ranma@tass.org (Saotome Ranma)


                        I've been waiting
                        Since the world stood still
                        A picture in my mind
                        An image left behind
                        I love you and always will
               
                           All I needed was a miracle
                            To see that I was wrong
                        Yeah, all I needed was a miracle
                          To realize what was going on
              
                                   'Cause in this world
                                      There is only one
                                       And in this life
                                          Under the sun
                                          In this heart
                                    Is the life of love
             
                                 In this heart
                              Is the life of love
                              
         +-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-+
         |                    Daigakusei no Ranma                    |
         |                                                           |
         |           Created by David Tai and Paul Gallegos          |
         |                                                           |
         |    Based on the characters created by Rumiko Takahashi    |
         +-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-+

===============================================================================
                  -= Episode 26: "With This Ring - Part II" =-
===============================================================================

Akane woke up slowly.  Something felt... different.  Good, but different.
She lay on the futon, feeling very comfortable.  She smiled, her eyes still
closed, and made a pleased sound.  She basked in the rightness of
everything.

Slowly, she realized that her legs were intertwined with someone else's.  In
fact, she was curled up on her side directly behind someone.  Her husband,
of course.  Ranma.  They would often get their legs and other parts of their
bodies entangled, that wasn't new.

This time, however, his body was bigger than hers.  He was male.  Akane's
smile dimmed and her eyebrows drew together slightly.  Had he forgotten to
douse himself last night?  She'd have to remember to pound him when he woke
up.  Oops, she forgot that she didn't do that anymore.  Well, she could yell
at him. Yelling wasn't much better than pounding, though.  She really had to
stop doing all of that.  Except when he deserved it.  Akane would have to
try and make a concerted effort to listen to his explanations and give him
some time to defend himself.  *Then* she could yell at him.

Suddenly her mind cleared.  There was a reason he was male.  If he hadn't
been male, then she and Ranma wouldn't have been able to...

Akane sat up suddenly.  She looked down at her husband, sleeping soundly as
usual, rolling on to his back as the support she'd been providing gave way,
oblivious to the outside world.  He was partially covered with a sheet, but
what she could see of him was naked.  She looked down at herself, and was a
little relieved to find that she had her sleeping shirt on.

Her burning cheeks, however, reminded her that she hadn't been wearing it
all night.

Akane continued to look at Ranma, seeing his chest rise and fall.  A good,
muscular, well-defined chest.  Ranma's looks had never been an issue for
her - she had never called *him* uncute.  Still, she had never allowed
herself to admit, deep down, how terribly handsome he was.  That was the
reason, of course, all of those damn women had always been chasing him.  One
of the reasons, anyway.

At last, she had him to herself.

Akane didn't know how to feel about this new stage in their relationship.
It was frightening, in a way.  The marriage was now *real*, and that meant
all sort of things.  New responsibilities.  A certain level of maturity that
was now expected of her and Ranma.  It was no longer a world where she could
do as she pleased.  She now had to think of someone else, too.  She had
already been doing that to some extent.  Now, however, there was more of a
sense of duty, of obligation, of... permanence.  Her father and sisters were
no longer a part of her daily life.  Now, it was all Ranma.  It would be
Ranma now and forever.

Akane was startled to find tears on her face.  She wasn't exactly sure why.
She seemed to be feeling... relieved.  There had been a part of herself that
she'd kept locked up for so long.  Letting it out had been both wonderful
and terrifying.

It was enough to make a person uncertain at any rate.

Ranma stretched, then opened his eyes.  They widened in alarm as he saw her
crying.  He sat up and touched her cheek.  "Akane, what's wrong?"

Seeing him awake, looking at her with concern - and love - washed away all
of the doubts and anxiety.  *This* was why she had agreed to marry Ranma.
*This* was why she had finally consummated their marriage.  To feel like
this was what made life worth living.

The realization did nothing to stem her tears.  If anything, they started
falling at a faster rate.  "N-nothing, Ranma."  She fell into his arms.  He
wrapped his arms around her and put his head next to hers.  Her tears fell
on his chest.  The feeling of his body next to hers calmed her.  She
murmured into his shoulder, "I love you."

"I l-love you, Akane."  He had trouble saying the words sometimes, which
irritated the hell out of her.  Still, they were good to hear.

Akane started.  "Oh no."  She pushed herself off of Ranma to stare at the
clock. "Oh no oh no oh no."  She rolled out of bed and ran to the bathroom.
She'd forgotten to set her alarm to take into account her new 8am class.
She had about ten minutes to get to campus.  She looked at the mirror and
blanched at what looked back at her.  There was nothing she could do about
it.  She quickly washed her hands and face and ran to the closet.  She
ignored a bewildered Ranma as she threw on some clothes, grabbed her bookbag
and ran out the door.

                               *      *      *

Ranma stared at the door Akane had just slammed shut, bemused.  What had
that been all about?  He looked at the alarm clock, and noticed that it
still showed the same time it had last night when he'd accidentally knocked
it off the table.  He held it to his ear and shook it.  Damn, they'd have to
get a new one.  They weren't exactly rolling in money; he'd have to be more
careful when he and Akane...

Ranma smiled, dropped the broken clock back on the table, and got up.  He
wandered into the kitchen area and looked at the clock there.  Plenty of
time before his 8am class.  After letting out a huge yawn, he began to make
himself a leisurely breakfast.

                               *      *      *

Akane rested her back against the wall outside of the classroom.  She had
been annoyed to discover she had arrived an hour early.  At least it had
allowed her to get some tea and a pastry, and to try and bring her
appearance to some semblance of order.

Now she was flipping idly through one of the books.  This was an advanced
literature class, probably the toughest course she would take this semester.
When it was over, though, she'd have her literature requirements fulfilled,
and she could take other courses for fun.

It was almost time for class to begin, and other students began to loiter
around the classroom door.  Akane looked around and was surprised to notice
that she didn't recognize a lot of them.  It must be one of those
cross-registration classes, probably necessary to get enough students to
make offering the course worthwhile.

One of the students was looking at her curiously.  Akane looked back.  The
woman had long, black, lightly streaked hair falling around her shoulders.
She was dressed in casual clothes with her bookbag clasped in front of her.
She was also quite cute.  The woman walked up to Akane, smiling.

Akane couldn't help feeling uneasy.  This woman fit the 'I have a crush on
Ranma' profile perfectly.  Beautiful, young, and probably with a mild form
of psychosis.  Akane peered carefully into the woman's hair, certain that
she had weapons hidden inside and was about ready to attack Akane with
razor-sharp bobby pins.

"Tendo Akane?"  Her voice was bubbly and cute, as well.  This only made
Akane feel more irritated.

"It's, uh, Saotome Akane now."

"Oh!  I'm sorry, I guess I knew that.  It's been a while."  The woman beamed
at her.

Akane shook her head.  "Forgive me, but... do I know you?"

"You don't recognize me?"  The woman looked down at herself.  "I don't think
I look any different.  Maybe it's because I don't have Katsu-nishiki with
me.  He does tend to draw attention away from me."

Akane blinked, suddenly making the connection.  "Akari!"

"Oh goody, you do remember."  Akari smiled happily.  "Are you in this
class?"

"Y-yes.  Are you?"

"Of course!  They don't have anything like this at Nogei University.  I
thought it would be fun to take."

Akane gaped at her.  "Fun?  This is, like, the hardest course you could ask
for!"

Akari nodded.  "I know.  What's the point of college, though, if it doesn't
stretch your mind?  I love this stuff!"

Akane remembered having that attitude when she had first gone to school last
year.  It hadn't taken long to wear off.  "Is this your first year, Akari?"

"No, my second."

Wow.  She'd somehow been able to maintain her enthusiasm for over a year and
a half.

The professor came down the hall.  She took out some keys and began to
fiddle with the door as the students in the hall drifted towards her.  Akane
got up and smiled at Akari.  "It's great to know you'll be in my class,
Akari.  I have another class after this.  Do you want to come over to my
place for lunch?  Maybe we can arrange to study together for this class.
Plus I'd sure like to hear what Ryoga is up to."

Akari's smiled dimmed and she looked down slightly.  "Lunch, that would be
wonderful, Akane."

Akane frowned for a moment, then forced a smile back on her face.  "Great!
Let me write down how to get there after we get settled."

Akari nodded and entered the classroom.  Akane followed, trying to shake a
very uneasy feeling inside her.  She wondered what had happened between
Akari and Ryoga.

                               *      *      *

Ranma walked lackadaisically home, in no particular hurry.  Classes were
going to be tough again.  He had no idea what the heck all of this stuff had
to do with martial arts.  He knew he had to take them to get his degree so
that he could become a certified teacher and possibly start attracting more
students than his father-in-law ever had.  Sometimes, though, he just had a
hard time picturing himself standing in a dojo showing his students how to
find the limit as X approached Y.  Unless X was his foot and Y was a
student's solar plexus, that is.

Today, though, worries about his classes couldn't spoil his good mood.  He
was actually humming to himself, which surprised him a little.  He tried to
remember the last time life had seemed so carefree.  Certainly not since
that first trip to China.

"Ah, Saotome-san, it's good to see you."

Ranma whipped his head to the side and up to see Sato sitting high in a
tree. Ranma immediately dropped into a ready position.  "All right, what is
it?  More vengeful spirits?  More gods and goddesses leaving their offspring
lying around?  A trip to the underworld to rescue some lost soul?  What?
Spill it, Sato."

Sato blinked, his face serene if a little surprised.  "I have nothing to
spill, Saotome-san, except possibly myself out of this tree.  I have
discovered that although I am fairly good at climbing trees, I am not so
good at getting out of them.  I have spent the past hour meditating on the
difference.  Or trying to work up the courage to jump out of the tree; I'm
not sure which."

Ranma chuckled in good humor.  He dropped his backpack and jumped.  He
landed on a branch opposite Sato and smiled.  "I thought you mystical men
had no fear."

Sato smiled in self-deprecation.  "Oh, we have fear all right.  We just hide
that fear behind calm faces and mystical sayings.  It makes us look wise
when, in fact, the touch of a feather would knock us over."  Sato looked
down at the ground a good seven or eight meters away and gulped.

Ranma made himself comfortable.  "So watcha doing up here?"

Sato grimaced.  "Trying to find those answers which seem to elude me no
matter where I go.  Leaving the Maison took me nearer to the answers.
Returning brought me even closer.  Still, those answers elude my grasp like
smoke in the wind.  I thought that perhaps raising myself above the earth,
still in the grip of Mother Nature, would clear my mind.  It worked until I
made the mistake of looking down."

Ranma chuckled.  "So you don't have any mystical quests for me?"

