Disclaimer: I make no claims at ownership of any copyrighted characters, places or events used herein. The only thing I make a claim to is this fic, which originated in my head and any original characters created by me herein. The following was made for public consumption at zero profit, and is not for sale except to the owning companies. Yes, I dream big.

Ranma ½: Aijou & Aitou (Love & Regret)

Prologue

by John Garrett

Continued with permission by: Jim Ohki

Akane lay awake in bed, tossing and turning, trying to find a position comfortable enough to allow her to sleep. 'Why can't I get to sleep?' Akane groaned as she looked at her alarm clock and saw that it was almost three in the morning. She stretched her arms and legs. 'I was so sore when I came to bed. And now, my brain won't stop running in circles.'

'Father and Mr. Saotome were so happy,' she couldn't help remembering. 'After the ceremony was finished, they wouldn't stop blubbering about how our families were finally joined.'

Akane sighed heavily as she thought about everything. 'I don't know what to feel. Should I be happy things turned out this way? Or am I going to regret it for the rest of my life?' Thinking of the regret just made her flush in anger. 'It's your own damn fault things turned out this way!' she told herself. 'Why did things have to be this way? Why can't I be happy?' Akane wondered, only to contradict herself a moment later. 'No! Stop it! The wedding was a good thing. It really was.'

'Geez, I'm not going to get any sleep, am I?' Akane wondered to herself as she just stared at the ceiling. 'Maybe... maybe if I just sort these stupid thoughts out, I might be able to sleep.'

'It all started the day I found out about Ryoga.' Akane muscles tensed at that. 'I wish he were here now, I'd love to pound his pig face into the floor. Then I'd probably make bacon out of him. To think I ever considered him a friend.' Akane shuddered. 'I can't believe the way he used me, violated me! All those times he watched me change, or allowed me to tell him my deepest secrets, as if he were really just my pet. I still can't believe he tried to blame everything on Ranma the day I found out!'

'That day,' Akane thought sadly. 'Actually,' she mused, 'that isn't really when it began at all. Of course, that day was when the worst of it began, when I'd felt the most hurt and betrayed, not only by Ryoga, but Ranma and father as well.' Akane felt tears begin to roll down her cheek. 'But things wouldn't have been so bad that day if Ranma and I had been getting along better. When did things between Ranma and I begin to really go sour?'

'Oh,' she remembered sadly, 'that day. I can't believe I forgot about that day when I found out about Ryoga. If I'd remembered, then maybe... maybe Ranma and I wouldn't have had to suffer so much. And maybe it would've changed how the wedding turned out.' Akane's tears began to fall faster as she thought about that fateful day.

The crash distracted Akane from the television program she was watching. It was true that such things were commonplace in the Tendo home, but one never knew if crashes were going to be followed by some enemy attacking. Akane growled as she heard what came next.

"Get back here bacon breath!" the voice of Ranma yelled through the house. Akane heard someone running and also heard small grunts and squeals, so she immediately got up to investigate. 'That baka is chasing my P-Chan again, isn't he? I swear I'm going to have to smack some sense into him.'

As she headed into the hallway, she heard Ranma yell again. "I told you to stay out of Akane's room." With that, she saw P-Chan come running around the corner, heading straight for her. Not far behind him, she saw Ranma also coming around the corner, obviously chasing the little pig.

P-Chan saw her and proceeded to jump into her arms. Ranma also saw Akane and started to back pedal in an attempt to not run into her. He needn't have bothered. As soon as Ranma was within arm’s length of Akane, she proceeded to hit him on top of the head as hard she could and he went crashing into the floor.

After a few moments, Ranma managed to pick himself up. "What was that for?" he demanded.

"That's for chasing and scaring poor P-Chan, you baka," she said.

"But that little hentai pig was sneaking into your room."

Akane rolled her eyes. "Who cares, he sleeps in there with me anyway. Besides, he's just a pig. He's not like you, a real hentai who's always trying to sneak peeks at me."

Ranma's face began to turn beat red, and Akane couldn't tell if it was embarrassment or anger. 'Damn, we've been getting along so well too. But I don't want him hurting P-Chan,' she thought. 'And honestly, how dumb can he be, getting jealous over a pig?'

"Sneak peeks at you," Ranma repeated. "As if. Why would I want to peek at a un-cute, sexless, macho chick like you anyway?"

'I can't believe he's doing this. He hasn't insulted me like this in a while. Okay, maybe I started it, but I'm not about to back down now.'

"And what would you know about it you sex-changing, cross-dressing, pervert."

Ranma suddenly became infuriated, more so than she'd seen in quite a while. 'Why is he so mad at me? It's not like I haven't said the same thing before.'

"Why you..." Ranma growled as he tried to make a grab for P-Chan.

Akane's nostrils flared as Ranma's hand flew towards her chest. She pulled back her hand and slapped him hard across the face.

Ranma stopped dead in his tracks. He looked at Akane, his face a mask of confusion and anger. Finally, he just took a step back from her and only the anger seemed to remain.

"Fine," he said. "I was only trying to protect you. But if you want to sleep with that pig, I'm not going to stop you."

'What is this morons problem?' she wondered. "I can't believe you're jealous over a pig. Besides, it's not as if you like me or anything anyway."

'Maybe that last part will get him to slip up and give a little confession,' she hoped.

"Ya know what," Ranma said, his voice suddenly cold, "you're right. And it's not as if you care about me anyhow. So you know what, I'm just sick of caring. You do whatever you want, I don't care anymore." With that, Ranma turned around and left, leaving a bewildered Akane behind.

'I can't believe how stupid I was!' Akane thought to herself. 'The only thing that accomplished was to drive Ranma away. He just ignored me after that, and boy did that piss me off! I can't believe I decided I'd rather have him insult me than ignore me. It just added fuel to the fire.'

Akane saw Ranma eating his lunch by himself under one of the trees on the school grounds as he'd been doing since their fight. He was staring down at his food and picking at it absently, and didn't notice her coming. Ranma looked up, stared into her eyes for a moment, and then looked back at his food again. Thus it was that he missed the scowl that appeared on Akane's face.

'Why is this bothering me so much? You'd think I'd be happy,' she thought to herself. Akane then sat down next to him and began to speak, "Ranma, will you stop acting like a child and talk to me!"

'Maybe a small insult will provoke a reaction,' she thought. But Ranma didn't respond at all.

Reaching into her backpack, Akane pulled out a lunch package that she'd made for him. 'Now I know this will get some kind of response from him.' Akane opened it up and handed it over to him. "Here, I made this for you."

"I don't want it," was all Ranma said in reply.

'That's it? That's all the reaction I get? I at least expected him to accuse me of poisoning him.' Rather than give up, Akane pushed the lunch under his nose.

Suddenly, Ranma looked up at her with an angry expression. He took the box, looked her in the eyes, and flung it away. "I said I don't want it," he growled.

