in an undertone.
"Think of it as a birthday present," replied Nabiki.
Ranma dashed out of the Dojo into the night in search of a birthday cake. Regretfully, he had had to leave but he thought that leaving was a lot better than starting a fight. After all, it was Akane’s birthday party and he wanted her to enjoy it as much as she could. If that meant he had to leave, so be it.
Kasumi spied the doctor across the room talking to her father. Silently, she crept up to him.
"Dr. Tofu, would you like some punch?"
"Ka…Ka…Kasumi how nice to meet you here," responded the man before he went completely ballistic again. Everyone cleared out of his way as he stumbled through the crowd, dancing with an invisible skeleton. The few who were not agile enough, found themselves twisted in unnatural positions and moaning on the Dojo's floor.
Kasumi sighed in defeat, she hoped that Tofu would get over his affliction soon.
An hour later, Akane was talking with Yuka and Sayuri while others were dancing on the floor. Kuno had been civil to her for the night, which was a change, and had offered her the gift of a date with him, which she flatly refused. Ryouga and the other martial artists were mulling around. They looked as if this was the first time they had ever been to a birthday party, and she doubted if it wasn’t. Akane had gone to one or two parties since Ranma had arrived. He had always walked her to the party and back from it, but she could never find him during the party. She had always thought he had run off with one of his fiancées, but she doubted that was really the case.
Ranma arrived with the birthday cake and gently placed it on the centre table. He took a look at Akane, made sure she was enjoying herself, gave her a smile and disappeared again into the house.
Akane sighed. She had planned for this to be the best birthday party Ranma had ever had, but when she looked back on the day, Ranma had erected most of the decorations in the Dojo, had been about most of the day doing errands, and went across town collecting the birthday cake. For most of the party, Ranma had not been at the Dojo. If she had spent her birthday like that, she would have been fuming, but she realised that it did not matter to Ranma if he was enjoying himself or not. He passed her a smile and disappeared into the house again. Akane was determined not to let him escape. She found him in his room searching through his backpack.
"So Ranma, why aren’t you in the Dojo at the party?" inquired Akane
"Well I saw you having a good time and I didn’t want to spoil it," replied Ranma
Akane looked at him shocked.
"What do you mean?"
"Well ya know things tend to happen around me so I figured I’d better stay out of everyone’s way for a while."
Akane grabbed his arm and pulled him out through the door.
"I don’t care about that, it’s your party too and you’re going to enjoy it even if it kills you."
Ranma and Akane appeared downstairs and started mingling with everyone. Ukyou asked him for a dance, he gave a questioning glance to Akane behind Ukyou’s back. She just gave him a smile. Ranma was undoubtedly nervous. This was the first time he had ever danced with a girl.
Ukyou danced with Ranma to the chagrin of Shampoo and the delight of Mousse. Ukyou didn’t mind getting stepped on a couple of times. At least she was with her Ran-chan. Akane asked Ryouga for a dance. He mumbled something illegible to her and accepted her hand. Ranma led Ukyou to the middle of the dance floor and Akane also led Ryouga there.
Ryouga seemed to be in another dimension while he danced with Akane, and Ukyou had closed her eyes. Ranma had to hold back from gawking at Ryouga’s glazed expression. Akane passed close to Ranma and whispered something to him softly in his ear. One dance step, another and Ranma gently released Ukyou. Simultaneously, Akane left Ryouga's grasp. Ryouga reached out and touched someone who happened to be Ukyou. They remained there on the dance floor, each in their own dimension. Both pairs of eyes still closed tightly shut.
Ranma and Akane moved away from them separately and watched them through giggles from opposite sides of the Dojo. Shampoo and Mousse were amused while Nodoka smiled. Kasumi responded with her usual ‘oh my’.
Ukyou and Ryouga danced for quite a long time in the centre of the Dojo. They still had their eyes closed and everyone was looking intently at them. After a while, Ukyou worked up some courage and opened her eyes, intent on kissing Ranma. She wasn’t too pleased to find out that she had been dancing with Ryouga all that time.
"Ryouga No Baka!" shouted Ukyou as she flattened him to a pancake in the middle of the Dojo. Ukyou stormed off. Ranma took pity on Ryouga and offered him a hand up.
"Sorry man, I guess you win some and you lose some," smirked Ranma.
"Somehow Ranma, I know this is all your fault," growled Ryouga.