Sato looked at him curiously.  "Why would you think that I do?"

Ranma shrugged.  "Seems to me that the only time we talk is when you're
about to get me in trouble of some sort."

Sato smiled wryly.  "There is some truth to that.  As it is, I merely called
out to you because I've never seen you so at peace with yourself."

Ranma lifted an eyebrow.  "Oh, yeah?"

"'Yeah'.  Your spirit is as tranquil as I have ever known it to be - more so
than I had thought it *could* be."  Sato chuckled.  "Here I am, the great
teacher, trying to show you the way to inner peace.  You ignore me or refuse
to understand me and somehow find your own way there.  It is just a little
humbling for me."

"Good.  You need to be humbled."  Ranma smiled wickedly at Sato.

Sato looked stern.  "That is perhaps true, and perhaps one of the reasons I
find myself stuck in this tree.  But be careful, Saotome-san.  It is when we
are at our most serene that the gods tend to upset our lives.  Everlasting
bliss and happiness is for the next world.  This world must ever be filled
with turmoil and strife, or the spirit does not have a chance to grow.  Be
warned, Saotome-san.  Remember that _hubris_, arrogant pride, is offset by
_ate'_, the excessive folly that drives men to ruin."***

"Yeah, whatever."  Ranma found that, as much as he kinda liked Sato, right
now he wasn't in much of a mood to hear his mystical mumbo-jumbo.  "Here."
Ranma leaned over and grabbed Sato's shirt.  He lifted Sato off the branch
and jumped.  Sato shouted as Ranma fell, landed, and set Sato on the ground.

Sato did a quick visual surveillance of the extremities and discovered
nothing bruised or broken.  He bowed a little shakily.  "Thank you,
Saotome-san."

"No prob."  Ranma picked up his backpack.  "Going to the Maison, Sato?"

"Not just yet.  I still must meditate.  Saotome-san, think on what I have
said."  Sato looked evenly at Ranma.

What, and turn myself into a wuss like you?  Ranma didn't speak the thought
out loud, much as he was tempted, and contented himself with, "Yeah, okay.
Later."

He grinned at Sato and walked away, looking once over his should to see Sato
staring at the tree and reaching up tentatively to grab the lowest branch.

Ranma shook his head and looked forward once more.  Talking with Sato always
creeped him out, unless he made a concerted effort to ignore everything Sato
said.  Ranma was feeling particularly magnanimous today, and had allowed
Sato to prattle on.  Ranma made a mental note to never let that happen
again.

Maison Sabaku came into view.  Ranma grinned, anxious to see Akane again.
He'd never been this excited to see her before.  He wondered if they had
time to partake of a little indulgence before his afternoon class.  It was
worth asking her about, anyway.

He ran up the stairs and burst through the door.  He came to a screeching
halt as he realized someone else was there.  For a split second he thought
the woman with Akane was Ukyo.  Then he looked at the different features and
recognition washed over him.  "Hey, Akari!  How ya been?"

Akari smiled at him.  "Ranma-san.  It is good to see you again."

"Call me Ranma."  Without looking, he reached behind him with his foot and
pushed the door closed.

Akane looked up at him, her forehead slightly wrinkled.  "Where were you?"

Ranma grimaced.  "Rescuing Sato."

Akane's eyebrows shot up.  "From what?"

"From Mother Nature's grip that kept him imprisoned high above the rocky
plain.  Fortunately, I happened by and was able to bring him to safety."

"Uh huh."  Akane looked unconvinced and irritated.  "You almost missed
lunch."

"Ulp."  Ranma looked at the plates on the table in front of Akari and Akane.
They looked relatively normal, which gave him some encouragement.
Appearances could be deceiving, however, especially with Akane's cooking.

Akari was still smiling at him.  "Come join us.  I helped Akane make lunch,
but we're going to have a lot left over if you don't eat some."

Ranma was careful to keep the relief off of his face, since Akane was
studying him closely.  "Sure."  He sat down next to Akane.  He took a small
bite, chewed cautiously, and swallowed.  The food was okay; not as good as
Shampoo's or Ukyo's but still palatable.  He began to shovel the food in
earnest.

Akari smiled and spoke to Akane.  "He eats just like Ryoga."

"You mean like a pig?"  Akane sounded amused.

"Yes!  Exactly like a pig."

Ranma nearly choked.  All of a sudden he realized there was a danger here,
something he'd almost forgotten about.  He quickly swallowed and tried to
steer the conversation in another direction.  "Say, where is Ryoga? I
haven't seem him in ages."

Akari lost her smile.  "I don't know where he is."

Akane looked concerned.  "You mean he's lost again?"

Akari looked down at her plate.  "I hope so.  I really hope so.  I have to
believe that or I'll go crazy."

Ranma's heart sank into his stomach.  Something was very wrong here.  "What
is it, Akari?  Tell us."

Akari sniffled.  "Well, I guess you should know what happened a few months
ago."

                               *      *      *

Akari took the last of the trash out, then returned to her apartment and
looked around.  It was very small one-room affair, and not exactly
glamorous, but it was *hers*.  All hers, no roommates.  She liked her
privacy.  College last year had been okay, but her roommates had always
wanted to have a party while Akari had been trying to study.

Akari took her courses very seriously.  She'd combined the money her
grandfather had left her in his will with what she'd been able to raise with
her pig-breeding.  Together, it had been enough to enable her to go to
college.  She had no intention of wasting the money or the opportunity, and
didn't understand how others could take it so lightly.

This year it would be different.  She had a little farther to travel to get
to classes, and she'd really have to watch her budget closely, but she'd be
able to study in peace.  Once she got her degree, she could start moving in
on some of the international markets.  People had difficulty taking a
teenaged woman without a degree seriously.  At least college would give her
a degree and add a few years.  Maybe she could make some contacts here, too.

In the meantime, the family farm lay dormant, the pigs sold except for a few
of the good breeders being kept at a neighbor's farm, including
Katsu-nishiki.  She was paying for their upkeep, but it wouldn't be too bad
a strain.

She smiled, satisfied.  She was in college, doing well, and had a place of
her own.  She had everything she could ask for.

Almost everything.

Her smile faded.  When had she last seen Ryoga?  He had passed in and out of
her life over the past couple of years.  She thought things were going well
with him - she loved him desperately, and was fairly certain he had strong
feelings for her.  However, he couldn't seem to stay in one place.
Something else kept drawing him away, and he wouldn't tell her what.  It
troubled her deeply.

Akari shook her head.  Such thoughts would get her nowhere.  She hadn't seen
him during the school break.  She'd left word at his parent's house about
her new address.  Hopefully, he would eventually see it.  Hopefully, he
would somehow find a way here.

And then, as if in answer to a prayer, as if her thoughts had conjured him
out of the air, Akari heard a squeal at the door.

                               *      *      *

Ranma rushed in.  "Let me guess.  It was Ryoga at the door?"

Akari nodded.  "He *had* found my new place.  He'd gotten my note and
started looking for my apartment a month before I would actually live there.
It was just a coincidence that he actually found it the day after I moved
in."

Akane looked confused.  "A squeal?"

Ranma quickly overrode her.  "So you let him take a nice, hot shower,
right?"

Akari shook her head.  "Actually, I have to use a communal bathroom.  I do
have a sink, so I-"

Ranma interrupted again.  "What did he have to say?"

Akari blushed.  "We didn't speak right away."

                               *      *      *

Akari finally broke off the kiss.  "Oh, Ryoga.  I'm so happy to see you."

Ryoga smiled tenderly.  "I've been looking for you for so long.  I'm glad I
found you."

"Me too."  She reached up to trace the curve of his cheek.  "Where have you
been?"

Ryoga grimaced slightly.  "I was trying to... to... to give Ranma and Akane
a wedding present."

This was news to Akari.  "They're married?"

"Yeah."  Ryoga looked somber, almost pained.  Akari thought he'd be happy
for his friends.  Maybe he was just sorry to have missed the wedding.

Akari thought it over.  "Why don't I lead you over to their house?  I'm sure
they'd be glad to see you, and you can give them their present."

Ryoga's eyes got wide.  He spoke quickly and somewhat fearfully.  "N-no,
that won't be necessary.  Besides, they've gone off to Akane's college."

"Oh."  Akari frowned; something didn't quite add up.  She pushed it aside.
All that mattered was that Ryoga was here now.  She leaned back into him and
hugged him tightly, sighing happily.

This went on for a few minutes.  Finally, Ryoga spoke in an amused tone of
voice.  "Are you planning on letting me go anytime soon?"

"Nope."  Akari spoke somewhat mischievously, and somewhat seriously.  "If I
don't let you go, you can't wander away from me anymore."

Ryoga sighed.  He put his hands on her shoulders and forced them apart.  He
looked into her eyes, a serious expression on his face.  "I'm sorry, Akari.
I was always leaving you.  I - I can't explain why.  Let me only say that,
um, I no longer need to go anywhere else.  There's no... she... it's
just..."

He stopped, drew a deep breath, and continued.  "Sometimes I get lost.
That's a fact.  I can wander around for days or weeks trying to get
someplace.  Now, however, I want you to be the one I always come back to."

Tears began to flow from Akari's eyes.  "Oh Ryoga."  She grabbed him and
held him to her again.  This really was a dream come true.  She trembled,
the force of her emotions to big to be contained.

"Akari-san."  Ryoga sounded close to tears himself.  His strong arms
surrounded her, making her feel good in a way she'd never felt before.

Akari finally pushed away from him, sniffling.  She looked around.  "Where
is your backpack?"

Ryoga looked uncertain.  "Out in the street, I think.  Or maybe in the
alley. No, in the next alley over.  I'll go-"

"You'll do no such thing."  She moved him to the one chair in the apartment
and sat him on it.  "I'll get it.  There's not a lot of room here, but we'll
find a place to put your things."

Ryoga surged to his feet.  "Akari!  Th-that's not what I meant.  I mean..."
He looked around.  "Where would I sleep?"

Akari giggled.  "Where do you think you'd sleep, silly?"

Ryoga turned beet red.  "A-Akari, are you sure?  I mean, isn't that
something only - only married people do?"

Akari smiled nervously.  "Or something people who are going to get married
do."

Ryoga looked like he was about to pass out.  "M-married?"

Akari put her hand on his cheek.  "We've found each other at long last.  I
am not going to let you go again.  Do you understand me, Hibiki Ryoga-san?"

Ryoga gaped at her for a long moment.  Finally he stammered.  "Y-yes."

Akari bit her lip.  "I mean, if it's all right with you.  If it's something
you want to do, too."