"Do you know how much trouble I went through to make that?" Akane demanded. 'I didn't expect the baka to eat it, but he didn't have to be so rude about it!'

"I told you the other day, I don't care anymore!" With that, he got up and started to head back to the school.

"Listen," she replied, "if you're still mad about P-Chan, don't worry. He disappeared again and probably won't be back for a while."

"You just don't get it, do you?" he asked, turning to face her. "I have my reasons for wanting to keep that pig away from you, but I promised someone, on my honor, that I wouldn't tell you what they are. Why the hell won't you just listen to me? I'm just trying my damnedest to protect you! Why won't you trust me when I say you shouldn't keep him around? Instead you have to be a stubborn, thick-headed baka!"

'What the hell kind of nonsense is this?' Akane wondered to herself. 'There's no reason for me not to keep P-Chan around. This is just some ploy of Ranma's because he's jealous. What a baby.'

"You know what Ranma?" Akane said, "You're right. I don't trust you. That's the biggest load of bull I've ever heard. If you're just jealous of P-Chan, just come out and say so. You don't have to go making up all this stuff."

Ranma just shook his head in disgust. "You really are dense, aren't you?"

"What did you call me?"

"Dense. I could say stupid too. While I'm at it, I could throw in pissy, petty, masculine-" Whatever else he was going to say was lost as Akane hit him across the school yard and turned to go to class.

'Well, at least I can say that my plan worked. He certainly started insulting me again after that,' she thought with regret. 'After that our fights just seemed to take on a life of their own. He only ignored me or insulted me. The friendship we'd seemed to develop before all this had happened just began to evaporate over the next several months. It was like we went back to how we were in the beginning.'

'Because of that, when I finally discovered Ryoga's secret, things got out of hand. I simply felt too angry and betrayed. Of course, Ranma and I did eventually make up, but how much pain could've been avoided if I'd just trusted him in the first place?'

With a sigh, Akane looked at the clock and found that it was almost four. 'Damn, I can't do this anymore, I have too much to do tomorrow.' With that, she rolled over and looked at the other side of the bed, the past events playing before her mind’s eye.

Chapter 1: Secrets Revealed

Akane allowed the remainder of her battle aura to bleed off as she made her way home. 'That jerk,' she thought to herself, 'letting Shampoo and Ukyo hang all over him like that. He must think he's some kind of stud. Well, he is kinda cute...'

The thought nearly made Akane slap herself, but she just shook her head instead. 'Cute my butt. More like an obnoxious, pig-headed, self-absorbed...' She would have allowed the thoughts to continue as she neared home, but they were cut short. 'Uh oh, rain clouds. I better hurry.' Rather than continue her little internal diatribe, she focused on running home before she got soaked.

Managing to get in the door just as the first raindrops fell, Akane breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm home," she called out.

"Welcome home," Kasumi answered from somewhere in the house. Akane made her way into the dining room and found her father and Mr. Saotome playing their usual game of Shogi.

"How was school?" her father asked, not taking his eyes off the board.

"Just fine," Akane replied with a bit of an edge. She was not in the mood to deal with anybody at the moment, and was doing her best to keep from snapping at those that didn’t deserve it.

Both men turned to look at her before turning back to their game. "Where's Ranma?" Mr. Saotome asked, after making a move on the board.

"Off somewhere with Shampoo and Ukyo!" Akane growled, mostly from anger but also part of it came from whom she was talking to.

Both men gave each other a look. Then her father said, "Really Akane, you should keep a closer eye on your fiancé."

Akane stared daggers at her father until he visibly cringed. "I don't care what that jerk does, do you hear me!?"

"You really shouldn't talk about Ranma like that," Kasumi admonished. She had just come out of the kitchen carrying a tray with food. "Anyway, I made you a snack Akane, I thought you might be hungry."

Akane looked back towards the Shogi board and noticed both men staring at her food. "Don't even think about it," she warned. Both men silently went back to their game, a glum expression on each of their faces.

"Thanks Kasumi," Akane said with more pleasantness than she felt, taking the food and forgetting about her sister's comment regarding Ranma. As she sat and ate, her mind drifted towards Ranma again. 'Idiot,' was about the only coherent thought that kept repeating itself.

After several minutes, Akane heard the voice of Ranma at the front door. "I'm home," the redhead called.

'Terrific,' Akane thought angrily, getting ready for yet another round with the pigtailed one.

"Oh my! You're soaking wet. You should change out of those wet clothes. Would you like me to heat up some water for you?" the eldest Tendo daughter asked in greeting upon seeing how soaked she was.

"That would be great. Thanks Kasumi," Ranma replied. Without even a glance at Akane, she went upstairs.

'I can't believe he's still ignoring me. Well, we're going to have words when he gets back down here!' As she continued to glower, Akane suddenly heard grunting coming from behind her.

Turning, she saw a small black pig coming in from the backyard. "P-Chan!" Akane cried. The little pig saw her and ran into her arms. "You poor thing, you're all cold and wet!" She got up, fetched a towel, then sat back down and proceeded to dry her pet off.

"Is that better?" she asked gently. The pig grunted and seemed to nod to her. "It's almost like you understand everything I say; you're such a smart little pig."

"You forgot annoying," Ranma voice said from off to the side. Akane whipped her head around and glared at the redhead.

"That would be you, you womanizer," she snapped angrily, a half lidded look directed at the now young man.

Ranma sat and began laughing. Akane felt her blood begin to boil.

"It's not like it's my fault," Ranma said defensively, catching the other's mood.

"Not your fault?!? How can it not be your fault when you let them hang all over you?" she screeched, not caring if she drew the attention of the others.

Ranma snorted. "I keep telling them to stop, but they won't listen."

"And a big, strong, martial artist like you can't stop them?" Akane asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

Before Ranma could answer, they heard Nabiki calling "I'm home" from the foyer. A moment later she walked into the dining room. As Nabiki sat at the table, Kasumi came out with a tray of food.

"Oh, hello Nabiki. You're running late today. I made this for Ranma, but you guys can share it until I get some more."

"Thanks Kasumi. Actually, I'm running late because of these little lovebirds here," she said, indicating Akane and Ranma. Before either could sputter out a response, Nabiki waved them off and asked Kasumi, "Remember that big fight they had several months ago?"

"It's kind of hard to forget," Kasumi replied.

"Well, yesterday was the three-month anniversary of the blowup in the schoolyard. Since then I started taking bets that one or both would call off the engagement within a certain timeframe. Yesterday was the cutoff point, and I spent a lot of today collecting bets and balancing the books."

"Nabiki," Kasumi admonished, "that's not a very polite thing to do."

Akane glared at her sister. 'I hate it when she does stuff like this. Always trying to make money off my misery. I should say something; of course it won't do any good.' Akane noticed Ranma was glaring at Nabiki too.

Nabiki held up her hands as if defending from an attack. "Hey, I was betting they'd stay together. I had complete confidence in them," she said to Kasumi with a smile.