Ranma made a mental note to talk to Ryouga about P-chan. Ranma hadn’t seen P-chan since they had come back, but Akane would have to find out sooner or later.
After the incident, Nodoka noticed the time and stopped the music. It was getting late. It was time for the last remaining ceremony of the party.
Nodoka took up the microphone.
"Now it is time to cut the birthday cake," announced Nodoka, "Now since it is both Ranma and Akane’s birthday party and they’re engaged…"
Nodoka never had the chance to finish. A string of maniacal laughter signalled the arrival of Kodachi. She was one of the few people neither Akane nor Ranma wanted to invite. Nabiki didn’t tell Kodachi about the party to ensure her family's safety. She didn’t trust the insane girl at all. Unlike the elder Kuno sibling, Nabiki had no definite means of manipulating or controlling the little troll's behaviour.
"Ah my darling Ranma-sama, I am sorry that I did not come sooner, but I see I have arrived in time to help you cut the cake. Now let me carry you away from these commoners."
"Uh…um…ah…" was all Ranma could utter. Ranma was a bit frozen in shock and fear. With Kodachi around, anything could happen.
"Shampoo no let crazy girl cut cake with husband! That Shampoo job!" shouted Shampoo
"Oh no you Amazon bimbo, that cake is mine!" shouted Ukyou.
Before Ranma could do anything, a fight had erupted between the three girls. The guests that came to the party saw this as the signal that the party was over. They thanked Akane and scampered home.
As the brawl continued, Ryouga, still reeling from his meeting with an oversized spatula got himself lost again as he followed people out into the street.
"Sister I shalt not allow thee to call the fair Akane Tendo a mere commoner," commanded Kuno.
"Is that a challenge brother dear?" inquired Kodachi
"Would thou want it to be?" replied Kuno
Now there were two fights.
After the lasts of her friends left, Akane knew the night was over. So much for a fun filled birthday party.
Ranma saw Akane run out of the Dojo and into the house to his chagrin. He knew where she was going and followed her to her room, making sure he wasn't followed. He knocked on the door softly and entered. Akane was at the desk in her room staring at the picture he had given her for Christmas.
"Hi Ranma," spoke Akane softly.
This was a new situation for Ranma, one he was not capable of dealing with. He had never been too good with girls and now he had absolutely no idea what to do, so he did the only thing that he thought he could.
"Akane I’m…sorry"
Akane turned and faced him. He could see the streaks of tears that had run down her cheeks.
"For what?" asked Akane
"For whatever I did," stated Ranma blankly.
Akane hugged him.
"Oh Ranma it wasn’t your fault. None of it was! I just wish we could have a normal life like everyone else without the fiancees and the fighting."
Ranma looked at her. There had to be some way of cheering her up! Then a thought came to his mind.
"You know Akane we haven’t exchanged gifts yet."
Akane looked up to Ranma and smiled. She opened her closet and pulled out a beautifully wrapped box and handed it over to Ranma. She kissed him on the cheek.
"Happy Birthday Ran-chan."
Ranma opened the box and found a well-knitted vest inside with some special additions.
"Wow Akane, how’d you do this?" asked Ranma in amazement.
"Well Kasumi has been giving me some help with it. I know you don’t like wearing bras so I made this, its got some extra material and elastic in the chest so that’ll act like a bra when you change."
Ranma gave her a huge hug.
"Thanks Acchan!"
Then he reached into his pants pocket and extracted a small box. He handed it over to Akane. She took it excited from her hands and opened it tenderly. After opening the box, she was disappointed when the inside revealed another box. This one however was tightly sealed with tape and paper. Anxiously, she tore away at the tape with her nails and ripped away the paper; she peeked inside. Another box!
She annoyingly glanced at Ranma who gave her a playful wave of the hand and urged her onwards.
Her anxiety was growing and so was her excitement. What could Ranma have possibly got her!
She quickly ripped through the packing on this box, until her eyes rested on a velvet case. Excitedly, her opened the velvet casing. Her face beamed when she saw what was inside.
Inside the box lay two chains, each with a pendant attached to the chain. She gently extracted one from its resting-place and stared at the locket.
"Oh Ranma, it’s beautiful!"
Akane held the chain dearly in her hand. It was a dazzling sliver chain. The pendant, which was about two centimetres wide, was also set in silver with hand carved inscriptions on it. On the pendant, a silvery phoenix screamed, against a jade stone. A red ruby glared at her for its eye. Akane was still absorbing the site when she spied a small catch at the top of the pendant.