Ryoga looked at her.  Slowly, the nervousness left him, to be replaced by a
loving and somewhat confident look.  "Yes.  I didn't realize it until you
asked me, but it *is* what I want.  I've spent all my life wandering around
searching for something and now I've found it.  In you."

He paused, and the nervousness returned in full force.  "I l... lu... uh...
vvv... you."

Akari laughed and grabbed his face in both hands.  "I l-lu-uh-vv you, too."
She spoke quickly, teasing him.  When she saw him smile, she kissed him
passionately.

After a long while, she left her fiance in their apartment while she looked
for his backpack.

                               *      *      *

Akari was still blushing.  She had left nothing out, which surprised Akane.
Akari struck her as very shy.  She was being quite frank and open about what
had happened between her and Ryoga.  Akane realized that Akari needed
someone to pour her heart out to, and that meant completely baring her soul.
Akane glimpsed the depths of loneliness in Akari, and her heart went out to
her.

Ranma, too, seemed to understand.  "So what happened?  Why are you so sad?"

Akari looked down.  "We were going to be married.  We had planned it for the
semester break.  He found a job near my college, and we would always walk
together every morning and evening.  He was going to take some time off and
we were going to take a honeymoon in the Higo Forest - he said he had some
friends there.  It was g-going to b-be wonderful..."  She broke off, crying.

Akane reached over and took her hand.  "He didn't show up for the wedding,
did he?"

Akari's only response was to cry harder.

Ranma blew out a breath.  He also reached over to put his hand over Akane's
and Akari's.  "I'm sure he just got lost, like he always does.  The guy
loves you."

"I know h-he d-does."  Akari looked up.  "B-but does he l-love just m-me?
I th-think it was another... another..."  She reached over and picked up a
napkin to blow her nose.  "Another w-woman he was always g-going to see.
I'm afraid he c-couldn't stand b-being tied down to j-just me.  I think he
went off to f-find his other love and b-be with h-HER instead of m-me."

Akane's heart sank.  "No, that can't be true.  Ryoga's a great guy, he'd
never do that to you."  She turned.  "Ranma, you've known Ryoga a lot longer
than any of us, tell Akari that he wouldn't..."

Her voice trailed off as she looked at Ranma's expression.  He looked grim,
and a little angry.  Akane didn't know Akari that well, and she knew Ryoga
only a little better.  Akane knew her husband, however.  Ranma *knew* that
there was another woman.

Akane felt a cold lump in her gut.  Poor Akari.

Ranma was quick to recover.  "Of course there's no one else, Akari.  Tell
you what, I'll find him for you.  I'll bring him home to you if I have to
lead him on a leash."

Akari looked up at Ranma.  "You will?"

Ranma nodded confidently.  "I promise."

Akari sighed.  "Th-thank you, Ranma-san."  Akari looked back and forth
between Ranma and Akane.  "I'm sorry, I've ruined your lunch."

Akane forced herself to speak in a cheery tone of voice.  "Of course you
haven't, Akari.  We're glad to have you as our friend."

Akari cleaned herself up as best she could.  "I think I need to go home."
She stood up and bowed deeply to Akane and Ranma.  "Thank you for your
hospitality."

Akane escorted her to the door.  She watched Akari walk down the hallway and
down the stairs.  When she was safely gone, Akane stepped back, slammed the
door closed, and turned to Ranma.

"All right, Ranma, spill it.  Who is the other woman?"

Ranma's jaw dropped open.  He worked his mouth.  "I said, Akane.  There's no
one else."

"You're lying to me."  This shook Akane.  Ranma.  Her husband.  Had lied to
her.  How could he?  How could he do that to her?

Ranma evidently saw on her face some of the hurt she was feeling.  He paled,
stood up, and walked over to her.  He looked like he wasn't sure whether he
should hug her or not, his hand lifted half-way up.  "Akane, I..."  He
trailed off, looking extremely uncertain.

"Tell me, Ranma.  Tell me and don't lie to me.  Ryoga is in love with
another woman, isn't he?"  Akane stared at him, her face set, letting him
know that she was deadly serious.

Ranma grimaced and looked down.  His voice was very quiet.  "Yes.  I
think... he was, once.  I, I'd hoped that... he'd grown out of it.  There
was... good reason for him to believe that... that the other woman would...
would never be able to... love him back."

Anger, a familiar companion, started building in her.  Damn him.  Damn Ryoga
and damn Ranma for hiding this from her and Akari.  "Who is she, Ranma?  Is
she someone I know?"

She could see Ranma start to make a denial, then stop himself.  It had to
mean that he had been about to lie to her again and had just barely
prevented it from happening.  He was still staring at his feet.  Akane
peered at him closely, trying to figure out why Ryoga's other woman bothered
Ranma so much.

Akane frowned, suddenly remembering the whole incident with the koi fishing
rod.  "Is it you, Ranma?  Is Ryoga in love with you?"

"NO!"  Ranma snapped his head up and glared at her.  "It ain't nothin' like
that!"

Akane glared right back at him.  Okay, she had guessed wrong, but that was
no reason for him to snap at her like that.  "Then tell me, damn it.  Who is
she?"

The anger drained from Ranma's face, to be replaced by the same uncertainty
he'd been showing earlier, tinged slightly with fear.

Akane examined his face.  She could read something in it, she could almost
understand...

Click.  The gifts.

Click.  Always coming around the dojo.

Click.  The fights he had with Ranma, for reasons Ranma never told her
about.

Click.  The love-destroying cave.

Click.  Inviting her over to his house to see his puppies.  Ranma pretending
to be his sister.

Click.  Click.  Click.  Click.

"It's me."  The realization filled her with equal parts of awe and horror.
"He's been in love with me all the time."

Looking at Ranma's face, Akane could see that this time she has guessed
correctly.

And her anger began to build.

"You knew.  You knew all along and you didn't tell me.  And when Ryoga tried
to tell me, you stopped him.  That's why you acted the way you did in that
cave.  That's why you pretended to be his sister and his fiancee.  All
along, you did everything you could to prevent Ryoga from telling me how he
really feels."

Ranma's eyes were getting wider and wider.  He reached out his fist.
"C'mon, Akane.  One... two..."

She reached out and slapped his fist away.  "Oh no.  Not this time.  This is
too damned serious for stupid games like that.  You did everything in your
power to screw up Ryoga's life.  Well, you succeeded."  She stepped towards
him.  Ranma stepped back.  Her voice was quavering with anger.  "Are you
happy, Ranma?  Did you get what you wanted?"

Ranma gulped and tried to make his features stern.  "Dammit, that's not
fair, Akane.  I ain't no saint, but I'm not as bad as you're making me out
to be. Okay, you're right.  Looking back, it wasn't such a good idea to keep
you and Ryoga apart."  He sharpened his voice a little.  "Did you ever think
I did it because I was jealous, that I couldn't stand the thought of you
being with anyone else?"

Akane drew her eyebrows together.  "Oh, that's great.  Did you have so
little faith in me?  In our relationship?  If you had just let him tell me
his feelings, I could have let him down gently, and there would have been
nothing to get in the way of him and Akari."

Anger once again began to creep onto Ranma's face.  "You're still being
unfair, Akane.  I ain't the only one who didn't much trust our relationship
at first."

Akane snorted.  "So that makes it okay?  As long as you can say I've done
the same thing, you can do whatever the hell you please, and damn what it
does to Ryoga?"

Ranma winced.  "I didn't think that he would-"

"That's your problem, Ranma.  You don't *think*.  You're so damn selfish,
you do what you want, when you want, to whoever you want, so long as *your*
needs are met.  Well, congratulations.  You got me as your wife at the
expense of Ryoga's marriage."

Akane took another step closer to Ranma.  To the man who had lied to her for
years, to the man who asked for her trust even as he betrayed it, to the man
who had been so insecure that he had made other people's lives a misery just
so he could continue to be indecisive about his feelings towards her.  "Do
you realize what your lies have done to Ryoga and Akari?"

Ranma seemed surprised and a little irritated by the accusation.  "Akane-"

That was the last straw.  "DO YOU REALIZE WHAT YOUR LIES HAVE DONE TO RYOGA
AND AKARI!"

They both stood in shock.  Her shout was still ringing in her ears.  She
didn't care.  Ranma had gone too far this time, had done too much damage
with his deceptions.

Had hurt her too badly with his lack of faith and trust in her.

Ranma was drawing deep breaths, staring at her, shocked, hurt, and angry.
He seemed to be struggling with something.

Akane wondered what it could be.  "What else have you kept hidden from me,
Ranma?  What else have you lied to me about?"

Ranma paled.  Again, she was able to see right through him.  He *did* have
another secret.

Akane growled, quivering with anger.  "WHAT ELSE HAVE YOU LIED TO ME ABOUT!"

Ranma finally found his voice again.  "I made a promise..."

"A promise to hide something from me?  To lie to me about it?"  This shocked
Akane.  She was seeing a new side to Ranma, a side she didn't like at all.
"Don't you trust me, Ranma?"

"Akane..."  Ranma struggled with his words.  "I... I *do* trust you.  I..."

"If you trust me, then you'll tell me what that other secret is you're
hiding from me."

Ranma blanched again.  "I can't, Akane, I simply can't.  It's a promise I
made."

Akane slapped his chest lightly.  "Oh, so you can lie to your wife but you
keep promises to other people?  Do I mean so little to you?"

Ranma growled.  "You're doing it again, twisting every little thing I say."

"How can I help it?  Your words don't mean what they're supposed to mean.  I
have to dig everything out of you.  You're great at secrets and lying,
Ranma."

Akane made a fist with her left hand and held it up, her wedding ring held
in front of her face.  "So help me, Ranma, you will let me in on *all* of
your secrets, or our marriage is through, here and now."

Ranma was breathing heavily, evidently trying to control his anger.  "What
kind of choice is that, Akane?  My honor or my marriage?  What kind of
choice is that to force on anyone?"

"HONOR!"  Akane clenched her fist so tightly it hurt.  "What honor, Ranma?
All I've seen are lies that destroy lives.  Don't talk to me about honor,
Ranma.  Don't ever again try to tell me that you have honor."

Anger was etched deeply onto Ranma's face.  And hurt.  He seemed to have
difficulty breathing.  After a moment, he spoke in an agonized, angry
whisper.  "Damn you, Akane.  I can't be with you when you're like this."  He
turned and walked over to the door.

Akane followed him, her voice one decibel below a shout.  "That's right, run
away.  Run away and don't come back."  Ranma opened the door.  "I'm sure
Ukyo or Hitomi would love to have you.  Or even that Chinese bimbo.  *I*
certainly don't need someone as honorless as you."