Kasumi didn't look too convinced, but didn't say anything else about it. "Anyhow, Ranma's water is nearly ready." With that she turned and went back to the kitchen.

Once Kasumi was out of earshot, Nabiki continued in a lower tone. "Besides, I made the conditions highly favorable for me. You know, things like the break-up would have to last for three days, you'd have to publicly acknowledge it, etc. I figured that even if you guys did break it off, I'd be able to convince you to get back together." She added the last comment with one of her Cheshire grins.

This was enough to push Akane to her breaking point. "I can't believe you! I'm getting sick of you, and everyone else, thinking you can manipulate me!" Akane could practically feel the steam coming off herself.

"Jeez sis, give it a rest. It's not like everyone doesn't know how you really feel about Ranma. Come on now, it's okay to tell your big sister how much you really like him. Well, her at the moment anyhow," Nabiki said with a wink.

Without looking in a mirror, Akane knew that she was turning red. Before she could respond though, Ranma spoke up. "The only thing she cares about is that stupid pig," she said.

Akane looked down at P-Chan and forced herself to relax somewhat. 'I can't believe Ranma is still jealous of him. Hmm, this ought to get him really riled up then.'

"Well, at least P-Chan is male a hundred percent of the time," she said. She smiled when she saw Ranma wince somewhat. "In fact, I think he's more of a man than you'll ever be." With that, she proceeded to take P-Chan's face and snuggle it into her bosom.

The way Ranma was shaking in apparent anger made Akane stop and think. 'Maybe I pushed her too far this time.'

Before anyone had a chance to respond, Kasumi came in from the kitchen carrying a kettle of hot water. As she made her way to the table, she slipped, causing the kettle of water to sail through the air. Akane was too preoccupied watching Ranma to notice it was heading straight for her.

'What the hell is happening?' she wondered to herself, the water snapping her out of her line of derogatory thoughts. 'I'm all wet, and what's the terrible weight on my lap?' Akane looked down to find a wet and naked Ryoga with his head pressed into her breasts. She shrieked and threw him off her.

Ryoga crashed into the dining room table, causing it to shatter. Akane stared at him, her brain just beginning to comprehend what she had seen. 'Ryoga is... No! It's impossible!' Frantically she searched around for some sign of P-Chan, with no luck. As her eyes settled back on Ryoga, she noticed something that turned her blood ice-cold. 'The bandanna! I can't believe I never noticed it before. I'm so stupid!'

Akane was aware that Kasumi was the only person who seemed to be in action. She grabbed the towel that Akane had been using to dry P-Chan off with earlier and handed it to Ryoga. The boy took it, all the while looking thoroughly dazed. Suddenly, his eyes became like saucers and he managed to cover himself.

"A...Ak...Akane," he managed to stutter out.

By this point, Akane was finally starting to get her wits back. "You... you bastard!"

"I can explain," Ryoga tried to say. He started to scoot away, looking thoroughly cowed. Akane fixed him with a baleful stare, and he stopped dead.

Then Akane jumped to her feet and clenched her hands into fists. "Explain?!? How in the hell are you going to explain this!?"

"This is all Ranma's fault," the boy said, directing some anger at Ranma.

"Hey, don't look at me pig-boy," Ranma replied, surprisingly calm. "I told you not to come around here. I told you to stop trying to be her-"

Whatever else she was going to say was cut off as Akane marched over and grabbed her by the shirt. She hauled Ranma up into the air and began yelling at her. "You knew about this?"

"Well," Ranma said defensively, "I tried to warn you, but you were just too thick-headed-"

Again the redhead was cut short, but this time it was because Akane threw her into the far wall. Tears started to fall down Akane's face and she saw Ranma immediately focus on them. Akane saw that Ranma wasn't even trying to get up or respond. The girl just sat there watching Akane, who turned her attention back to Ryoga. She noticed that he was smiling a bit at what she'd done to Ranma.

Akane's battle aura, which had been barely visible up to now, suddenly seemed to light the room. This immediately caused his smile to falter. Akane began speaking to Ryoga again, this time in a low, threatening tone.

"I'd like to know how it's Ranma's fault that you watched me get undressed. Or how he made you snuggle up again my breasts. Or how he made you listen to all my deepest secrets, which you then used against me!" By the time she was finished, her voice had had risen so high, it nearly cracked. With each word, Ryoga cringed and took on a more brilliant shade of white.

"But... I..." Ryoga began. She could see that he was steeling up all his nerve. "I... love you."

Everyone in the room stared at Akane as she laughed. It contained no humor, only malice. "Love me?" she repeated in a mocking tone. "Is that what you call love? Violating someone! Abusing their trust! Hell, you might as well have raped me!"

Everyone in the room took on an ashen hue at the last statement. Ryoga was completely speechless. Finally, Soun cleared his throat and spoke to his youngest daughter.

"I'm sure Ryoga never intended it that way," he said. He shut up as Akane turned her attention towards him and studied him intently. 'Why is he trying to protect Ryoga?' she wondered. As she looked in her father's eyes, something clicked.

"You knew all along, didn't you!?" she screamed.

Any chance that her father had of convincing her otherwise disappeared when he began to stutter out a response. He was offering some excuse, and began to cry, but Akane wasn't paying attention. 'Why? Why my own father? What in the hell did he have to gain? Ranma! He was trying to make Ranma jealous! He... he let this happen to me...' Rational thought began to leave her as a red haze settled itself in her mind. She turned her attention one last time to the lost boy.

"If I ever see you again, I swear you'll end up less a man than Ranma." Akane purposefully glanced down at his waist. "Do I make myself clear?" Ryoga gulped and nodded. With that, she grabbed him by the arm and marched him out towards the back yard. She forced him into the rain where he changed back into his pig form. Akane grabbed a hold of the pig, who had slipped out of her hand. Then she threw him as far as she could, watching as he disappeared into the horizon.

Finally, she turned her attention back to everyone else in the room. She raised her arm and pointed to Ranma and her father. "I... hate you! Both of you! As far as I'm concerned, there is no engagement. Hell, at this point I'm not even sure if I have a father!" She directed her attention towards the Tendo patriarch. "If you want to join our families so badly, I suggest you marry the jerk!" With that, she stormed out of the room and headed up the stairs.

Once Akane had left, everyone just sat there in stunned silence. Ranma didn't move from where she sat crumpled on the ground. 'I can't believe I was so stupid,' she thought to herself. 'I knew what Ryoga was doing, but I never thought about it from Akane's point of view. She thinks he might as well have raped her.' Ranma shuddered at the realization.

'I only ever cared how mad it was making me. You dolt,' she admonished herself. 'Here I was getting mad at her all along, even though I really did care. And now it's too late. Damn, I should go apologize, but I better wait. She'll just send me flying the way she did to Ryoga.'

