At those words all the color drained out of Akane's face. Ranma-chan closed her eyes and tensed, expecting to be slapped. But no blow came. She opened her eyes a bit, just enough to see Akane hunched over, looking on the verge of tears. Ranma-chan gulped nervously, the silence making her uncomfortable.

"A-Akane?" she stammered, flinching away as Akane's head snaps up. She is the picture of rage, face flushed, teeth gritted, and eyebrows knitted together. "How could you just gamble me away like that?" she yells. Her eyes sting, but she won't cry. Not for him( or…. Well, uh…. her). It's not worth it.

"Well?" she screamed. "How could you? I'm not a prize to be won or lost!" she clenched and unclenched her fists, trying to regain some emotional control. "After what you said to Mikado, I never expected you to just toss me away!"

"Akane I didn't…" "Oh just SHUT UP!" she yelled. "I knew we fought and all, but this is just cruel! " Ranma-chan sighed. "It's not like I had a choice!" she yelled, struggling to get her defense in. "Oh, right, stupid me," Akane mocked. " You just happen to fight Ryoga and LOSE the one time I'm THE PRIZE!"

"It's NOT LIKE THAT!" Ranma-chan yelled, frustration building up. "Ryoga didn't give me the option to say no!" Akane felt her stomach clench. Wait…no! what was she thinking? Ryoga wasn't that kind of guy! They were just friends.

"Can't you solve anything without lying Ranma?" she asked coldly. "You think I'd lie about something like this?" Ranma-chan asked. Her irritation level was rising fast. "I tried to tell you but Ryoga slammed my face down mid-sentence!" "Oh yes," Akane said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "Blame it all on Ryoga like you always do. Because the great Ranma Saotome can do no wrong," she said her voice rising in anger.

"You know what Akane?" Ranma-chan yelled. "With the way you treat me I'm almost glad I lost the fight!" Once she realized what she just said, she gasped and immediately clapped her hand over her mouth. "Well excuse me then!" Akane spat. "I didn't realize you hated me that much!" Ranma-chan shivered slightly. "At least Ryoga treats me better than you," Akane said still fuming. "And he doesn't beat up P-chan."

There was a thud, and Akane looked down to see Ranma-chan had face-faulted. She lay there a second before picking herself up. "You know what Akane?" she growled. "You really are dumb as a brick, ya know that?" Akane's scowl deepened. Great, now he was directly insulting her. In one fluid motion, she brought her arm back and smacked Ranma-chan with as much force as possible.

In response, Ranma-chan went flying into the medicine cabinet. There was a large crash and Ranma-chan fell on her stomach, glass raining down around her. Akane didn't even notice as she spun around, running out of the nurse's office.

Ranma-chan sat up slowly, carefully picking pieces of glass from her hair and cloths. 'Stupid tomboy' she thought as she felt something warm and sticky drip down her cheek. She rubbed it off with the back of her wrist. She was about to stand, only to be greeted by, "Where is the nurses office?" She groaned. "I told you ten minutes ago! It's the third door in the right!" an irritated voice responded. Ranma-chan shifted around the glass, pitying the poor kid who had to help the Eternal Lost Boy.

'God, I throw myself into a freaking WALL for her and this is what I get? No thank you? Just clown, show off, fool, an argument, and a slap? Just great.'

At that moment, Ryoga ran in. "Oh, Dearest Akane!" he cried. He looked around, obviously confused. "Sorry bacon bits, ya just missed her," Ranma-chan muttered. Ryoga frowned as she went back to brushing bits of broken glass from her body. Ranma + broken objects (usually) = angry Akane. You didn't need to be a rocket scientist to figure that out. Fury flowed through him. "Ranma…" he growled.

He charged at her, fisting his hands in her shirt. Ryoga hoisted her of the ground until Ranma-chan was eye level with him. "What. Did. You. Do?" he yelled. Ranma-chan closed her eyes, the force of his yelling blowing her hair back. She had had just about enough of this. "Akane threw me into a wall when I told her I lost! Happy now!"

Ryoga visibly flinched, and for a moment, despair filled his heart. 'She….she doesn't want to be with me?' he thought. 'She still wants this…..this thing!" he thought. He felt pressure at the back of his eyes. 'Wait a minute will ya!' A voice in the back of his head yelled. 'You really think this sex-changing jerk is telling you the truth?' At that realization, a smug smile crossed his face.

"Nice try Ranma, you almost had me there." Ranma-chan sweat dropped. "I'm being serious," she said. Ryoga's smile vanished. "You're lying to me." It came out more as a statement than an accusation. A vein popped out in Ranma-chan's head. "What the hell!" she yelled, finally cracking. "Why does everyone think I'm lying?" She glared at Ryoga. "You know what? I've had it! Side with the stupid tomboy for all I care!"

Ryoga scowled. "You speak ill of my Akane? I won't have it!" And with that, he flung Ranma-chan into the opposite wall. "Dearest Akane!" Ryoga wailed, running out of the room. Ranma-chan peeled off the wall, this time landing on a bed. Her face screwed up in pain. Did no one care that she was injured? Swearing under her breath, she sat up, hoping the idiot would end up on another continent.

