[Ranma][FanFic] Hearts of Ice - Parts 6-9 of 17
Krista Perry
The characters of the Ranma 1/2 universe are the sole creation
and possession of the brilliant Rumiko Takahashi.
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Hearts of Ice
Part 6: Lies and Dreams
by Krista Perry
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Cologne rarely slept. In a lifetime that extended over
three centuries, she had trained her body to replenish itself in
an amazingly short amount of time. She knew how to conserve and
use her energy wisely and economically. Her powerful ki
constantly recharged itself, sustaining both her ancient body and
her abilities as a master of the martial arts. She kept herself
alive and strong through sheer will alone, defying the laws of
nature that insisted her body should have turned to dust long
ago.
Which is why, after traveling on what should have been an
exhausting trip from China to Japan, she was awake and alert.
She listened carefully, extending her senses through her
household. Shampoo and Mousse were finally in their separate
rooms, sleeping restlessly after talking in to the early morning
hours. She had eavesdropped with interest as Mousse had related
to Shampoo the events of the past two days since the blood spell
had been cast.
So, Son-in-law had figured it out. That was surprising,
considering how oblivious the boy usually was to the workings of
human nature, but it was not a completely unexpected turn of
events. If they played it right, it could even work to their
advantage. The trick would be getting Ranma calm enough to
listen to reason...
As if on cue, her meditation was interrupted by the sound of
the Nekohanten glass door shattering under the impact of a
powerful fist. "HEY, OLD GHOUL!" Ranma's fury-filled voice
shouted from the dining area below. "COME DOWN AND FACE ME!"
Cologne's eyes widened in surprise, then narrowed. "Well
well," she muttered under her breath. "I should have known Son-
in-law wouldn't wait until a decent hour for this confrontation."
She reached for her staff and swung herself up to her customary
place while balancing the staff on its tip, then closed her eyes
and spent a few moments focusing herself for the upcoming battle.
Whether the battle would be physical or otherwise had yet to be
determined, but it didn't matter. It would be tricky either way.
When she emerged from her room a moment later, she found
Shampoo and Mousse standing in the hallway, looking
apprehensively down the stairs where the pulsing light of Ranma's
battle aura flickered menacingly under the restaurant door.
"Great-grandmother," Shampoo whispered, her eyes wide with
worry, "how Ranma know we home already? We supposed to go to him
tomorrow."
"Don't worry, Shampoo," said Mousse firmly. "I will not
allow that vile Saotome to hurt you."
Shampoo glared at him. "Shampoo no need help from you,
Mousse. Besides, husband no hurt Shampoo." She turned away from
him then, so that he couldn't see the doubt and fear in her eyes.
Ranma sounded so *angry*...
"YOU HEAR ME, OLD GHOUL? COME DOWN AND FACE ME, OR I'M
COMING UP THERE AFTER YOU!!"
Cologne sighed. "Well, I would have preferred to break the
news to Son-in-law under better circumstances, but I guess we
have no choice. Come, Shampoo. You know what we must do."
Shampoo nodded, her heart beating in her throat, and
followed Cologne down the stairs.
Mousse followed mutely, still smarting from Shampoo's
rebuke, and wished he were wearing his arsenal-laden robes
instead of just his black pajama bottoms. He pushed his glasses
up the bridge of his nose with his index finger and watched
nervously as Cologne opened the door to the Nekohanten dining
area. *If you do anything to hurt Shampoo, Saotome,* he thought
solemnly, *I swear I won't rest until you've been punished.*
Cologne entered the dining area and faced Ranma calmly.
Shampoo and Mousse followed close behind.
Shampoo took one look at Ranma and felt all her hopes of
persuading him to her side as a willing husband slowly
disintegrate. His narrowed blue eyes, so handsome even in anger,
met hers briefly when she entered the room, and the look of hurt
betrayal on his face pierced her to the heart. In that brief
moment when she met his cold gaze, he seemed to be saying *How
could you do this to me, Shampoo? I thought you were my friend.*
Shampoo brought her hands up to her mouth to choke back a sob.