Soun still sat in his accustomed place after Akane had left. 'What a fool I've been,' he told himself. 'I can't believe I allowed this to go for so long. Rape? My poor little girl. Dear wife in heaven, what have I done?' It was then that his waterworks of tears began in earnest.

Genma also sat in the same place he'd been. 'Well, at least she didn't direct any of that anger at me. Hmm, she was really serious too.' Suddenly his stomach began to growl. 'I hope that doesn't mean we'll have to leave.' He turned his gaze towards Nabiki and Kasumi. 'Well, at least Tendo has two more daughters for Ranma to consider.'

Nabiki didn't know what to make of everything that just happened, but one thought dominated all the rest. 'Thank the kami this didn't happen yesterday, or I'd be out a lot of yen. Idiot, think about your family for once!' She looked at everyone around her and realized that nobody had a clue what to do next. Wordlessly, she stood up and made her way over to Ranma. She knelt down next to the girl and spoke.

"Ranma," she said, waiting to get the other's attention. However, Ranma was just staring at the wall and didn't even seem to be aware of her presence. Nabiki then took both hands and began shaking Ranma until the girl finally acknowledged her.

"What do you want?" Ranma asked.

Nabiki sighed. "I'm going to go check on my sister. I figured that if you had a good explanation for this disaster, you better tell me now. Otherwise, I just might agree with her that she should hate you."

Ranma cringed at this. 'He really doesn't want Akane to hate him,' Nabiki thought to herself. 'Well, that's a good thing at least.'

Finally, Ranma explained how Ryoga had gotten cursed. "It was an accident," she said. "I didn't even see him when I knocked him off that cliff. Anyway, after I found out, I swore on my honor not to reveal his secret. It was fine, until he went and made himself Akane's pet. Then I was stuck between losing my honor and watching that pig take advantage of Akane."

Nabiki allowed herself a small smile. "So all along, you were only trying to protect my sister without actually trying to destroy your own honor in the process?" At this, Ranma nodded vigorously. "So you really did care about her all along." The last wasn't a question; it was a statement of fact.

At first, it looked like Ranma was going to deny it. "Remember where I'm about to go. I want the truth," Nabiki demanded. With that she folded her arms and waited. Finally, Ranma just nodded slightly.

"You poor fool," Nabiki said. "I'll see what I can do, but I recommend you stay clear of her for a while." Then the middle Tendo daughter stood up and made her way up the stairs.

Kasumi sat on her knees on the floor, still in a state of shock. She was vaguely aware of those around her, but her thoughts were mostly turned inward. She replayed the scene where she tripped, over and over again. 'How could I have been so careless? Look at the disaster I caused! Kasumi, you foolish girl.'

While she berated herself, she saw Nabiki get up and talk to Ranma. She listened to the conversation and after Nabiki went upstairs she found herself feeling worse. 'Poor Ranma, what a terrible position to be put in. Now all those times he said things to Ryoga, or tried to get rid of P-Chan, actually make sense.' She gazed at Ranma, who still sat there with both a stunned and hurt expression. 'If I hadn't spilled that water, this wouldn't be happening.'

Without knowing what else to do, she stood and went to Ranma. She knelt down and bowed to the ground. "I'm so sorry Ranma," she said.

When she looked back up, she saw that Ranma was staring at her in shock. Finally the redhead responded, "You don't have nothin' to be sorry for Kasumi."

"If I hadn't spilled that water..."

"It's not your fault," Ranma said, a note of conviction in her voice. "Akane would've found out eventually. Actually, I should've been the one to tell her." With that the girl got up and headed out to the dojo.

'Poor Ranma,' she repeated to herself. 'Having to choose between whichever would stain his honor the least. I still can't help but feel this is my fault. Maybe I should go help Nabiki try to calm Akane down.' With that, she stood up and headed up the stairs.

As Kasumi approached Akane's room, she could hear the voices of her two sisters. 'I think I'll just listen until I can find the right time to enter.' Nabiki's voice was the first one she heard.

"I talked with Ranma for a minute before I came up here."

Kasumi heard Akane growl at that. "Oh, and what excuses was that jerk trying to make?"

Nabiki then went on to repeat what she and Ranma had talked about. Akane was silent for a while, but finally responded. "So that jerk thought that a promise to Ryoga was more important than protecting me?"

"Well, if I remember correctly he did lay several hints and try to separate you from P-Chan. In fact, I'm quite amazed that I never picked up on it. I guess none of us wanted to believe it."

'I agree with that,' Kasumi thought to herself. 'All three of us were blind, though with all the curses around here we really shouldn't have been.'

"I don't care," Akane said. "He should've told me! He let Ryoga violate me!"

Nabiki sighed from inside the room. "Sis, I don't profess to agree with the code that martial artists go by, but put yourself in Ranma's position for a moment. He made this promise, before Ryoga became your pet. How exactly was he supposed to resolve this in an honorable manner?"

Kasumi wanted to run in and hug Nabiki. 'Surely that's an argument that Akane can understand.'

"So he allowed my honor to be stained instead?" Akane responded, with a good amount of venom in her tone.

"Listen Akane," Nabiki said. "He really does care about you and is really upset how this turned out. He did try his best to warn you, given the situation. And if you two ever did get married, isn't his honor as the head of the home just as important to you?"

"I don't believe he cares, or ever did. I think he just cares about himself!"

Kasumi wasn't able to listen anymore. 'She's not going to see reason, at least until she calms down. Maybe it would be a good idea for Ranma to apologize now. That might help her calm down faster, before this gets further out of hand.' With that, Kasumi left to find Ranma.

Ranma went through a kata in the dojo. She was having a hard time concentrating though, and had to adjust or restart several times. 'Damn it, I wish this hadn't happened. I wish Akane, or even that idiot Ryoga, had just listened to me, but they just wouldn't trust me.' Ranma sighed as she performed a snap-kick. 'What the hell did I ever do to deserve this?'

She tried to focus on her kata, but it just wasn't working. As she continued her attempts, her thoughts kept drifting back to Akane. 'I can't remember ever seeing her this angry before, or this hurt. The last time I saw her cry like that was when Ryoga cut her hair. That jerk seems to be the one always causing trouble. I should've tried harder to stop this. This is my fault.' Before she could allow that thought to take hold, Ranma heard someone enter the dojo. She turned to see Kasumi carrying a kettle.

"I'm sorry to bother you," Kasumi said.

"That's okay," Ranma replied with a sigh, "I can't seem to focus at the moment anyhow."

"I'm sorry," Kasumi replied, looking ready to burst into tears.

'Damn it, it's bad enough that Akane's feeling terrible,' Ranma thought. 'There's no reason Kasumi should too.'

"Kasumi, there's nothin' for you to feel bad about. This isn't your fault."

The eldest Tendo daughter sunk to her knees. "I can't help it. I can't help feeling that this wouldn't be happening if it wasn't for me."