"Go on, open it!" urged Ranma.
Akane carefully pressed the catch and the pendant swung open, revealing a picture of Ranma. The picture had been cleanly cut out of a copy of the picture he had given her for Christmas.
Akane was shocked, where had Ranma got such a magnificent gift and where did he get the money for it? She felt his hand in hers as he gently removed the chain from her fingers and tied it around her neck. He tucked it into her blouse, making it invisible to anyone who wasn’t looking for it.
Akane caught herself and held the other chain from the box. This one was made of gold. The pendant was also forged of gold and contained a fire breathing dragon against a jade background. Like the phoenix, the dragon also had ruby eyes.
Akane slowly undid the first button of Ranma’s shirt and placed the chain around his neck. After she buttoned his shirt, she embraced him tightly.
"Thanks Ranma, this is the best birthday present I’ve ever had," replied Akane, the tears falling down her face onto his silk shirt.
"I’m just glad you like it"
"Oh, but I’m not finished giving you your present yet," replied Akane
"Huh…"
"Just close your eyes Ranma."
Ranma did as he was told and felt the soft touch of Akane’s lips against is. Instinctively he knew what to do. This was definitely the best part, both of them thought.
Akane checked the doorway to make sure everything was clear. Then they stealthily made their way back to the Dojo.
The girls had left, leaving Genma, Soun, Nodoka, Kasumi and Nabiki. The night was really late and everyone except Soun and Genma was tired from all the preparations that morning. Of course, Soun and Genma had been drinking for most of the day, they were already knocked out on the floor.
Ranma was given the job of placing both men in their respective rooms. Kasumi invited Nodoka to spend the night. Nodoka graciously accepted when Ranma said that he wouldn’t mind sleeping in the Dojo and it would be good training. Nodoka praised her son for his devotion to his training.
Everyone decided that they would clean up in the morning and went to bed except for Nabiki, Ranma and Akane who stayed up in front of the TV.
Ranma had managed to press some of Nabiki’s sleep inducing pressure points to encourage her to retire.
Ranma and Akane waited until everyone was asleep, especially Nodoka. If she saw them together they would be married within the day. As it was, neither of them would have minded much, but they wanted to plan their own wedding themselves.
Ranma pulled Akane into the Dojo, leading her with his hand
"So Akane, are you ready to cut the cake?" asked Ranma with a smile on his face. The cake had been miraculously untouched by the fight. The Dojo itself was another story. There were numerous holes left by mini-spatulas, razor sharp hoops and other missiles, not to mention the tattered remnants of the decorations.
Ranma took a knife and Akane a fork. He cut a small piece, which he gave Akane to eat. Akane took the knife and cut out a very large piece of cake. Ranma looked at the cake and the wink Akane was giving him. He attacked the large piece of cake ferociously taking huge bites and swallowing. That drew some laughter from Akane.
However most of the icing stuck to his lips and face stubbornly. Akane deemed that as the rest of her meal. She licked all the frosty white icing off his cheeks and they shared a small meal between themselves.
Then, Ranma led Akane onto the dance floor. He put the radio on with barely enough volume and took Akane’s hand.
Their first dance was a bit shaky, it was the second time Ranma had ever danced with a girl. Akane also seemed a bit out of sorts. Ranma knew he could master this. He stopped, listened to the music and started doing one of his katas. He held onto the tune in his mind, trying to copy its rhythm Akane took the hint and followed him. Finally Ranma thought he had the hang of it They joined hands and soon they were prancing merrily across the Dojo floor, dancing a way only martial artists can, with a dazzling array of flips and jumps.
After a few hours of fast paced dancing, Akane decided it was time to change the tempo. She reached for the radio and searched for the soft music station. Satisfied, she returned to Ranma arms and held him closely to her.
They danced slowly to the soft romantic music, Akane’s head on Ranma’s shoulder. They moved slowly and as one. Their movements were perfectly synchronised as they mimicked the rhythm of the tune with a very slow kata. Akane looked up into Ranma’s face and initiated a kiss. It was warmly received by Ranma who held her even more tightly as they embraced.
Finally, the tiredness showed in their eyes. Ranma leaned up against the wall of the Dojo for a rest, Akane against his shoulder. Before long, they were fast asleep.
Special thanks to:
Belphera for the pendant ideas
and H-Packrat