Ranma walked stiffly down the hall.  Akane gritted her teeth, her anger at
its peak and running away with her rationality.  She pulled her wedding ring
off. "Take *this* with you!"  She threw the wedding ring at him.  It bounced
off his back.  He paused, then continued walking.

She watched as he reached the stairs.  "DON'T COME BACK, RANMA!"  She
realized everyone in the Maison could hear her but she didn't care.  "YOU
DON'T LIVE HERE ANYMORE!  I NEVER WANT TO SEE YOU AGAIN!"

The echoes of her shouts died away.  Ranma disappeared with them.

Akane went inside and slammed the door.  She looked around, at the table
covered with half-eaten food, at Ranma's backpack carelessly dumped on the
floor, at the futon where she'd made love to Ranma last night.

Akane leaned her back against the door and slumped to the ground.  She put
her head in her arms and began to cry.

                               *      *      *

Ranma walked down the road, with no idea where he was going.  He was in a
state of shock.  He couldn't think, for any thought would only be about what
had happened in the apartment.  Or if not that, then what he had done to
Ryoga.  He couldn't bear the thought of either.  So he just kept walking.
One word kept echoing through his mind.

Ate'.***

                               *      *      *

Sato watched as Ranma once again walked under the tree and continued past,
going who-knows-where.  Even from where he was been sitting, he had heard
Akane shouting.  Sato had no idea what they had been arguing about, but
whatever it had been, it had destroyed Ranma's spirit.  The man who had
walked past just now was the complete antithesis of the man who had strolled
merrily by just a little while ago.

Sato wondered whether he should get involved.  He didn't know a lot about
women or relationships.  He had no experience to draw upon, and his
spiritual guide would probably be of precious little help.

But he couldn't let Akane and Ranma lose their love.  It was too strong, too
pure.  He had not seen the like.  Those two would be able to accomplish so
much, with nothing but their love to sustain them.  It was, by itself, a
force to be reckoned with.

Sato sighed and stared down.  It had been so easy for Ranma.  He was so at
one with the forces of nature, able to flow through them and with them at
will.  Sato was not so lucky.  The ground was as likely to hurt him as help
him.  He had no more time to think about it, or he wouldn't be able to find
Ranma.

For the sake of love not his own, Sato jumped.

                               *      *      *

Akane continued to hang her head in her hands long after the tears had
stopped.  She couldn't move.  The pain was too intense.

She'd been so sure after the summer break that the days of fighting were
over, that she and Ranma had finally reached the point in their relationship
where all would be love and happiness.  They'd certainly suffered enough
getting to that point.

She had been horribly naive.  When it came right down to it, there was still
an awful lot she didn't know about Ranma.  They'd spent two years together,
dancing around each other and never getting very close to each other.  Then
they had spent a year apart and had fallen out of touch.  Then the forced
marriage, out of the blue, with no chance to get themselves reacquainted
first.  She'd married a stranger - a familiar stranger, but a stranger
nonetheless.  They'd slowly built the foundations for a relationship over
the past few months.

Little had she realized how unstable those foundations were.

And Akari.  Poor Akari, caught up in Ranma's thoughtlessness, an innocent
victim of Ranma's jealousy and scheming.  She didn't deserve to be suffering
as a result.

Like Akane was suffering right now.

Akane stood up and put on her coat.  She and Akari needed to have a talk.

                               *      *      *

Ranma found the cracks in the sidewalk fascinating.  It was interesting to
see if he could take even steps and at the same time avoid stepping on any
cracks.  Sometimes he couldn't, and each time his foot covered a crack, his
heart broke a little more.

"Saotome-san."

Ranma frowned.  He'd heard that voice utter something very similar earlier
today.  Was his mind beginning to slip, trying to replay the day's events so
that it could end differently?

He turned around to see Sato walking rapidly up to him.  He seemed to be
limping slightly.

"Saotome-san."  Sato, a little out of breath, clasped him on the shoulder.

Ranma tried to generate some interest.  "Hi, Sato."

Sato seemed to be struggling for words.  "I... know that you and your wife
have just had... a problem.  I was wondering if I could help in some way."

Ranma shook his head.  "No."  He turned and began walking away.

"Saotome-san!"  Sato's voice was sharp.  "Do not turn away help when it is
offered, especially when you need it so badly."

Ranma frowned slightly and turned back to Sato.  "Who says I need help?"

Sato merely stood and looked at him steadily.

Finally Ranma grimaced and looked down.  "We got into a fight.  A big
fight."

"There is always conflict, in all aspects of life."

Ranma snorted.  "Yeah, that's helpful, Sato."

Sato sounded slightly apologetic.  "I'm sorry.  I didn't mean to try and
downplay your suffering.  Rather, I merely wanted to go on to say that the
purpose of conflict is resolution."

Ranma blinked.  "Huh?"

Sato stroked his chin.  "I'm saying this badly.  I know that you and your
wife have just had a 'big fight'.  That is a good sign, however.  It is by
having a fight that you two are able to, um, bring out into the open issues
that might... that might otherwise threaten your relationship.  Now that you
have exposed and recognized the problem, you can begin finding a way to
resolve it."

The words sank into Ranma's brain and tried to force it to begin working
again.  He found a strange kind of hope in them.  That maybe the world
wasn't coming to an end after all, that maybe he and Akane could be happy
again.  If only they could solve this problem.

Unfortunately, *he* was the problem.  Ranma had done a lot to screw up
Ryoga's life.  Ryoga had done a lot of it to himself, but Ranma had played a
part. He had to set that right.  If he was going to get back into Akane's
good graces, if he was going to atone for the wrong he had done to Ryoga, he
had to find Ryoga and help him get back together with Akari.

Having a plan was enough to drive a lot of the depression from his mind.  It
was still there, hovering in the background, but it no longer controlled
him.  Once again, Ranma was in charge.

He focused on Sato once again.  "Thanks, Sato.  That *did* help.  I know
what I gotta do now."

Sato seemed a little gratified and a little surprised.  "That's good.  Can I
offer any more assistance?"

Ranma started to shake his head again, then stopped himself.  Finding the
eternally lost boy was a Herculean task.  Ranma could wander for years
trying to find Ryoga, especially when he had no idea where Ryoga could be.

"I, uh, gotta find this guy.  Problem is, he could be anywhere in the world.
I need to find him fast.  Do you know a way he could be tracked down?"

Sato frowned and seemed to think it over.  When he finally spoke, it was
with a great deal of uncertainty.  "Well, we could speak to a friend of
mine.  He might be able to point us in the right direction.  *If* he knows,
and *if* he feels inclined to tell us.  He may ask a price."

Ranma began to nod, then froze.  "What kind of price?"

Sato chuckled.  "It's good that you ask that question before agreeing,
especially considering the kind of friends I have.  What made you think to
ask it?"

Ranma quirked a corner of his mouth.  "I got a sister-in-law.  She's always
there to provide help, for a price.  Sometimes after paying her price I wish
I'd gone without her 'help'."

Sato nodded.  "I see.  Well, I can assure you that my spirit guide will not
ask anything of you that you would not be willing to give."

Ranma frowned, trying to work out the sentence, making sure he understood it
correctly.  Finally, he nodded.  "Okay.  What do we do?"

Sato sighed, to Ranma's eyes showing more than a bit of trepidation.
"Follow me."

                               *      *      *

Akane wandered from the train station, trying to get her bearings.  Akari's
college was not close to Mizunoikan.  It was quite a commute Akari had to
make twice a week to take the class she and Akane shared.  Having tasted
some of Akari's enthusiasm, however, Akane knew that Akari considered it a
small price to pay.

Akane got directions from a fruit vendor, and soon found the apartment
building Akari lived in.  It was a bit run-down, certainly not as pleasant
as Maison Sabaku.  Akari was probably quite a bit poorer than Akane and
Ranma were, and they weren't exactly rich, either.

Akari lived on the fourth floor.  Akane entered the building and found the
apartment number.  She smiled when she found it; she wouldn't have needed to
know the apartment number.  She imagined that no one else had the carving of
a pig decorating their front door.

Akane lifted her hand and found herself strangely hesitant.  She gathered
her strength and knocked.

After a moment the door was flung open.  Akari stood there, a hopeful
expression on her face.  She saw Akane and quickly took in the fact that
Akane was alone.  Disappointment flitted across her face before she was able
to put on her usual happy smile.  "Please come in."

Akane tried to give her a reassuring smile and stepped in.  The apartment
was every bit as tiny as Akari had described, although it had more in the
way of furniture now.  Ryoga's salary had probably contributed to the
upkeep.

Akari indicated the couch.  "Would you like some tea?"

Akane considered, then nodded.  "Yes, please, if it's not too much trouble."

"None at all."  Akari had a very small kitchen area, which seemed to be
comprised mostly of a sink, a tiny refrigerator, and a hot plate.  She put
some water in a kettle and set it on the hot plate before turning to smile
at Akane.  "What brings you all the way out here?"

Akane grimaced.  "I, uh, have something to tell you."

Akari's smile dimmed.  She studied Akane thoughtfully for a minute.  The
kettle began whistling.  Akari poured the hot water into a teapot, added the
tea, then brought it out and set it on a table in front of the couch.  She
got two cups out of a cabinet, poured a cup of tea for Akane, offered it to
her, then poured herself a cup and sat on the couch, turned slightly towards
Akane.  She did all of this with a nervous energy, as if terribly afraid of
what Akane was about to say.

Akane sipped some of the tea, trying to steady herself.  "My husband lied to
you."

"Ranma?"  Akari blinked.  "About what?"

Akane forced herself to look into Akari's eyes.  "About Ryoga being in love
with another woman."

Akari took a sip of her tea, the cup trembling slightly in her hands.  "Do
you know who this other woman was?"  Her voice was soft but steady.

Akane nodded.  "I should let you know that the other woman had no idea that
Ryoga was infatuated with her.  She thought of Ryoga as just a friend, and
had no intention of leading him on.  If she had known about Ryoga's true
feelings, she would have told him that she didn't return those feelings.
She would have told him to forget her and go with the one he really loved."

Akari was giving her a strange look.  "It was you, wasn't it?  He was in
love with you."

Akane let out a long sigh.  "I'm sorry, Akari."

Akari took some more sips with her tea, studying Akane closely.  Finally,
she gave Akane a weak smile.  "Don't be sorry.  It wasn't your fault.  I
should have figured it out myself.  He's told me a little of the time he
spent with your husband, of some of the things they've done together.  Yet
he never told me why he hung around the Tendo Dojo all the time.  I should
have known it would be because of you."

Akane grit her teeth, some of the anger coming back.  "If my husband hadn't
interfered, Ryoga would have been able to confess his feelings sooner, and I
could have let him down gently.  Ranma was just consumed by petty jealousy,
and he let it ruin Ryoga's life."  Akane simmered a bit, then looked at
Akari again.  "I'm sorry for that."