Ranma knelt near her before speaking. "Listen, Akane would've found out at some point. Just because you spilled the water doesn't make it your fault."

"I wish I could believe that. To be honest, I don't blame myself for what Akane is going through. But I do feel responsible for what's happening to you."

"I... I don't understand."

Kasumi looked into the redhead's eyes. "Listen Ranma. I agree that Akane would feel this way no matter when she found out. But because it happened right in the middle of you two fighting, it just made things worse for you. If I hadn't spilled that water when I did, maybe things would've been better between you, and when she did find out she wouldn't have been so angry."

"I really doubt that," Ranma said with a snort.

"But I don't," Kasumi said firmly. "And because of that I feel like I owe you a debt that I couldn't possibly begin to repay."

Ranma's eyes went wide. "Kasumi, you don't owe me nothin'! In fact, I think it's the other way around. You've always done so much for me and pop. And you've always been so nice. Really, you don't owe me at all."

"I," Kasumi began, then paused for a few moments. "I wish I could believe that." With that, she looked back at the floor again.

"Believe it, please!" Ranma said, trying to put as much strength into her words as possible.

"I'll try," was all Kasumi would say.

'Damn, I wish I could convince her. I'll have to bring it up again tomorrow too. Hell, I'll bring it up every day until she listens.' Then Ranma noticed the kettle that Kasumi brought with her.

"What's that for?" she asked.

Kasumi looked down at the kettle and then back to Ranma. "Oh, I thought it might be a good idea for you to apologize to Akane. To be honest, from what you told Nabiki, I don't think you should. But I've never seen her this upset before and knowing her, she'll never approach you."

"Actually, I was already planning on it, but I figured I should wait until she's calmed down."

Kasumi smiled at Ranma, which made the younger girl feel good inside, as it usually did. "Normally I would agree with you, but I think it might be wisest to do this sooner rather than later. If she lets this fester, it's just going to get worse. While I can guarantee that she won't forgive you right away, at least she'll know that you care."

Ranma didn't look convinced. "I don't know."

"Please, Ranma. It might not help, but you never know. I really don't think it would hurt at all."

Ranma sighed and nodded. With that, she took the kettle of warm water and dumped it over her head.

"Thanks Kasumi," Ranma said. "I'll go try to talk to her now." With that, Ranma got up and headed into the house.

As Ranma approached Akane's room, he saw Nabiki leaving it. The girl saw him and when he started walking in her direction she rushed to him.

"You're not planning on talking to her are you?" she asked.

"Kasumi thought it might be a good idea for me to apologize."

Nabiki quirked her eyebrow at him. "Oh really. And what about you? Do you think you should apologize?"

"I don't think I should have to apologize at all," he complained. "But, I was planning on doing it anyway and was going to wait until she calmed down. But Kasumi thinks I should do it sooner rather than later."

"Hmm, I don't know if she's right about that. In fact, I can pretty much bet Akane won't even talk to you."

"Well, I don't think it'll hurt to try." With that, Ranma moved around Nabiki and made his way to Akane's room.

Nabiki turned and stood there, as if she planned to watch. Ranma just glared at her and folded his arms until she got the hint. After she finally went into her own room, Ranma took a deep breath and knocked on Akane's door.

Akane was laying face down on her bed, crying into her pillow. Nabiki had just left and she thought she heard voices out in the hall. 'I don't care who it is, they just better not bother me!' A few minutes later, she heard a tentative knock on the door. 'Doesn't anyone understand that I just want to be left alone. I'll just ignore it and maybe they'll go away.'

After another minute, there was another knock, this one a firmer than the last. 'Whoever it is won't take a hint.'

"Go away!" she yelled.

"Akane, can I please come in?" she heard Ranma say.

"I said go away!"

"Please, I just want to apologize."

"Yeah right! Apologize, huh? Oh, I'm sorry I let someone violate you Akane, please forgive me. Get lost you bastard! I don't want to speak to you ever again."

A few moments later she heard his footsteps leading away from her door. 'He's got some nerve. Jerk!' Then a quieter, gentler voice fought its way to the surface of her mind. 'At least he tried to apologize.'

This last thought confused Akane because she didn't know where it had come from. 'No! I'm not going to let him off that easily. Not after what he did. How can I believe him? How can I believe anyone anymore?' Once again she found herself crying into her pillow.

Ranma made his way to his accustomed place on the roof to think. 'Damn it, I know she's mad, but at least she could let me apologize. And why should I have to say I'm sorry anyway? She's acting like none of this is her own damn fault!' Ranma sighed. 'Still, I hate to see her crying. But what the hell, it's not like I haven't tried to stop this.'

As he lay his back on the roof, his mind continued to ponder his current predicament. 'It's not like I didn't try to tell her a thousand times. What was I supposed to do? I even tried to get that jerk Ryoga to stop, but the bastard just wouldn't listen.' Ranma thought back to the last time he'd fought Ryoga, before the big fight that he and Akane had the day she caught him chasing P-Chan through the house. He also thought about how once again Akane interrupted and misconstrued the facts without even listening.

Ranma was walking home from school alone. 'At least Akane could've invited me to go out for ice cream with her friends. Ah well, that's okay. I just hope she has a good time. I can't believe how well we're getting along. I'm sure as hell not ready to marry that tomboy, but at least things between us are good.'

As he walked, Ranma's thoughts were interrupted when he saw Ryoga, looking as lost as ever. Ranma's muscles tensed reflexively. 'He's not going to be happy when I talk to him,' he thought with a sigh. 'Oh well, who knows when he'll show up next. Better just get this over with.'

"Hey Ryoga," Ranma called out. The young man turned in his direction, and when Ranma saw that he wasn't poised for an immediate attack, began to make his way over.

"Listen Ranma, I don't have time to fight. I have several gifts for Akane, so just take me to the dojo so I can give them to her."

"Well," Ranma replied, "she's actually out with her friends right now. She won't be home for a bit."

Ryoga looked disappointed but didn't say as much to Ranma. Instead, he looked around as if trying to get his bearings. "Well, just show me the way to the dojo and I'll wait for her there."

Ranma eyed Ryoga before speaking. "Actually, I want to talk to you first."

"Oh," Ryoga said, narrowing his eyes. "About what?"

Never being one for tact, Ranma just jumped in headlong. "I want you to stop becoming P-Chan around Akane."

"What? Do you think I do it on purpose? It's not my fault water finds me at the wrong time."

"That's not what I meant. I mean I want you to stop being her pet."

"Why?" Ryoga asked suspiciously.

"Because I'm sick of seeing you take advantage of her," Ranma spit out.

"Akane likes having P-Chan around. It makes her happy. Besides, it's none of your damn business!"

Ranma dropped into a fighting stance. "I'm making it my business, bacon boy. Whether you like it or not, Akane is my fiancée and I'm sick of watching you dishonor her! Now I want your word that you'll stop, or I'm sure as hell going to make you." Ranma spoke the last sentence as calmly as he could manage.