*Ayia! The plan isn't going to work. He hates me.* Tears began
to spill down her cheeks.
But Ranma didn't see her tears. His attention was already
focused on Cologne, his battle ki burning red-gold with fury,
casting flickering shadows among the rows of stacked tables and
chairs in the dark dining area. He stood tensed in a battle
stance, his hands at the ready. Shampoo winced when she saw a
thin trickle of blood dripping unheeded from his knuckles where
the splintering glass of the shattered Nekohanten door had cut
deep.
"All right, ghoul," Ranma said, his voice low and dangerous.
"I'm gonna give you one chance to undo what you did to Akane and
me. You'd better break this blood spell if you know what's good
for you."
Cologne met his gaze unflinching. "I'm afraid I can't do
that," she answered.
Ranma growled in frustration, and clenched his fists. "Aw
man, I just knew you were gonna say that," he said. "Have it
your way then. I challenge you, old ghoul. If I win, you bring
Akane back from wherever you sent her. And you get these voices
out of my head," he added as the spell-voices swelled up in his
mind, insisting that he would never see Akane again. He glared
at Cologne, and waited for her standard 'If I win, you marry
Shampoo' reply.
*So,* Cologne thought. *Even though we've torn his life
asunder, the boy still has honor enough to extend a formal
challenge rather than attack blindly.* The old crone chuckled
inwardly, yet kept her expression neutral. If they engaged in
physical combat, she knew Ranma would give her a run for her
money, and she would run the risk of losing everything that she
and Shampoo had worked so hard for. She had learned more than
once that it was unwise to underestimate Ranma's physical prowess
and sheer stubborn refusal to lose. But now... *This is going
to be easier than I thought.*
She gazed at Ranma levelly, her wrinkled face betraying no
expression. "I refuse the challenge," she said.
"Fine, let's get to it," Ranma said, dropping into an attack
crouch. "There's no way I'm gonna let you..." Suddenly
Cologne's response penetrated his brain, and he blinked, stunned.
"What did you say?"
"I said I refuse the challenge. I will not fight you."
"But you... I..." Ranma stuttered, his battle aura
flickering out and plunging the restaurant into darkness as his
anger faltered into flustered confusion. She couldn't refuse his
challenge, could she? To refuse a challenge... It just wasn't
*done!* He *had* to fight Cologne. Otherwise, how was he going
to force her to bring Akane back?
"Ranma, I think we should sit down and talk for a moment.
Shampoo and I have something to tell you."
Ranma blinked again. Talk? They wanted to talk? This
wasn't the way it was supposed to go. He'd been psyching himself
up for a battle royal for the past two days, and they wanted to
*talk?* Something was not right here.
"There's nothing to talk about," he snapped, trying to
regain his mental footing. "I know you cast a blood spell on me
and Akane, and I'm not gonna rest until you break it."
"You are wrong, Ranma. We did not cast the blood spell."
Ranma laughed, short and harsh. "Yeah, right. You expect
me to believe that?"
"Actually... no," Cologne said softly. She spoke slowly,
annunciating each word carefully. "We *don't* expect you to
believe us. Because the purpose of the spell was for you to hate
Shampoo. And if the spell is working like we think it is, you
probably believe that Shampoo and I cast the spell to get rid of
Akane. Isn't that right?"
Ranma stared at Cologne, just barely able to see her
diminutive form in the pale light that shone through the windows
from outside. "Well... yeah," he managed finally. "I mean, why
else..." He trailed off uncertainly. Did she just say that the
spell was supposed to make him hate Shampoo? If that was the
case, it sure was working. But why on earth would they cast a
spell like that? Unless... unless the old ghoul was telling the
truth, and they *didn't* cast the spell. But then who would...
Cologne smiled inwardly, sensing rather than seeing the
confusion on Ranma's face in the darkness. *Time to appeal to
Son-in-law's considerable ego.* "You are strong, Ranma," she
said gravely. "You have it within you to fight off the effects
of anger and hatred that the spell has placed in you, and listen
calmly to our explanation."