Akari was looking at her a little wide-eyed.  "Oh."  She looked down into
her tea for a couple of long minutes.  "Well."  She sipped the tea.  For the
first time ever, Akane could see Akari getting a little upset.  "Ryoga was
always telling me what a bad person your husband was.  I refused to let him
do it.  I tried to tell him that Ranma wasn't completely responsible for
some of the things that had happened to Ryoga.  In fact, I was a little
confused as to why Ryoga was always so angry at Ranma.  I can see now that
it was because he was jealous of Ranma for being engaged to you.  He was
angry at Ranma for keeping him from letting you know how he felt."

Akari sipped her tea again, evidently struggling with her emotions.  "Not to
mention turning him into a pig, although I always liked that part myself."

Akane nodded thoughtfully, sipping her tea.  Yes, that would be a good
reason for Ryoga to be mad at Ranma, on top of everything else.

Akane choked and spat her tea back out.  "What?"

                               *      *      *

Sato lit the candles on either side of the altar.  "Close the window and
shut the drapes, would you, Saotome-san?"

"Uh... sure."  Ranma seemed a bit nervous.  Soon the room was quite dim. The
candles flickered and cast eerie, dancing shadows along the walls.

Sato knelt and indicated to Ranma that he should do the same.  Sato then
began to clear his mind.

"Nothing's gonna come attack us, is it?"

"No."  Sato drew a breath and tried to imagine the sound of one hand
clapping.

"Can I turn on the lights?"

"No."  Sato soothed the irritation that threatened his equilibrium.  He
pressed his palms together in front of him.

"Once an evil spirit possessed Kasumi.  It was not a pretty picture."

"Saotome-san."  Sato tried not to growl and, for the most part, failed
utterly.  "Please keep yourself still.  My spirit guide is a little finicky.
We need to follow the forms if we are going to get some help for you."

"Sorry."  Ranma sighed.  "It's just that I ain't never had anything good
happen because of spirits.  There was this time that a tree took over Kuno
and..."

"Saotome-san."

"Sorry."

Sato sighed and tried to imagine the sound of one hand clapping itself over
Ranma's mouth.  It helped tremendously.

After a while, Sato began the invocation.  "Ancient spirits of the darkness,
harken unto me!  I call thee forth, Yutaga!"

Silence answered him.

Sato gathered his mental energy and tried again.  "Ancient spirits of..."

"...evil, transform this decayed form into..."

"Ranma!"  Sato turned to shoot him an annoyed glare.

Ranma look genuinely abashed.  "Sorry.  This stuff just makes me nervous."

A voice spoke from the altar.  "I thought it was funny, although I never
cared much for the American stuff."

Sato turned to the altar.  "Yutaga?"

"No, Sato, Youmaga.  Do you want me to call in an annoying bunch of
barely-pubescent teenagers to pose and pontificate?"

Before Sato could think of an appropriate response, Ranma cut in.  "Say, can
you help me find Ryoga?"

Something in the flickering shadows seemed to lean forward and consider him.
"Saotome Ranma.  I have heard *so* much about you.  You've managed to make
quite the name for yourself in the spirit world."

Ranma brightened.  "Yeah, I was trying to tell Sato that.  There was this
ghost cat that..."

Sato broke in.  "Do you think you can help him, Yutaga?"

"Hmm.  You know, he really should get his own spirit guide."

Ranma shuddered.  "Ah, c'mon.  Sato said I could do something for you to
sort of pay you back for your help."

"He did, did he?"  Yutaga sounded amused.  "Did he tell you the kind of
things I could ask of you?"

Ranma gulped, but spoke bravely.  "He said that you wouldn't ask anything
too horrible of me.  He seemed to think you were a good guy."

"Hmmph."  Yutaga sounded a little skeptical.  Sato wondered how a
disembodied spirit could snort.  "Well, he doesn't know everything about
everything.  Just keep that in mind."

Ranma shrugged.  "I knew that already."

Yutaga chuckled.  "Good.  Okay, you owe me one favor.  I don't know what it
is yet, but I'll call you on it one day."

"Okay."  Ranma leaned forward, looking excited.   "Where is he?"

The shadows behind the altar seemed to gather themselves together into a
larger shadow that loomed high above the altar.  Yutaga spoke in a loud,
important-sounding voice.  "When the sun has passed where the rings of
Saturn would be in the night sky, you must find the place where the winds
coming from the Sea of Japan meet the spirits of the tranquil water, causing
ripples of turmoil that spill onto the beachhead of..."

Suddenly the candle flames flickered violently.  For a moment, Sato was sure
they were going to go out.  They dimmed to small embers before strengthening
and returning to full force.

There was no wind in the room.  Sato tried to find Yutaga's form in the
shadows.  "Is anything wrong, Yutaga?"

"N-no."  Yutaga sounded a little shaky.  "We just had a very large
explosion."

Ranma looked around in alarm.  "We did?  Where?"

"Closer than you think."  Yutaga had returned to his normal, amused voice.
"It wasn't *that* kind of an explosion.  Think of it more as a metaphysical
shockwave."

Sato drew his eyebrows together.  "I don't understand."

"Well, it's just that someone close to somebody in this room... What's the
right vernacular?  Ah, let's try this.  Somebody just blew a mental gasket."

Sato looked at Ranma, sharing a confused look with him.

Ranma recovered first.  "Uh, so, you were saying where Ryoga was?"

"Oh yeah.  When the sun passes where... where the red eye of Mars... no,
where the rings of Saturn would be, then you must find where... where the
winds from Mt. Fuji... no, it was...  Oh, just take an E-train headed north.
Get off at the Nogei University stop.  Go three blocks east and two blocks
north.  He'll be there in an hour and a half."

Ranma sprang to his feet.  "Thanks!"  He ran to the door.

"Don't forget..."  Yutaga trailed off as Ranma threw open the door and ran
outside.  "Oh well.  He is an impetuous one.  You will remind him, Sato,
about the price?"

Sato went over and closed the door.  "Yes, Yutaga.  What are you going to
ask him to do?"

"Oh, I'll think of something, don't worry.  In the meantime, you and I need
to have a talk."

"Yes, Yutaga."  Sato knelt again facing the altar and cleared his mind,
ready to receive the wisdom of his spirit guide.

The shadows danced faster and faster behind the altar.  "What's all this
about me being finicky?"

                               *      *      *

"P-chan?"  Akari was incredulous.

"A small black pig with a yellow and black..."  Akane blanched.

"Bandanna.  That's Ryoga, all right."  Akari peered closely at Akane.  "He
was your... pet?"

Akane looked to be close to fainting.  "Yes.  He'd come and go.  I... I
slept with him.  He'd be in my bed and I'd sleep with him."  Akane's face
began to cloud over.

Akari seldom got angry.  Life was much too fun to get angry about things.
This behavior of Ryoga's, however, was... abominable.  "How could he?
That... jerk!"  The words coming from her mouth startled her, and she tried
to drink some tea to take the taste away, only to find the cup empty.

Akane was nodding savagely.  "When I find that bastard, I am going to punch
him once for each time he touched me.  And then I'm going to kick him for
each time he saw me naked.  And then I'm going to do it all over again just
to make sure he got the message."

Akari blinked, some of her anger draining away in the face of Akane's wrath.
This, she decided, was why anger was not such a good thing.  It did ugly
things to people.

Akane's visage grew darker, uglier.  "I'll bet that was Ranma's secret.  The
thing he knew that he couldn't tell me.  He *knew* Ryoga was P-chan, and he
let it go on.  He and Ryoga were just laughing at me, making fun of me..."

Akari frowned and leaned forward.  "I'm sure that's not true, Akane.  I
don't think they were laughing at you.  Ryoga..."  Akari broke off.  She'd
been about to say that Ryoga wasn't that kind of person, but she realized
that there was a large part of Ryoga she didn't know about.

Akane gave a kind of surprised shriek.  The anger drained away, to be
replaced by a kind of stunned amazement.

Akari broke off her own depressing thoughts to look curiously at Akane.
"What is it?"

"I just realized."  Akane put her hand over her mouth for a moment, then
spoke above it.  "Ranma was always fighting with P-chan.  Always chasing him
into my bedroom, always trying to keep him from sleeping with me.  Always
trying to separate us.  I thought he was jealous of P-chan, but now..."  She
stared into space for another moment, then turned towards Akari.  "He was
trying to protect me.  From Ryoga."

Akari thought that over.  "Why didn't he just tell you?"

Akane drew her eyebrows together.  "I... I don't know.  He... promised Ryoga
he wouldn't.  That doesn't make any sense, though.  He hated it when P-chan
slept with me."  She looked thoroughly confused.

Akari sighed.  "Poor Ryoga.  He was so lonely.  He told me sometimes how bad
it would get, when he couldn't find his home and he camped out someplace far
away, and there would be no one to talk to and no one that was happy to see
him."

Akari found her eyes getting wet.  She quickly wiped them dry and glanced
over at Akane.  "That doesn't excuse what he did to you, Akane.  It was a
very bad thing he did.  I just hope you can understand a little of why he
did it."

Several emotions flitted across Akane's face in rapid succession.  Finally,
she let out a sigh.  "Well, Ryoga himself was always nice and respectful.
I'll maybe try and forget what P-chan did and try to remember how friendly
and helpful Ryoga always was."

Akari smiled.  "That's very generous of you, Akane.  Thank you."

Akane managed to smile back at her.

Akari leaned forward a little bit.  "Could you maybe... tell me a little bit
about you and... P-chan?  It's... important for me to know.  I have to try
and understand Ryoga.  I didn't think he would do that kind of thing.  I
have to try and figure out why it happened."

Akane drew a deep breath, held it, and let it out forcefully.  "Well, I
first met him... let's see, Ranma and Ryoga were fighting outside.  It was
raining, and Ryoga had his umbrella, but he lost it.  I was mad at Ranma, so
I went back to bed.  There was this black shape, and when I finally got a
good look at it, it was the cutest little pig..."

                               *      *      *

Ranma screeched to a halt at a small park with a lake in the center.  He'd
used most of the allotted time just getting here.  He frantically looked
around.  He didn't see anything that looked like Ryoga.  The sea breeze was
refreshing, however.

Ranma began wandering slowly around the small lake, looking in the sparse
shrubbery for signs of Ryoga.  Ryoga could be awfully hard to find in his
cursed form.

Ranma was so intent on looking for a small pig or a man with a bandanna that
he nearly missed the well-dressed man sitting on a bench overlooking the
lake.  It was only when his mind began idly wondering why someone was
wearing a tuxedo at this time and place that he suddenly spun around and
examined the forlorn figure.