Ryoga didn't bother to answer. Instead, he just slid his pack off his back and set it on the ground. He then assumed his own stance and let out a growl. "Let's see you try."

'Gods, that was one monster of a fight,' Ranma thought to himself. 'I don't know how long it lasted, but since Akane was the one who eventually broke it up it must've taken awhile. And then she accused me of picking on Ryoga again. And that jerk just smirked at me!' Ranma rubbed his head where Akane had hit him that time, after he tried to start up with Ryoga again. 'He just had to rub it in.'

'And then, on the day everything blew up, that little pig had to stick his tongue out at me while Akane was yelling at me. And then when I tried to grab him, Akane slapped me! I still can't believe she couldn't see how he was manipulating her. Why wouldn't she trust me? What did I ever do to deserve her mistrust?'

Ranma sighed as his brain continued to work overtime. 'This isn't getting me anywhere.' With that, he stood up and made his way back into the house. 'Maybe things will look better tomorrow.'

Chapter 2: The Aftermath

Ranma was startled awake as he felt a pair of hands grab his shirt. He was hoisted into the air, and suddenly found himself sailing through an open window. In midair, Ranma managed to orient himself so that he landed on his feet. 'Phew,' he thought, 'at least I didn't land in the pond.'

He watched as his father launched himself from the window and landed near him. His father's white gi flapped in the morning breeze, as he stood there regarding his son. Genma crouched and then suddenly charged.

'Too slow,' Ranma thought, allowing himself to smile. His father saw the smile and began to attack in earnest. 'A little better, but he's gotta be angry about something. He's way too sloppy.'

"What's wrong pop?" Ranma asked.

"You are, you idiot boy! You've really blown it with your fiancée this time."

As the events of the day before began to filter into his consciousness, Ranma momentarily dropped his guard. Genma saw it and took immediate advantage, sending Ranma flying into the pond he'd been so happy to avoid earlier.

Ranma took a huge breath as she surfaced from the pond. "Hey, it ain't my fault. Besides, you knew all along and could've warned her. You didn't have some stupid promise to keep."

"And reveal the weakness of another martial artist?" Genma asked with a snort, while pushing up his glasses, which had slid to the end of his nose. "That wouldn't be very honorable would it?"

"Bullshit!" Ranma replied, as she climbed out of the pond. "You were just doing it to make me jealous! Not that I was..." she sputtered lamely.

Genma gave Ranma a mocking grin. "You still have a lot to learn boy. The reason doesn't matter now. You need to make up with her. If you don't, you're going to have to decide which of her sisters you want to be engaged to."

Ranma stood there with a stunned look on her face. "Wh...What're yappin' about?"

"If you can't patch things up with you fiancée, then you'll just have to pick one of the other girls. Honor demands it," Genma said smugly.

Ranma growled and stalked towards her father. "Honor? Yeah right! You just wanna keep freeloading off the Tendo's. Well, screw you!" Ranma yelled, as she grabbed her father and flipped him into the pond. She didn't even turn to watch the panda get out, instead making her way back into the house to get ready for school.

Kasumi watched Ranma, dressed for school and back in his male form, sit down for breakfast. On the whole, it was a relatively quiet affair. 'Probably because Akane's not here,' Kasumi thought to herself. 'I love my sister to death, but the way she yells can be awful.' She sat and watched Ranma carefully throughout the meal. He was barely eating, which concerned her greatly. Also, the young man’s face kept alternating between his father, at whom Ranma would scowl, and at Akane's empty place, where his face revealed regret and a bit of anger.

Kasumi herself was refusing to acknowledge, or speak, to her father. She'd had words with him the previous night about him withholding Ryoga's secret from Akane. 'I intended to leave it at that, but he tried to defend himself. Well, I'll keep ignoring him until he understands what he did wrong.'

Finally, Ranma asked Kasumi, "Where's Akane and Nabiki?"

"They both left early for school," she replied.

"Oh," was all the boy could manage, and he continued to pick at his food.

After breakfast, Kasumi asked Ranma to help clear the table. The boy didn't even argue and once both were alone in the kitchen, she turned to face him. "Ranma," she asked with concern, "are you alright?"

"I'm fine," he muttered dejectedly.

"No, you're not. I take it things didn't go well last night."

"You could say that," Ranma replied, then relayed to Kasumi the events from the night before.

"Well, at least you tried. Thank you." As an afterthought she added, "And I apologize again for this happening."

Immediately she saw Ranma snap out of his funk and he gazed at her with determination. "Kasumi, I already told ya, there's nothin' for you to be sorry about. So please stop."

Both looked at each other for a minute when Ranma spoke up again. "Can I ask you a question?" Sensing the seriousness in the young man, Kasumi just nodded. Ranma continued, "Do you hate me?"

The shock that Kasumi felt, and knew was registering on her face, was instant. "Ranma! How can you possibly think I'd hate you?!"

The young man looked down at the floor and shuffled his feet before answering. "Well, I know me and pop ain't been nothin' but trouble since we got here. We're always causing problems for your family. And after what happened last night, I don't know how you couldn't hate me."

Kasumi didn't hesitate to grab the young man into a hug. She felt Ranma tense up for a moment, but relax afterwards. "Ranma," she said softly, "I couldn't possibly hate you. I don't believe that anything that's happened around here has been your fault. Well," she corrected, "at least not directly. And I understand what happened last night. I can honestly say that I don't blame you at all."

Ranma pulled away from the embrace. "But aren't you mad about what happened to Akane?"

A dark cloud seemed to pass over Kasumi. "Of course I'm mad, but not at you. I blame this on Ryoga. I'm tempted to hold him down for Akane to make good on her threat, if he ever shows up again." The shock on Ranma's face almost made her giggle.

"But like I said, I'm not mad at you. I'm a little upset at Akane for the way she treated you, but I understand that she's terribly emotional right now. And about everything else, I think it's our family who should be apologizing to you, not the other way around."

The shock Ranma had felt from her comment about Ryoga was amplified when he heard this declaration. "What're you talking about?" he sputtered.

Kasumi let out a small sigh and her shoulder's drooped. "Ranma, the way people are always attacking you, or trying to take advantage of you. It's... it's wrong! And I know that sometimes my family..." Kasumi trailed off, unable to finish.

"Oh," Ranma managed, waving his hands in a dismissive gesture. "It's no big deal."

Regaining her determination, Kasumi answered. "No! It's not acceptable. You've always been so quick to forgive everyone, and I admire that, but it's still not right!"

Ranma just stood there, not sure what to say. Finally, Kasumi turned and grabbed his lunch off the counter. She gave it to him and started to shoo him out of the kitchen. "I've kept you too long, and now you'll be late for school if you don't hurry."

With a nod, Ranma took off for the front. 'I hope he'll be alright,' Kasumi thought, making her way back to the kitchen.