Ranma was silent a moment. Shampoo stood frozen in the deep
shadows and looked at his tense figure, framed by the shattered
door and backlit from the street lamps outside. Her silent tears
had ceased, mostly out of amazement as she watched how adeptly
her great-grandmother handled Ranma.
"Okay," Ranma said finally. Reluctantly. "I'm listening."
"You already know that I took Shampoo to China for a
training mission," Cologne said. "We went to a secret training
area in the mountains that we Amazons use for its perilous
landscapes and dangerous animal inhabitants to improve our
survival skills. Only the most advanced warriors are able to
train in these mountains. I knew that it would be risky, but I
felt confident that Shampoo was up to the challenge. What I
didn't realize, and what I regret discovering too late, was that
those mountains are now inhabited by a very powerful, very evil
dragon."
"A... dragon?" Ranma's voice lost some of its angry edge.
Ranma had come across a dragon or two in his training, and had
been lucky to come out of the encounters alive. "You went up
against a dragon?"
"Actually, Shampoo went up against a dragon."
Ranma looked up to where Shampoo stood in the dark, the pale
light from the street lamps outside outlining her features. "You
fought a dragon, Shampoo?"
Shampoo blinked and shook herself mentally. It was time,
and Cologne was waiting for her to tell her own story. Her own
lie.
"Shampoo not have much choice," she said, her voice shaking.
"Dragon kidnap me when I sleep. Dragon want to make Shampoo his
bride. But I tell dragon I rather die than marry him. I tell
him I already have good husband..."
Shampoo saw Ranma flinch at this, but she continued. She
couldn't seem to steady her voice. "Dragon use his magic to find
out about you. He say he make you hate me so that I no have
husband. He say he do worse thing possible to you and make it...
make it look like my fault..." Her tears were flowing again
uncontrollably; her face was pale mask of grief.
Ranma stood numb with shock, trying to absorb her story.
So the old ghoul *didn't* cast the blood spell. And Shampoo was
an innocent victim, just like he was. Looking at her, he could
see the glistening tear tracks course down her cheeks in the
darkness, and felt something unidentifiable tremble in his chest.
He had lots of experience with getting blamed for something he
had no control over. His brow creased in sympathy, and he
unconsciously reached out his hand. "Shampoo..."
"He use own blood to cast spell," Shampoo continued. "I...
I try to stop him but..." Her voice choked off, and she
swallowed hard against the tears and the bile that rose in her
throat with the lie. "P-please, Ranma. Don't h-hate Shampoo. I
help you. I help you find Akane. I help you find a way to break
spell."
Ranma hated to see Shampoo, or any girl, cry. It made him
feel all panicky and helpless inside. "It's okay, Shampoo.
Don't cry, please. I... I don't hate you."
Oddly enough, that only made Shampoo cry harder. Ranma
waved his arms in helpless agitation. "Auggh! What did I say?
I'm sorry, don't cry!"
"Oh Ranma!" Shampoo flung herself at Ranma, wrapping her
arms around his torso and sobbing into his chest. "Shampoo so
glad you no hate her."
"Uhhh." Ranma gulped loudly and glanced around quickly,
half expecting to see Akane appear to mallet him into the floor.
Then he remembered, and a wave of sadness swept over him. He
carefully extricated himself from Shampoo's grip and looked into
her face. "Did you mean that, Shampoo? Will you help me get
Akane back?"
Shampoo nodded, blinking tears from her eyes.
"Ranma?" Cologne came over to him. At that moment, he
realized that the old ghoul had called him by name; that she had
been calling him by name since he first arrived. No infuriating
"son-in-law" or condescending "sonny boy." Just Ranma. It was
odd. She knew how much he hated it when she called him by those
other "titles." Why had she stopped? She wasn't actually giving
up her claim on him... was she? Did the old ghoul really feel
that bad about what had happened?
"I too will do whatever I can to help you break the blood
spell," she said. "You should know, Ranma, that when I arrived
at the dragon's lair to rescue Shampoo, I managed to disrupt the
blood spell while Shampoo distracted the beast. I believe the
spell was originally meant to kill Akane. I was able to prevent
that, however, through my interference. I only wish I had the
time to do more, but it was impossible under the circumstances.