Ranma could actually imagine Ryoga looking quite dapper in the tuxedo.
Unfortunately, the tuxedo was worn and dirty, much like the man wearing it.
Ryoga's face seemed unnaturally quiet.  Almost... pensive.  Which was
utterly unlike Ryoga.  Usually when Ryoga was thinking hard he looked very
much like a man trying to put a square peg in a round hole while
simultaneously bench-pressing an elephant.

Ranma walked slowly up to the bench.  Ryoga took no notice of him, instead
looking out into the lake.  Ranma paused for a second, then sat down.

Ranma licked his lips, trying to figure out what to say.  "Hey, Ryoga."

Ryoga didn't shift his eyes.  "Saotome."  His voice was flat, emotionless.

That disturbed Ranma.  He tried the direct approach.  "Everyone's looking
for you."

"Are they."  It wasn't a question, really.  "I'm not so sure I want to be
found."

Damn, he was in a bad mood.  Ranma grimaced, and continued to see it
through. "Akari's very worried about you."

Ryoga finally lifted his eyes from the water and looked at Ranma.  "You've
spoken to her?"  His voice was still flat, but with just a touch of
interest.

Ranma nodded.  "At lunch.  She... she told us everything that happened."

Ryoga stared stony-faced at Ranma for a long second.  "And why are you here,
Ranma?"

"Um, to bring you back."  Ranma flushed slightly.  "And... and to...
apologize."  That had actually come out easier than he had expected it to.

At last, a bit of emotion crept onto Ryoga's face: surprise.  "Apologize?
You?  For what?"

Ranma looked down, steeled himself.  "For... for screwing around with you as
much as I did.  For never giving you a fair chance to tell Akane your
feelings."

Ryoga sounded incredulous, which was a refreshing departure from the
toneless voice he'd been using before.  "Ranma!  I was trying to steal your
fiancee!  Why the hell should you apologize to me?"

Ranma looked back up at Ryoga.  "We - Akane and I - didn't much care for the
engagement.  It wasn't our choice.  You had as much right to get to know her
as I did.  I shouldn't have played all those tricks on you.  It was just
wrong, simply wrong."

Ranma felt good.  Getting the words out released a tension inside him he
hadn't realized he'd had until the fight with Akane.  He'd done wrong.
Admitting the wrong, not just to Ryoga but to himself, was a relief.

Ryoga was gaping at Ranma.  He opened and closed his mouth a couple of
times, then finally spoke.  "Ranma, I... I had lots of opportunities to tell
Akane my feelings.  You spoiled some of them, sure, but I spoiled a lot of
them myself.  Hell, Ranma."  Ryoga examined the bench seat, looking ashamed.
"I slept with Akane, took advantage of her ignorance to..."  Ryoga closed
his eyes, his pain deepening.  "To... snuggle with her, to... to see her
body, to feel her body, to know some measure of her affection..."  Tears
began to fall from his eyes.  "What the hell right do I have to be mad at
you?"

Ranma let out a huge breath.  The force of their emotions seemed to be a
physical thing, sapping the oxygen out of the air.  "We were both acting
like jerks, Ryoga.  Whaddya say we agree that we were both morons, that it's
all behind us and that we start over again?"

Ryoga looked at him thoughtfully.  "Before Akane?  Before Jusenkyo?  Before
the lot and the bread?"

Ranma nodded.  "Before all that, but not forgetting how we helped each other
out from time to time.  Not strangers, I hope.  Maybe something sort of like
friends."

"Friends?"  Ryoga reached over and grabbed Ranma's shirt.  "Do you know what
it's been like?  You get cursed to turn into a beautiful girl.  I get cursed
to turn into a pig.  You were engaged to Akane, even when you didn't want
her.  I wanted her, I wanted her with all my heart, but I couldn't have her.
Hell, in the one thing I'm any damn good at - martial arts - you're still
better than me."

Ryoga leaned towards Ranma, his expression twisted and ugly.  "I hate you.
I hate you for... for being everything I wanted to be, for having everything
I wanted to have and couldn't."

"Dammit, Ryoga."  Ranma wanted to give him a good Moko Takabisha, but
controlled himself.  "You know, if I've learned one thing from this curse,
it's that you can't spend all your time wishing for something you're not
gonna get.  I don't want to be cursed, but there's nothing I can do about it
right now, so I don't worry about it.  As I see it, you got a choice here.
Either hate me for the things I have that you want.  Or try and build
something for yourself."

Ranma blew out a breath.  "You know, being married to Akane ain't all joy
and happiness.  I- I love her and all, but sometimes she gets angry and
loses control of herself and says mean things.  She's quick to assume the
worst in me and doesn't listen to my explanations.  It gets so frustrating,
sometimes I can't stand it."  He looked into Ryoga's eyes.  "Now Akari...
she's nice.  I've never seen her get mad.  She's very friendly, and bright,
and just seeing her makes everyone cheer up a little."

Ranma reached out and lifted Ryoga's hand away from his shirt.  Ryoga,
somewhat to Ranma's surprise, didn't resist.  "You know, Ryoga, it's just
possible that you got the better end of the deal in this instance."

Ranma stared evenly at Ryoga, hoping he would understand.  Ranma would not
trade Akane for any woman in the world.  He loved her very much.  What Ryoga
shared with Akari was equally good, and Ryoga didn't have to deal with the
same... idiosyncrasies that Ranma did.

When it came right down to it, Ranma decided, the most precious thing in the
world was love shared between two people.  Ranma had that with Akane.  Ryoga
should have that with Akari, if he'd only get over Akane.  It sure seemed
like Ryoga was trying to do just that.

Ryoga was staring at him with a shocked expression.  His eyes lost focus,
and he spent long moments thinking.  Finally, he focused on Ranma again with
somewhat of a wondrous expression on his face.  "I... I never knew, Ranma.
I mean, I saw her get mad sometimes, but..."

Ranma smiled slightly.  "Don't get me wrong, I do love Akane.  And I'm glad
I'm married to her.  I guess I'm just telling you to be careful what you
wish for.  If you'd been able to take your revenge out on me and gotten
Akane for yourself, you may have actually been worse off than you are now.
My advice is to go back to Akari.  You two are perfect together.  Marry her.
Be happy with what you found in her.  And let's you and me start over."

Ryoga smiled ruefully.  "Sort of friends, you said.  Sounds good enough for
now."  Ryoga sighed.  "I have to tell you, Ranma, it's not quite that easy.
I'm looking at you now, and I still see the guy who knocked me into the pool
at Jusenkyo."  Ryoga gave a small laugh.  "You probably did me a favor.
Who's to say if I would have met Akari otherwise?  But there's still a big
part of me that seethes with anger when I see you."

Ranma shrugged.  "I sometimes see the pig that slept with my wife.  Let's
just say it ain't all water under the bridge yet.  We need a few more thaws
for that to happen.  Just gotta wait for the temperature to rise, is all."

Ryoga looked at him, then solemnly reached out his hand.

Ranma grasped it.  They shook, firmly, each grip enough to grind rocks to
powder.  And, Ranma thought, maybe strong enough to cement a friendship.

They released their hands more-or-less at the same time.  Ranma tried a
smile.  "Now, it's time we got you home."

Ryoga winced.  He spoke a little fearfully.  "What... what does Akari think
of me?"

Ranma spoke firmly.  "She loves you."  He hesitated, sighed, and spoke
again. "She thinks, however, that you're seeing another woman.  She's quite
upset about it."

Ryoga looked as if someone had stabbed him in his heart.  He looked down at
the bench again.  "I was.  I was going to see Akane one last time, then go
and marry Akari.  I got... sidetracked."

Ranma snorted.  "I'll say.  Really, you should know better, Ryoga."

Ryoga smiled ruefully.  "I should.  I thought my heart would lead me.  I
guess it's stopped pointing in the direction of Akane."

Ranma laughed.  Ryoga chuckled briefly.  They sobered, staring at each other
again.

Ryoga stood up.  "There's a lot I have to explain to Akari.  And,
eventually, Akane."

Ranma stood with him.  "I got some explaining to do myself.  And some
apologizing."

"We both have some more apologizing to do."  Ryoga looked a little fearful.
"Do you think Akari... do you think they'll forgive us?"

Ranma thought about it.  "I... I think so.  As long as we acknowledge our
mistakes and promise not to make them again, we should be okay."

"I hope so."  Ryoga reached down and picked a wrapped present the size of a
hatbox.  "Would you give this to Akane?  It was going to be my last gift to
her."

Ranma looked at it curiously.  It, too, was a little worse for the wear. He
wondered what it was.  He forced a smile - it wasn't hard - and took it.
"Sure.  She always loved the things you brought her."

Ryoga smiled his appreciation of Ranma's words.  "Now, can you tell me how
to get to Akari's apartment?"

This caused Ranma to laugh again.  "Yeah, right, Ryoga.  Come with me.
We'll have you home in no time."

                               *      *      *

The teapot was empty.  Akari felt a little drained herself.  Akane had told
her all about an entirely new side of Ryoga.  An unpleasant side, too.  One
that liked to... to take advantage of Akane's ignorance to... feel her, look
at her.

Akane's anger had come and gone in waves during the story.  Sometimes she
would get so mad she could barely speak.  Then it would drain away and she'd
speak in a sad tone of voice, before the anger rose again.  Akane was now
staring into her empty cup.  Akari sensed that telling the story of P-chan,
in light of her new knowledge of P-chan's identity, was a catharsis for
Akane.

For now, they sat, sharing each other's presence.  Akari nearly laughed out
loud.  Misery, they said, loves company.  Yet, it *did* feel good to have
Akane here to help her flesh out this new image of Ryoga.  And, Akari
guessed, Akane really needed someone to talk to.  She hadn't said anything,
but Akari suspected that she and Ranma had fought, and that Akane had come
over directly after the fight.

Akari finally broke the silence.  "Thank you, Akane, for coming here and
telling me all this."

Akane lifted a corner of her mouth, still staring into her cup.  "You're
welcome.  Thank you for telling me about P-chan.  Now that I know what
Ranma's little secret is... well, let me just say that I think it helps.
Now I won't have to be so worried about what he's hiding from me."

Akari sighed.  "Ranma's a good man, Akane.  He's been nothing but kind to
me.  I don't see him as a person with a lot of dark secrets."

Akane snorted.  "Maybe.  In this case, it's good to know what his secret is.
I just don't know what else he's keeping from me."  She looked up at Akari.
"Ryoga's a good man, anyway.  Even as P-chan, he was always trying to
protect me.  There was a time in the Higo Forest... well, no need to get
into details, but Ryoga always did his best to help me."