Between the possibility of being late, and not having Akane there to slow him down, Ranma made it to school in record time. 'And I didn't even get splashed, that must be some kinda record.'

As he walked through the gates of the school, Ranma looked around and saw several groups of students still lingering before classes started. As he looked at them, he noticed many were whispering and looking back at him. 'Uh oh, Nabiki must've already sold the news about me and Akane.'

Preoccupied as he was, Ranma didn't notice that he was coming up on Kuno until the Kendoist called out.

"Hold, foul knave," Kuno said.

Ranma turned his attention to Kuno and sighed. "I'm really not in the mood today Kuno."

"Can it be? Can the words of the mercantile Tendo Nabiki be true? Hast thou truly lost thy hold over the fair Tendo Akane?"

Not even dignifying Kuno with a response, Ranma simply tried to walk past him. However, Kuno shot his bokken out at Ranma, causing him to jump back.

"I can see from your countenance that my words strike true. Truly the power of your evil sorcery must be waning. Tell me, hast your hold over the pig-tailed girl failed as well?"

"Kuno," Ranma said sadly, "if I could get rid of her I would, but I'm stuck with her. So just back off."

"You vile cur! You mean to say thou keeps her around only to fulfill thy own base lusts? That you don't even truly desire to be with her. I must double my efforts now to smite thee. I strike!"

'What an idiot,' Ranma thought to himself. 'I am not in the mood for this crap!' As Kuno brought his bokken down in an overhead strike, Ranma simply grabbed it with one hand, stopping the attack. It was obvious that Kuno was stunned by this. Ranma yanked the bokken out of Kuno's grasp, and with just his hands snapped it in half.

"Y...you..." was all Kuno could manage, before Ranma landed an uppercut that sent Kuno flying across the schoolyard. With a growl, Ranma continued towards class.

Throughout the morning class, Akane refused to even glance in Ranma's direction. Before class had started, everyone had bombarded her with questions regarding their breakup, but she'd refused to acknowledge them. 'Damn,' she thought, 'it's almost lunch time. Sayuri and Yuka are going to be all over me.'

Sure enough, Akane's two best friends were at her desk within seconds of the bell ringing. They both started talking at once, and Akane couldn't understand what either was saying. She finally held up her hand and they stopped.

"If you want to talk," Akane said, "let's do it somewhere else." Both of her friends looked around and noticed too many people trying to eavesdrop on the conversation. With that, all three got up and went outdoors.

Once they found a quiet spot, Sayuri and Yuka started the deluge of questions again. Akane ended up telling them about everything that happened, and after a while both girls were quiet. Finally, Yuka spoke up.

"Didn't you tell us before that Ranma was always trying to hurt P-Chan? Doesn't that mean that he tried to keep him away?"

"Well, he sure as hell didn't try hard enough!" Akane yelled.

"But weren't you always hitting Ranma, and yelling at him for chasing that pig?"

"What does that have to do with anything?" Akane grumbled.

"What she means," Yuka said, picking up the argument for her friend, "is that even though you kept hurting him for it, Ranma still tried to stop Ryoga. It sounds like he was trying to protect you."

Inwardly, Akane found that she'd been wrestling with that same thought. 'He did try. And I was awfully mean to him. No! I refuse to simply let this pass. He could've done more.'

"I don't care," Akane said. "He could've done more, and I refuse to forgive that jerk, even if he did try to apologize last night."

Akane saw both friends look at one another in shock. Then Sayuri spoke again.

"Doesn't that tell you how serious he is about this? When was the last time Ranma apologized to you for something?"

"I...I don't remember," Akane whispered.

"Look Akane, we're your friends," Sayuri continued. "And even though things haven't been the best between you and Ranma lately, we know that both of you still care about each other."

Akane's face darkened and she started to respond, but Yuka cut her off. "Don't. You can argue with other people who don't know you as well as we do, but we know the truth. The reason this hurts so much is because you really do care for Ranma, even if he's an idiot most of the time."

The frankness of her friends comments left Akane unsure what to say. So instead, she just looked down towards the ground. In a moment, both friends were kneeling beside her.

"Listen," Sayuri said softly. "We know you're still really angry, and we don't blame you. But sooner or later you're going to need to face facts. Ranma did what he did because of his honor. Many people don't care about that, but we know you do. Sooner or later, you're going to have to face that. Just think about it, okay?"

Akane looked up at both of her friends, trying to fight the tears in her eyes. 'Maybe someday I'll be able to forgive him,' she thought, 'but right now it still hurts too much. But I really don't want to hear anymore of this from them.' So with that, she simply nodded to her friends. Then, each opened their lunch and ate in silence.

When the lunch bell had rung, Ranma immediately bolted outside in an effort to avoid talking to people. However, he wasn't surprised when Daisuke and Hiroshi managed to track him down. 'Maybe I can just find another spot to be alone,' Ranma thought. 'Nah, I need to get this over with, sooner or later.'

Like their counterparts Sayuri and Yuka, Daisuke and Hiroshi immediately began pelting Ranma with questions. 'Jeez, they're like old women.' Finally he just told them to shut up. Then he proceeded to tell them the events of the previous day. 'I feel bad mentioning Ryoga, even now, but since Nabiki knows that means everyone's bound to find out.' When he'd finished, both his friends looked at him with pity.

"Man," Daisuke said, "you're in serious shit."

"Ya think, genius?" Ranma rebutted.

"You need to eat some serious crow," Hiroshi said.

"I've tried," Ranma said in earnest, "but that tomboy won't even listen to me when I try to say I'm sorry."

"Well, maybe you shouldn't refer to her as a tomboy when you try," Daisuke observed.

"I know that, ya moron!" Ranma growled. "I didn't insult her or nothin'. She just won't talk to me."

"You're going to have to figure something out," Hiroshi said. "Unless you don't want to be her fiancé anymore."

Ranma sighed. "It's worse than that. If I don't patch things up with her, my pop and Mr. Tendo will try to engage me to one of her sisters."

"Weren't you already engaged to Nabiki once?" Hiroshi asked.

With a shiver, Ranma said, "Yeah, and it's not something I care to repeat!"

The looks on both boys' faces showed they understood where Ranma was coming from.

"What about her oldest sister?" Daisuke asked.

"Kasumi?" Ranma said with shock. "I don't think I could do that."

"Why not?" both his friends asked at once.

"She's certainly hot," Daisuke said.

"And she can cook a hell of a lot better than Akane," Hiroshi added.

"Yeah, but..." was all Ranma could manage.

"But what?" Daisuke asked in frustration. "Hell Ranma, do you just not like girls or something?"

Ranma immediately got defensive. "Of course I do, ya jerk! It's just... I've never really thought about Kasumi that way before. She's always been like a mom to all of us."

"Well, time to wake up! If Akane doesn't forgive you, you might just find yourself engaged to Kasumi. You damn well better start thinking about it."