The dragon wasn't too pleased with my meddling. We were lucky to
escape with our lives."
Ranma's eyes widened in shock as he faced Cologne in the
darkness. The spell was supposed to kill Akane? He didn't want
to think about what he might have done had the spell succeeded.
Probably fulfilled the dragon's expectations, no doubt. But
Cologne... Cologne had actually *saved* Akane. And was offering
to help him find a way to break the spell to get her back.
"I..." Ranma didn't know what to say. He had come
expecting a fight and instead had received an offer of help. So
what if Cologne didn't know how to break the spell at the moment.
If anyone could figure it out, she could. He bowed. "Arigato,"
he said, unable to think of anything else to say. Then, looking
at the floor, he saw that he was standing on pieces of shattered
glass. "Uhh... Sorry about your door," he said sheepishly.
Cologne chuckled. "It's no problem. This place has seen a
lot worse."
Without warning, the lights flipped on, and the group
squinted against the sudden brightness. They turned, surprised
to see Mousse standing by the light switch. They had forgotten
that he was there.
Mousse clenched his jaw tightly, fighting to hold off the
despair that was settling in his heart. Although he initially
had reservations, he had secretly hoped that Ranma would attack
so that he could defend and protect Shampoo, showing her once and
for all that he was the better man. Instead, he watched with
sinking hopes as Ranma once again wound his cords of womanizing
treachery around Shampoo's heart. And now, not even Akane was
around to temper Saotome's hold on his beloved.
There was only one thing to do. "Ranma, I too will do
whatever I can to help you find Akane," he said, peering intently
through his glasses at his rival.
Ranma smiled. "Hey, thanks, Mousse," he said sincerely. "I
really appreciate it."
"Oh Ranma!" Shampoo grabbed his injured hand and held it up
to examine it. "You bleeding. I go get bandages."
Ranma looked at the cut he'd sustained while smashing the
door, noticing it for the first time. "Aw man, how'd *that*
happen?"
Shampoo came back and began cleaning the cut. Ranma sat and
allowed her to fuss over him, trying not to squirm as she applied
some healing herbs to the wound.
Cologne watched and smiled.
Everything was going according to plan.
--------------------
Ukyo ran, sprinting with athletic grace from rooftop to
rooftop, her long chestnut brown hair, tied with a white ribbon,
flowing out behind her. To a casual observer she might have
appeared to be a wind sprite or some other ethereal creature. A
closer examination would have shattered that illusion. Most
ethereal creatures don't have giant battle spatulas strapped to
their backs.
She scowled, her face creasing with anger and worry.
"Ranchan, you jackass," she muttered. "Why couldn't you have
waited, instead of running off half-cocked to face Shampoo and
Cologne? If they've gone so far as to cast this so-called blood
spell on you, who knows what other tricks they've got up their
sleeves?"
The thought made her increase her speed a few notches. She
had to get there, before that Chinese bimbo and that old mummy
did anything to Ranchan. Her mind was so focused on this thought
that she didn't notice a figure in her peripheral vision, leaping
over the rooftops, closing in on her with astonishing speed...
... until she collided with it full force in mid air.
"Aaaahhh!" Ukyo fell to the ground below, flipping just in
time to land awkwardly on her feet. She lost her balance and sat
hard on her rump on the sidewalk. "Ite!" She rubbed the side of
her face, feeling a small lump at her temple where something hard
had impacted. "What..?!"
"Ungghh..."
Ukyo looked over to see a figure hunched over on the grass.
She staggered to her feet and cautiously drew closer, pulling a
few of her sharp mini-spatulas from her bandolier and holding
them at the ready. "Who..?"
The figure looked up, holding a hand to his bleeding nose.
"U... Ukyo?!"
Ukyo gasped. "Ryoga?! What are you doing here?"
"I'b on by way to the Dekohaden to fight Colode!" he
snapped, pinching his nose to stop the blood flow. "Ad least I
was udtil you rad idto be!"