Akari sighed sadly.  "I don't know.  I just don't know about Ryoga anymore.
That's very scary."

Akane grimaced.  That sat for a moment, lost in their respective thoughts.

The sound of key turning the lock made them both look at the door.  It
opened, admitting Ryoga and Ranma.

The men were smiling at first.  Upon seeing the expressions on the faces of
the women, they both blanched.

Akari stood up and began walking towards Ryoga.  Out of the corner of her
eye she saw Akane also rise and move towards Ryoga, but she stopped when she
got to Ranma and instead fixed him with a stare that somehow managed to turn
Ranma's face even whiter.

Akari shut them out and bore her eyes into Ryoga's.  She still felt a
healthy dose of anger, mixed with disgust and just a tiny bit of fear.  "So
you finally found your way home, P-chan."

The strangled gasp that escaped Ryoga's throat was the perfect complement to
Ranma's sharply drawn breath.  Ryoga began to turn his head towards Akane,
but Akari grabbed his chin and held it still.  "All the time you were dating
me, you were sleeping with another woman."

Ryoga winced, the pain evident on his face.  "Akari, I..."  He trailed off,
as if expecting to be interrupted.

Akari just stared at him, waiting for him to finish.  He had one chance to
explain himself.  Akari admitted to herself that she wanted to forgive him,
but she needed to be sure of him first.

Ryoga swallowed.  "Akari.  I...  When I first went to the dojo, the first
time I turned into a pig, I was ashamed.  Being turned into a pig was the
worst thing that had ever happened to me.  I couldn't face anyone like that.

"Then Akane found me.  She liked me because I was a pig.  I became her...
her pet, the thing she like to hold and feed."

Shame flitted across Ryoga's face.  "Yes, I slept with her.  I'm not proud
of that.  But... it wasn't what you might think.  She'd move around a lot
and hit me and squeeze me.  I don't know which I hated more, the abuse I
took during the night, or the... the condescension I took during the day.
It's pretty awful to be treated like an animal, no matter how nice Akane was
about it.  I just needed the attention so badly."

Ryoga flicked his eyes in Akane's direction for half a second.  "Plus, I
could see how much pleasure my presence brought Akane, and that was worth
any price.  I just... wanted her to be happy."

Ryoga paused a moment, waiting for a reaction.  Akari wasn't ready to give
him one yet.  She wanted to hear what he was going to say next.

Ryoga visibly gathered himself.  "So, then I met you.  You liked me.  Even
as a pig, you liked me, not as a pet but as a person.  That was just
amazing.  It still amazes me.  That someone as sweet and nice and loving as
you could like me.  Even love me."

Ryoga's face became a little wistful.  "I mean, hell, I'm not a good judge
of character.  Anyone shows me the slightest affection, I fall for them in a
big way.  Even Ranma was able to fool me, and he ain't exactly what you
would call ideal dating material.  With you, though, it was different.  It's
hard to explain; it just... felt right.  You had no pretenses, you didn't
expect anything out of me, you weren't after me for anything.  You wanted me
for me.  No one's ever felt that way about me."

Ryoga reached out his hand and began to stroke Akari's hair.  "And as I got
to know you better, to know what kind of person you are, I slowly stopped
becoming infatuated with you and started falling in love with you.  It
helped me realize that what I had with Akane wasn't real.  Just...
make-believe, something I wished for but knew, deep down, that I couldn't
have.

"So, I tried to wean myself away from Akane.  It wasn't easy.  I hated to
deprive her of my company.  She was always so worked up over Ranma, she
needed me to comfort her."

Ryoga looked over Akari's head, seeming to gather more courage.  "I, I can't
lie to you anymore, Akari.  I was... infatuated with Akane.  I wanted her to
show the man the same affection she showed the pig.  I brought her all sorts
of gifts, just to see the gratitude in her eyes.  Yet, the gratitude never
grew.  She'd smile at me and be my friend, but the little warmth she showed
me as a man paled in comparison to the looks she sometimes gave Ranma.  Even
when she was yelling at him, I could see that it was only because her love
for Ranma was so strong that it moved her to emotional extremes.  I was in a
losing battle, and although I brought more and more gifts, the warmth in her
eyes grew less and less."

Ryoga looked into Akari's eyes once again.  "I apologize, Akari, from my
heart.  I was too immature to give up on Akane, even when it was obvious
that she loved someone else, even when I had found... I had found love
elsewhere.

"I want you to know that, on the day of our wedding, I was going over to
Akane's to say goodbye.  Not that I wouldn't see her again, but I was no
longer going to be her pet, and she was no longer going to be my obsession.
I'm sorry I didn't tell you.  If I had, I wouldn't have gotten lost.  I
could have made it there and come back in time for our wedding."

Ryoga took a step closer to her and grasped her shoulders, staring down at
her.  "Our wedding was the one thing in the whole world I did not want to
miss.  I'm sorry.  I've been wandering around in a daze, imagining how hurt
you were, suffering with you, hating myself.  Please forgive me.  I'd like
to try doing the wedding again.  This time, I absolutely promise that I
won't lose my way.  There's no reason for me to wander away from you any
more."

Ryoga finished and gazed at Akari, showing more confidence than she'd ever
seen, looking more peaceful than she'd ever known him to be.

Which was truly remarkable, considering some of the awful things he'd just
admitted to.

Akari considered him for long while, trying to work it out.  While she
thought, she could see a bit of fear begin to creep into his face.

Akari closed her eyes and bowed her head.  When it came right down to it,
she couldn't deny her heart.  Ryoga had done some very bad things, but he'd
shown sincere regret, and had been able to use the experience to better
himself.  That was uncommon, and worth hanging on to.

And she loved him.  Which made forgiveness a lot easier to give.

She looked up at him again.  "Ryoga, there's a lot I still don't understand
about the way you behaved.  I'm beginning to think that it was a good idea
we didn't get married."

Ryoga actually gasped.  His eyes began to water.

Akari smiled and began to play with his hair, a little unruly without the
bandanna.  "I simply meant, silly, that maybe I was rushing things a little
bit.  We need to understand each other better before we can be absolutely
sure of each other."  Her smile dimmed a little bit.  "We need to rebuild a
little of the trust we lost during this whole escapade.  Why don't we wait
for my three-year program to end, and decide from there.  Okay?"

Ryoga looked at her uncertainly.  "What does this mean about..."  He trailed
off.  He'd evidently used all the courage he had to get this far.

Akari was pretty sure what he was thinking.  "You still live here.  I'm
still not letting you go."  She allowed her smile to grow, to finally let
all of her relief and joy and love shine through.

Tension drained out of Ryoga.  "Oh, Akari..."  He put his hands around her
waist.  "I love you."

"I love you too."

They kissed for a long time.  Akari heard the front door open and close, but
it didn't mean anything to her.  The only thing that had any meaning at this
moment was the love she shared with Ryoga.  It perhaps wasn't as carefree
and blissful as it had been before, but Akari was pretty sure that it was
stronger and more likely to last.

And that was good.  Very, very good.

                               *      *      *

Akane sat on the train next to her husband.  She had her hands folded neatly
on her lap.  She stared down at them.  They were nice hands.  She'd spent
years toughening them, making them hard and strong.  She could break bricks
in two.

Akari had soft hands.  Akane had seen them as Akari had handed her the tea.
A farmer's hands for certain, not exactly delicate.  But still soft, weak,
never smashed anything.  If someone attacked Akari, threatened her in any
way, she had no way to defend herself.

Akane had watched Akari walk up to Ryoga, the anger evident on her face.
Akane had been anticipating a scathing lecture, lots of screaming and
shouting, Ryoga on the receiving end of righteous anger.  Akane had been
planning her own shouted words, possibly punctuated by a punch or two.

At the very least, she'd been looking forward to Ryoga getting what he
deserved from Akari.

Instead, Akari had spoken two sentences.  Not shouted, merely spoken with a
hint of accusation.  Then she had stood there and listened to Ryoga explain.

Ryoga, with Akari's unspoken encouragement, *had* explained.  Had explained
well, told of his reasons without excusing himself.  He'd apologized and
given her good reasons why he wouldn't repeat the mistakes he'd made.  Akari
had accepted his explanation and his apology, making it clear that she
didn't like what he had done but willing to work with him on making things
better.  The entire argument had lasted all of ten minutes, and no one had
raised their voice and they had ended up telling each other of their love.

Ranma's crimes were as heinous as Ryoga's.  Less so.  Akane had yelled at
Ranma and said mean and hateful things to him.  The end result was that
Ranma had walked out, and she'd ended up miserable and alone.

Akane swallowed heavily and held her breath, determined not to cry.
Instead, she stared at her hands and wished they were like Akari's.

                               *      *      *

Ranma walked with his wife from the train station.  They had not spoken a
word since their fight.  The decision to leave Akari and Ryoga had been made
with a glance, and minor things like who was going to pay for the train ride
had been made with gestures.

The darkness was just beginning to win its battle with the daylight.  Ranma
looked over at Akane's face.  It was somber, quiet.  He needed to say
something, anything, to break the mood.

He cleared his throat slightly.  "I think you should know... I'm sure Ryoga
was going to explain and apologize to you.  He said as much to me when I
found him.  It's just that Akari, um, distracted him."

Akane didn't respond.  She just kept looking straight ahead, walking.

Ranma let out a small sigh.  "Just thought you should know.  Ryoga really
did feel terrible about what he did."

"Why didn't you tell me?"  Her words were soft.  Not expressionless like
Ryoga's had been at first.  Just without much any strong emotion.  Akane
could have easily been talking about breakfast.

Come to think of it, Ranma thought, they'd had discussions about breakfast
with a lot more animation than Akane was showing now.

He forced himself to concentrate on answering the question.  Fortunately, he
had been composing an answer for some time now.  "When I saw that Ryoga was
cursed, I promised him that I wouldn't tell anyone about it.  I knew that it
would shame him terribly if everyone found out.  This was before I saw him
staying in your room.  Sleeping with you.  It made me very angry, but at the
same time I had made a promise.  I couldn't break it."

Akane glanced at him.  Her voice was without heat or accusation.  "You've
broken them before."

Ranma sighed.  "I try not to.  Sometimes, back when we first met, I got a
little crazy and did strange stuff.  I can't really explain it.  I was just
getting used to my curse, and all sorts of weird people were coming into my
life and... being weird.

"Sometimes, I was tempted to break the promise when I saw him take advantage
of you.  But I couldn't.  I knew that it would destroy him.  He needed your
affection too much."

"So you kept your promise to him, no matter how much it hurt me."