Ranma stared into the sky, lost in thought. 'Kasumi. She's always so nice, and she does whatever she can for everyone. Plus she's really beautiful-" Ranma brain nearly froze over. 'Whoa! Where the hell did that come from!?'

"Listen guys," Ranma growled, "you got the info you wanted and I don't want to talk about this anymore. Can we just eat in peace?" Ranma gave them a hard stare to get his point across.

Daisuke and Hiroshi must've recognized it, because both gulped and then agreed. Throughout lunch, Ranma listened to their idle chatter, while his mind kept coming back to one thought. 'Kasumi...'

Ukyo arrived at school just before the lunch bell had rung. 'Damn health inspectors,' she thought, 'why do they have to come while I'm supposed to be in school.' She saw some of the students leaving the school building and then noticed Ranma come flying out. 'It looks like someone is chasing him.' With that, Ukyo reached for her combat spatula.

She stopped though when she didn't see anyone else. 'Akane must've tried to cook something for him,' Ukyo thought with a chuckle. She imagined Ranma screaming and bolting at the prospect.

As Ukyo made her way towards the school, she heard snippets of many different conversations taking place. It was normal for people to talk about Ranma, and even Akane. But today something was different. 'Every single conversation seems to be about them. What the hell is going on?'

Then she saw Akane and her friends leave the building, and the angry look on Akane's face told her all she needed to know. She went over to the nearest group of gossipers.

"What in the hell is everyone talking about!?" she demanded.

"Well... uh... you see," a boy replied, obviously intimidated by her.

"Akane broke off her engagement with Ranma," a girl blurted out.

"What?!" Ukyo yelled. "Are you sure?"

Everyone in the group nodded. She asked for details, but nobody could confirm anything. With a sigh, Ukyo left them and made her way to the one person she knew would have the answer.

"Hello Ukyo," Nabiki said, her voice neutral, as Ukyo approached her.

"How much?" Ukyo said simply.

Nabiki let out a huge smile. "That's one thing I love about you, you never beat around the bush. Alright. I can give you a summarized account of what happened for a thousand yen. Or I can give you a completely detailed one for twenty-five hundred. I recommend the second, because I think you'll find it more enlightening."

Ukyo didn't even hesitate. She reached into her pocket and pulled out her money. After counting out twenty-five hundred yen, she said, "I want everything. Down to the last detail."

"Of course," Nabiki said. With that, Ukyo handed the money over. Then Nabiki gave her a thorough account of everything that had happened the previous day. Ukyo listened intently, interjecting only once to make sure she heard correctly about Ryoga. Once Nabiki was done, Ukyo just nodded and walked off, her mind in a daze.

Throughout the rest of the day, Ukyo was unable to focus on school. 'With Akane out of the way, that only leaves that Chinese hussy. Now how can I turn this to my advantage?'

The moment the final bell rang, Akane bolted out of her seat without even a glance towards Ranma. 'I don't want to deal with that jerk right now.' She made her way out of the school in record time and started heading towards the school gates.

"Akane," Ranma voice called, still a ways behind her. Akane didn't want to listen, she just picked up the pace, until she was running full speed. Regardless, she still heard light footsteps behind her.

"Please stop," Ranma said, much closer this time.

'Like I'm going to stop for you!' she thought.

"Ah come on, just let me apologize already will ya," he said. At these words, Akane came to a dead stop. She could feel Ranma's presence looming behind her, but he never came into contact.

'He must've hit the brakes pretty fast.' Inwardly, she tried to decide how to handle this situation. 'Maybe I should just let him grovel some. Not that I'll forgive him right now!' With that, she turned around and stared coldly at the pig-tailed boy. Her eyes bored into his, and she folded her arms across her chest with her satchel underneath while she waited.

'Boy, I haven't seen him this uncomfortable in a long time,' she thought, watching as he worked up his courage. 'Maybe he really is sorry.' Whether she wanted it or not, a small glimmer of hope welled up inside her.

Only to have it dashed in the worst possible way.

“Nihao Airen!" Suddenly Shampoo was there, bike dropped next to them, glomping Ranma. "Shampoo hear that Ranma no marry kitchen wrecker. Shampoo so happy. We go on date now, yes?"

Akane felt her right eye begin to twitch. It started small when the Chinese girl first arrived, and got worse with each word that came out of her mouth. She was about to unleash her fury on both of them when another unwelcome visitor appeared.

"You got part of it right sugar," Ukyo said. She had suddenly appeared on Ranma's other side and was hanging onto him too. The twitch in Akane's eye was in full bloom now.

"What spatula girl mean?" Shampoo demanded.

"It's true that Ranma is finally free from that," she said, waving in Akane's direction, "but he's actually going to be taking me out. Isn't that right Ran-chan?"

Akane saw Ranma glancing nervously between the two girls, and she could feel the heat rising inside her. 'I can't believe that jerk! And to think I was actually going to let him apologize!' While Akane continued her trip over the brink, the argument between Shampoo and Ukyo had intensified.

"Go away! Airen no like spatula girl."

"Shows what you know. Go ahead Ran-chan, tell Shampoo you'd rather go on a date with me."

"Well... that is..." Ranma stuttered.

"You no like Shampoo?" the Chinese girl said, putting on her cutest pout.

"No... I mean yes... I mean-" As was his norm, Ranma was completely befuddled when dealing with those of the opposite sex.

"See!" Shampoo declared in triumph. "We go now Airen?"

Before any of the three could say anything else, they all stopped when they heard a low growl that caused their hackles to rise. Akane saw each of them look at her, suddenly aware that she was the source of the growl. Ranma was looking at her with an expression approaching terror, while Shampoo and Ukyo stared at her in defiance.

"You... you bastard!" Akane screamed. "Why don't you run off with both those... those... whores!" She felt her eyes begin to tear up, and with that, she turned and fled.

Ranma stared in stunned silence as he watched Akane's back shrink into the distance. As she'd turned to flee, Ukyo and Shampoo had both immediately started fighting with each other again. Ranma, for his part, was oblivious to this as his mind replayed the scene that has just ended. 'Was she crying? I couldn't tell for sure. Why does this crap always happen to me?' he groaned inwardly. Apparently his withdrawal into himself hadn't gone unnoticed.

"Ranma?" Shampoo said.

"What's wrong Ran-chan?" Ukyo asked in concern.

No longer caring if he hurt their feelings, Ranma forcibly removed himself from both their grips. He then turned to face them.

"I'm getting sick and tired of being treated like your play toy!" Ranma snarled. "Just leave me the hell alone!" He saw both go slightly pale at this. With that, he turned and ran in the direction that Akane had fled.

'She wasn't heading towards home,' he thought. As he ran, he wondered exactly when he'd come to think of the Tendo home as his too. 'It is my home. And I might lose it because of that stupid pig Ryoga!'

Ranma kept running, and then began roof hopping, desperate to find Akane before things got any worse.