"You jackass!" Ukyo responded, replacing her spatulas and
grabbing Ryoga's arm to pull him to his feet. "You ran into
*me!* And besides, if you were headed to the Nekohanten, you
were going the wrong way! The Nekohanten," she said, pointing,
"is *that* way. Now come on! Ranchan's probably been there a
few minutes already." She leaped to the rooftop again.
Ryoga scowled, probing his nose carefully to make sure the
bleeding had stopped, then followed her on her gravity-defying
run. "That fool Ranma!" he snarled. "How dare he leave to fight
Cologne without me?"
"Less talk, more running," Ukyo snapped back. Just a little
further...
She jumped from the rooftop to the ground, landing in front
of the Nekohanten. Ryoga landed next to her a moment later.
Together, they stared at the store front.
The door was shattered, and the lights were on. They
listened carefully. The sounds of a desperate battle failed to
reach their ears. It was eerily quiet. Ukyo and Ryoga looked at
each other in baffled apprehension.
"Uhh, do you think we missed it?" Ryoga asked hesitantly.
Ukyo's expression hardened. If those two had done anything
to Ranchan... "Only one way to find out," she said, and she
stepped through the broken door.
Ranma sat at a table, looking at Shampoo with amazement as
she wrapped his right hand in a white gauze bandage. "No
kidding? The dragon sent *twelve* demon guards after you? How'd
you get away?"
"Great-grandmother, she know many warding spells that keep
them back." That wasn't a complete lie. But then she'd been
trying to get *to* the dragon, not trying to get away.
Ranma frowned. "Aren't you worried that the dragon will
come looking for you? I mean, since he seemed so determined to
marry you and all..."
Shampoo giggled nervously. "Oh, no worry about that.
Dragon not follow me all the way to Japan from China."
"Hmm." Ranma's mouth twitched in skepticism as he thought
about all the things -- and people -- that had followed *him*
home from China.
"A-hem."
Ranma looked up at the sound of Ryoga clearing his throat to
see the Lost Boy scowling at him and Ukyo staring at him with
wide eyes and a slack jaw. "Ucchan! Ryoga!" he exclaimed, his
face lighting up in a pleased, but puzzled expression. "What are
you doing here?"
Ukyo stared at him, dumbfounded. "Ranchan... I... we...
came to help, but..."
"What the hell is going on here?" Ryoga demanded, glaring at
Ranma. Trust him to foul up Akane's rescue. "What happened to
the big battle that was supposed to take place?"
Just then, Cologne entered the dining area balanced on her
staff and carrying two bowls of raman. Ryoga turned on her
angrily. "You! Have you agreed to bring back Akane?"
Cologne ignored him and set the bowls down in front of Ranma
and Shampoo. Ranma looked at his bowl suspiciously for a moment,
but then noticed Shampoo looking at him with a strange, sad
expression on her face, and he felt guilty. Surely they wouldn't
try anything like that after what had happened, especially after
they'd offered to help him. Besides, it wasn't like she was
Kodachi or anything. He smiled a little at Shampoo and began to
devour the raman.
Ryoga's temper simmered, and he was about to yell something
along the lines of 'how dare you ignore me,' when Cologne turned
suddenly and *whapped* him over the head with her staff. "*I*
didn't send Akane anywhere in the first place," she said, as
Ryoga clutched his head in pain. "But to answer your question,
impertinent boy, yes. I have offered to help Ranma find a way to
break the blood spell."
Ryoga blinked as the pain in his head receded, and looked
back and forth between Ranma and Cologne. "You didn't..? You
mean--"
Ranma slurped up the last of his raman and wiped his mouth
on his sleeve. "She means that they didn't do it, Ryoga," he
said. "It was some dragon in China that wanted to marry Shampoo.
She wouldn't marry him because," Ranma swallowed, still
uncomfortable with the idea, "because of me. So he cast the
spell to make me hate her. But don't worry," he said, smiling.
"If anyone can lift this spell, Cologne can."
"Oh my," said a new voice. "Isn't this a sight to warm the
heart. And here I came expecting to see the place torn to
pieces."