Ranma shook his head.  "That's just it, Akane.  Ryoga was right; you really
did light up whenever you saw P-chan.  Sometimes when you were especially
mad or hurt, I'd see you pick up Ryoga and hold him tightly.  I saw how much
that comforted you, and I couldn't deprive you of that."

Ranma paused for a moment.  "I'm sorry.  My intentions were good and noble,
I think, but the end result was that I lied to you and betrayed your trust.
I... I deeply regret that.  I wish I'd been smart enough to have thought of
another way."

Akane sighed.  "You *were* being good and noble, Ranma.  I think you did the
best you could.  You tried to walk a very fine line between keeping your
promise and protecting me.  You had to make some compromises, and I can't
really blame you for that."

They walked some more in silence.  Finally, Ranma worked up his nerve.  "So
am I forgiven?"

Akane glanced at him again before speaking in the same quiet voice she'd
been using all along.  "You're not hiding anything else from me, are you?"

Ranma couldn't help feeling stung by the question.  It was a fair question,
given that she'd uncovered his other deceptions.  Still, he caught a glimpse
of how far he'd have to go to win back her trust.  "Well, I haven't told you
about every single thing that's ever happened to me, but there's nothing
else I'm deliberately keeping from you."

Akane nodded, apparently taking his words at face value.  They stopped
outside the Maison, at the head of the path that led to the front doors.

Ranma turned towards Akane.  "Do I still live here?"

Akane faced him.  Her face was still somber, completely devoid of anger or
love.  "You've made some very serious mistakes, Ranma.  Mistakes I wish you
hadn't made.  Things that have hurt me, things that have hurt people around
you.  To your credit, you worked to rectify your mistakes, to try and make
up for them.  That's good, but I hope you can understand that I expect
better from you.  I expect you to stop and seriously think about what you're
doing before you take part in some hare-brained scheme.  People's lives and
emotions are not things to play with.  Especially ours."

Ranma digested that.  He wasn't sure it was completely fair, but it was a
place to start from.  Akane had hit on his greatest weakness, that of acting
without thinking.  He *would* have to work on that.  "Okay, Akane. I
understand."

Akane nodded again.  "Now it's my turn.  I get angry.  Very easily.  I jump
to conclusions and assume the worst.  I'm working on it.  I think I've
gotten better."

Akane's voice cracked.  Tears began to flow down her face.  "This afternoon,
I lost control.  I got too angry.  I was much too mean.  I'm sorry.  I am
*so* sorry.  Instead of trying to be understanding and to work on our
problems, I decided to... to yell at you for things I've been guilty of
myself.  I mean, it doesn't excuse your behavior, but it *does* mean that I
should have been more sympathetic, should have understood why you might...
do those kind of things.  Instead, I said some h-horrible things."  Her
breath caught, and she paused for a second before continuing.  "I drove us
apart.  I can't tell you how much that shames me."

Akane wiped her eyes and face, leaving them dry.  Her voice was calm and
quiet again.  "You do have honor, Ranma.  It's one of the things I love
about you.  Please forgive me for what I said out of anger.  I hope you can
believe that I didn't really mean it.  I didn't mean a lot of the things I
said.  I was just trying to lash out at you.  I'll try not to do that ever
again.  I love you too much to want to hurt you like that."

Ranma felt another tension leaving him.  He hadn't realized that he was mad
at Akane until he'd heard her apology.  Now, at last, he could recognize how
hurt he'd been by what she'd said and done.  The hurt was draining away in
the face of her somewhat sober and somewhat tearful analysis of her own
faults.

She was a wonderful and wise woman, more so than he had given her credit
for. Able to learn from her mistakes, once she finally acknowledged them.
Ranma felt very lucky to be her husband.

He bowed to her.  "I accept your apology, Wife."

She bowed back.  "And I yours, Husband."

They straightened.  Akane gestured at Ranma to follow her, and together they
entered the Maison.

They entered the apartment.  Ranma looked to see the remains of lunch still
on the table.  He grimaced and moved to clean it up, setting the box he'd
been holding to the side.

Akane looked at it, her voice emulating normal curiosity quite well. "What's
that?"

Ranma blinked at it, not remembering for a second what it was.  Then it came
back to him.  "It's a present to you from Ryoga.  He was trying to deliver
it to you just before his wedding.  His last gift, I think he said."

Akane frowned at it.

Ranma began to clear away the remains of lunch.  "I'll clean this up.  Go
ahead and open it."

Akane picked it up, showing a bit of trepidation.  Ranma watched her as he
moved back and forth from the table to the kitchen.  She went over to the
futon and sat down, the box on her lap.  She unwrapped it - the wrapping
practically dissolved, it was so worn - then opened it.  She lifted out a
soft, stuffed animal.  A black piglet.  A yellow-and-black bandanna had been
tied around its neck.

Akane stared at it for a long while.  Finally, she set the box aside and
hugged the pig tightly, a sad and thoughtful expression on her face.

Ranma smiled as he finished cleaning up.  "I'm all for bed right now, Akane.
It's been a long day."  Emotionally draining.

Akane nodded.  Together they prepared to go to sleep.

Ranma was standing inside the bathroom doorway, debating whether to turn
himself female, when he heard a knock on the door.  Akane was already lying
on the futon, still clutching her stuffed pig.  They looked at each other;
then Ranma shrugged his shoulders and went to answer it.  He opened the door
a little, standing so that he blocked the view of the inside of the
apartment.

Kazuyo gave him a wide smile and spoke quietly.  "Good evening, Ranma-san."

Ranma kept himself from shuddering.  He liked the apartment manager very
much, but he was afraid of what she had to say about this afternoon's
performance.  There had surely been complaints.  "Good evening,
Kanrinin-san."

She eyed him carefully.  "Preparing for bed?"

Ranma nodded.  "Forgive me for not inviting you in."

To his surprise, her smile just got wider.  "Believe me, I understand.  I
thought that perhaps before going to bed, you should give your wife this."
She held out a ring.

Ranma gaped at it.  He'd forgotten all about Akane throwing her wedding ring
at him.  He took it and examined it closely.  A simple gold ring.  The
family hadn't been able to afford much, not and send him to college, too.
It wasn't much to look at.  A slim narrow band.  Slightly beveled at the
edges.  It caught the light and glinted it back.  And it was just the right
size to fit on Akane's finger.

He looked back at Kazuyo, slightly dazed.  "Thank you."

Kazuyo bowed.  "Now, perhaps it's time that you gave it to your wife."

Ranma swallowed.  "I'm sorry about this afternoon."

"Don't be."  Kazuyo's expression seemed to be a mix of sympathy and
amusement.  "It's something all newlyweds eventually go through.  The trick
is not to make a habit of it.  I have enough faith in you young people to
believe that you won't."

Ranma smiled at her.  "Thank you."  This time he said it with more force.

Kazuyo bowed again.  "You're welcome.  Good night, Saotome Ranma-san."

"Good night, Kanrinin-san."

Ranma closed the door and stared at the ring once more.  He thought about it
for a while, then nodded.  He knew what to do now.

He walked over to the futon.  Akane looked up at him.  "Who was it?"

"The apartment manager.  She was returning something we'd lost."  He held up
the ring.

Akane's eyes grew very wide.  She brought her left hand up and stared at it,
the blood draining from her face.  "Oh my."  She looked over at Ranma again.
"I forgot all about that."  She sounded terribly guilty.

Ranma smiled at her.  He went over and knelt at her side.  Akane propped
herself up on her right elbow, still staring at him with wide eyes.

Ranma took her left hand.  "If I remember, I never did this.  Not at our
wedding, not afterwards, never.  I was trying my best to make our wedding
seem unimportant and trivial, a... an accommodation to suit our parents.  I
think that was a mistake.  I loved you then, Akane, just as I love you now.
I was just too immature to admit it.  I saw it as a weakness.  Why, I have
no idea."

Ranma held up the ring for her to see.  "With this ring, Akane..."  He put
it on her finger.  "...I thee wed.  I promise to trust you, to withhold no
part of myself from you, to never betray you.  I promise to take the time to
make sure that I don't hurt you with a careless word or action.  Most of
all, I promise to love you and only you for as long as we live."

Akane's breaths were coming in ragged gasps.  Tears were streaming copiously
from her eyes.

Trembling, she reached over to pick up the stuffed pig lying next to her.
She looked into its eyes.  "I'm s-sorry, P-chan."  She was very close to
sobbing.  "I've g-got someone else to h-hug now."

Akane carefully set the stuffed pig above the head of the futon.  She then
turned and grabbed Ranma.  She hauled him into the futon with her and
wrapped her arms around him, finally giving in to the sobs.

Smiling, Ranma gently hugged his wife and gave her comfort.

===============================================================================
                                                                         finis.
===============================================================================

***footnote:
Ate' is a little-known, seldom-used goddess in the Greek panthenon.  She was
the goddess of criminal rashness and its punishment.  Basically, the gods
existed to punish overwhelming pride on the part of mortals - hubris, it was
called.  Beware hubris, or Ate' will get you.

Later poets used "ate'" as a noun rather than a goddess.  It meant a folly,
a blindness in a person that would cause them to do something really, really
stupid.  It was a balance: hubris, overbearing pride, was balanced by ate',
the folly that drives a person to ruin.  They really do go hand in hand, for
it's when you're so full of yourself that you tend to not focus on your own
flaws, and by doing so you could really screw yourself up.

"Ate'" was never used much outside these poems and never passed into common
usage.

===============================================================================

There's a dark cloud ahead            +---------------------------------------+
A place we can't see                  |  Writers: ..........  Richard Lawson  |
We don't know what tomorrow holds     |           ...............  David Tai  |
But believe you me                    |           ...........  Paul Gallegos  |
                                      |           .......  John Walter Biles  |
Take it one day at a time             |           .............  Jeff Hosmer  |
Don't try to hide                     +---------------------------------------+
Take the reins of your life           |  Artist:  ..........  Jong Man Hwang  |
Make a choice - gotta decide 'cause   +---------------------------------------+
                                      |  DnR Companion: Mike "Nelson" Gulick  |
You get one chance                    +---------------------------------------+
One chance to get it right            |  Special Thanks to: ............ J.,  |
That's what I was told                |  Tucson Animation Screening Society,  |
But after all this time               |     and of course Rumiko Takahashi    |
I'm living my life                    +---------------------------------------+
And now I know                        |           Copyright (c) 1998          |
There's always a second chance        |      Digital Knight Communications    |
Take it one day at a time             +---------------------------------------+
                                      
===============================================================================
               "Ranma 1/2" and its characters Copyright (c) 1998
             Viz Communications, Inc., Shogakukan, Kitty Animation   
                             and Rumiko Takahashi                    
===============================================================================