"Damn fool," she whispered. She stretched, wincing at the sounds of various pops, snaps, and cracks. Looks like she'd have to make a pit stop by Doctor Tofu's on the way back. Then she heard it, a low rumble coming from the only wall she hadn't been thrown into yet.

"What in all the hells is it now?" she grumbled. Then the wall caved in. Ranma-chan shielded her eyes, waiting for the dust to clear. Then she made out a familiar silhouette. "Oh shit," she whispered.

"Ranma, I kill!" Ranma-chan took a step back. "Sh-Shampoo," she stammered. The violet haired Amazon girl stood in the middle of a giant hole, a glare fixed on her face. "Ranma, DIE!" she yelled, lunging at the girl with her chúi. "Well this day just gets better and better." Ranma-chan laughed bitterly, dodging the other girl's attack. "Quit stupid talk! You die!" Shampoo yelled, lunging again. Ranma-chan yanked the privacy curtain down from the nearby bed.

"I'd love to stay and chat, but I gotta go," she said disappearing behind the wave of cloth. Shampoo flicked her wrist, catching the cloth on her chúi and flinging it aside. But Ranma-chan was already gone. "BAD!" she cried, running to the open door. She emerged just in time to see a red pigtail disappear around a corner down the hall.

"Ranma!" she cried, running after it. "You come back and fight Shampoo!" If it was the last thing she did, the girl would not escape her again.

XXxXX

Ranma-chan sprinted down the hallway, desperate to find hot water. "This is the last thing I need," she growled. She dashed through the Koltz High quad. The students regarded her with curiosity, recognizing her from the match. Some shouted praise, others shouted at her to stay away from Mikado, and some just stood there, in awe of her speed.

"C'mon, c'mon," she mumbled, looking for any possible source of hot water. And the shrieks, yells, and walls being crushed was hinting that she didn't have much time. Shampoo's speed almost matched her own, and she was gaining ground. She briefly looked over her shoulder, spotting a flash of violet in a cloud of dust.

"C'mon," she muttered. There was a sudden bleeping sound, followed by a pleasant female voice. "Attention students, the tea ceremony club will be holding a meeting in building one's culinary room momentarily. Thank you." Ranma-chan sighed in relief, eyes darting around the quad. 'Guess someone up there is looking out for me' she though. She quickly found a building with a giant 1 on it, along with an open second story window.

She shimmied up a nearby tree, diving into the room. One she touched down, she quickly yanked the window down, panting heavily. "RANMA STOP RUNNING AWAY!" Ranma-chan jumped away from the window, turning to see a small group of girls staring bug eyed at her.

"Where is the culinary room?" she yelled frantically. The building shook as the sound of crumbling stone came from the floor below. "Hurry!" she squealed.

One of the girls raised a shaky arm, pointing to the door. "Th-Three doors across to the left," she stammered. Ranma-chan sprinted to the door. She yanked the door open, throwing a look over her shoulder. "Stay in here!" she yelled. The girls nodded nervously, backing into a corner of the room.

Once in the hall, the smell of tea became strong. With one leap Ranma-chan cleared the distance between the classrooms. She yanked the door open, causing some girls in brightly colored kimonos to drop their cups. Another boom sounded and the building shook. More crashing sounded as more china broke. A few girls squealed, clutching the countertops for balance.

"Get outta here!" Ranma-chan yelled. Without any hesitation, they scrambled to get out the other door to the room. Running over to the nearest kitchen area, Ranma-chan yanked the tap forward. Sweat ran down her neck as she waited anxiously for the water to heat up. "RANMA!"

The red head jumped as the cry came from the other side of the nearest door. There was a crash as the section of wall came caving in. Ranma-chan stuck her hand under the water, sputtering as the dust entered her eyes and mouth.

XXxXX

Shampoo spotted a hint of red and swung her chúi mercilessly. "DIE!" she cried. A hand shot out of the dust cloud, grabbing hold of her weapon. Her eyes widened as she saw a tall boy with a black pigtail ducking to avoid her second blow. "Is boy?" she said stupidly. He smirked. "Yup, sorry to disappoint," he said, slamming his foot into the handle of her chúi.

It snapped, the heavy round end falling towards her head. Her eyes widened further before clamping shut, waiting for the impact. But it never came.

She opened her eyes a bit, seeing the boy holding the broken end of her chúi. "Y-you save Shampoo?" she asked softly. The boy seemed shocked at her sudden lack of hostility. "Uh, well….yah." he mumbled. "You beat Shampoo," she breathed. The boy flinched and began to back away. "What? I didn't-" he started protesting.

"You is strong man," she stated. He nodded slightly, acknowledging her compliment. "That make Shampoo happy, is cute too," she said smiling. The boy seemed completely confused, not noticing he backed into the wall.

Shampoo jumped forward, wrapping her arms around him. He stiffened, definitely not expecting this. She looked up slowly, watching some of the fear leave his eyes. She smiled brightly. "Wǒ ai nǐ," she whispered. "Wǒ de Arien." And with that, she lifted herself up, pressing her lips to his.

XXxXX Author's Notes

I'm so, so, sorry I haven't updated in over a year. *bow bow bow* I have the worst computer luck ever. Both my computers crashed and I lost everything I typed. Then I had to find my original hand written draft, so yah. I promise I didn't abandon this story. Hope to update soon.