Everyone turned to see Nabiki standing in the doorway, her
arms folded across her chest, looking at the group with a cool
expression. She dropped her arms to her sides and stepped
carefully through the broken glass. "So, looks like I missed the
party. Ranma? Care to fill me in on what's going on? That is
unless you're too influenced by whatever dubious concoctions
these two witches have managed to shove down your throat."
Shampoo bristled in anger and stood to face Nabiki. "We no
use anything like that, sneaky girl! We want to help Ranma!"
Nabiki raised an eyebrow. "Is that so."
Ranma stood, flexing his hand in the bandage, and placing
himself between the two girls. "Hey, Nabiki, it's okay. They
explained everything to me. They weren't the ones who cast the
spell, but they're going to help me find a way to break it."
"Hmm." Nabiki walked up to Ranma and peered clinically into
his eyes, looking for any sign of the drugged blankness that
usually accompanied some of his fiancees' attempts to chemically
induce his cooperation. Aside from the tiny bloodshot lines that
told of his lack of sleep the past few days, his eyes were
remarkably clear.
She sighed and shook her head. She could feel Cologne's
piercing eyes on her, but she ignored the old ghoul and focused
her attention on Ranma. If the old woman tried anything against
her, that in itself would make Ranma doubt the veracity of the
story he'd been told. She smiled slightly, knowing Cologne could
do nothing.
"Oh yes, that's right," she said, rolling her eyes in
disgust. "I heard you mention this Chinese dragon who
*supposedly* cast this spell when I came in." She fixed Ranma
with a look that would have made Einstein feel dumb. "You're not
really going to fall for that, are you? You actually believe
that some dragon all the way in China away just *happened* to
cast a spell that completely eliminated Shampoo's competition in
the fiancee department?"
"Hey!" Ukyo fumed. "What am I, chopped liver?"
"It's not like that at all." Ranma glared at Nabiki angrily.
"You don't know what Shampoo went through, Nabiki. Look at her!
Look at the battle scars on her. You think she made that up?
Look at her arm. The dragon pierced right through it with his
claw when she was trying to escape. I don't think she did that
to herself!"
Nabiki looked at Shampoo. She had to admit, the Amazon girl
did look like she'd recently seen a nasty battle. Her body was
covered with nasty cuts and bruises.
Still, Ranma may be able to accept such a story, but the
whole thing was a little too convenient for her liking. She had
a sense for these things, for feeling out people, and knowing
what motivated them. And most of all, for sensing when someone
was trying to pull a fast one. It was a very... profitable
talent.
Mostly, though, she didn't like the well-disguised
predatorial look Cologne was giving Ranma. The untrained
observer would have missed the subtle expression on the old
crone's face completely. But Nabiki had worn the expression
herself too many times to be fooled.
*So, *that's* your game,* she thought, keeping her own
expression neutral. *The manipulation, blackmail, and the phoney
cure bribes haven't worked, so you get rid of my little sister
and then ingratiate yourself to Ranma with the pretense of
selflessly helping him get her back. Very clever. I'm just
afraid I can't allow you to get away with this.*
She looked at Ranma, who was still full of righteous
indignation. Just below the surface of his ire, though, she
could see in him signs of exhaustion and despair. For a moment,
she felt a twinge of pity for him. It was obvious that he was
suffering; that Akane's disappearance was eating away at him.
But then it almost served him right. She had always been
slightly annoyed that the stupid jerk would never come out and
admit that he loved her little sister. Still...
She sighed. Fine. He may be too soft-hearted and soft-
headed to recognize the trap he was in at the moment, but she'd
find a way to expose this scam soon enough.
"I'm sorry, Ranma," she said smoothly. "Perhaps I was
jumping to conclusions."
"I'll say," snapped Ukyo, still steamed at Nabiki. "If
Shampoo wanted to get rid of fiancees, she would have gotten rid
of me too."
Nabiki gave the okonomiyaki cook a thin smile. "Well, I
stand corrected," she said. As she turned back to Ranma, she
noticed Cologne peering at her intently. She pretended not to
notice.
Ranma slumped back into his seat, glad that everything was
straightened out, sort of. The adrenaline and anger that had
kept him going for the past few days was wearing off, and he was
having a hard time keeping his eyes open.
Nabiki tugged on his sleeve. "Come on, Ranma. We'd better
get you home so you can get some decent sleep."
Cologne surprised Nabiki by agreeing. "Quite right," she
said. "I have a feeling you'll need all your strength for what
we'll have to do to break this spell."
Ranma protested, but only half-heartedly. The only rest
he'd had was his short nap on the roof, and that sleep had been
so full of strange nightmares about Akane that he'd felt more
drained than rested when he awoke.
"Hey," said Ukyo as Nabiki herded both Ranma and a baffled
Ryoga out the door. "Wait, I'm coming with you." When Nabiki
gave her a reproachful look, she smiled sheepishly. "I... I
mean, if that's okay with you, Nabiki, since it's your house,"
she said. "I just don't want to get left out of the action
again, and if I stay with you guys, I can be there to help out."
Nabiki's expression softened. Ukyo may be annoying with her
constant claims that she was Ranma's fiancee, but she was a good
person, and not even close to approaching Shampoo's level of
annoyance and possessiveness. "It's alright. You can stay with
us." She didn't miss the look of triumph that Ukyo cast at
Shampoo. Shampoo stuck out her tongue, making a face back, but
then her expression dissolved into a sulk as she watched them
leave.
Nabiki was suddenly very glad she allowed Ukyo to stay.
--------------------
Ranma dreamed.
This time there were no dreams about deathly pale Akanes
come to suck the life out of him, much to his relief. Instead,
he found himself standing in the middle of a vast, snow-covered
plain, stretching forever in all directions. The night sky above
him was clear and sparkling with billions of cold bright stars.
Cold. It was bitter cold. Ranma found himself shivering, and he
wrapped his arms around himself.
Then he tensed, his eyes widening in fear. Two familiar
voices, each thick and black as tar, came whispering across the
plain, softly at first, but increasing in intensity as they grew
closer.
"No," he mouthed silently. "No, why can't you leave me
alone?" He turned around in a circle, looking for a way to
escape, but there was nowhere to run, nowhere to hide on the flat
expanse of snowy landscape. Then, the voices were upon him,
swirling around him, tearing and biting at his skin like a cold
wind. He clutched his head and moaned. "No!" he shouted, as the
voices grew increasingly louder. "Go away, leave me alone! I
won't let you stop me, I'll find her, you hear?!"
But the voices were relentless. They increased in volume
and speed until his mind was full of an insane, screeching
babble. He sank to his knees in the snow, clutching his head,
his eyes clenched shut, squeezing out tears of anguish. "Stop
it!" he screamed, to be heard over the voices raging in his head.
"Stop it! I'm not going to give up! So just leave me alone! I
don't care how loud you yell, I'm not going to listen! I'm not
going to listen!!" He kept chanting that over and over...
...and then the voices stopped abruptly, as if a stereo cord
had just been cut, leaving Ranma is sudden silence, his ears and
head ringing with the echo.
Ranma knelt for a few minutes, his eyes firmly closed, and
took deep breaths. Then, when he was sure the voices had really
disappeared, he slowly, carefully opened his eyes. He was
surprised to realize that the bitter edge of cold was gone. It
was still cold, but not unpleasantly so. He staggered to his
feet and turned around.
His eyes widened as he found himself staring into the face
of... of...
"I wondered how long you were going to sit there." said the
strange red creature, who looked for all the world like... like
an overgrown, humanoid mutant sparrow.
"Gahh!" Ranma staggered back a step, startled. He was not
expecting to hear words come out of such an inhuman... er, beak.
"Uhh... Wh-who... What are you?" he asked finally, as the
strange bird-like creature stared at him with twinkling,
mischievous black eyes.
"Funny," said Masakazu, "your fiancee said almost the exact
same thing when she first saw me."
Ranma blinked. "Fiancee? You... You mean that you've seen
Akane?!"
The tengu nodded. Ranma grabbed him by the shoulders.
"Where? Where is she? Is she okay? You've got to take me to
her!"
Masakazu reached up and gently removed Ranma's hands.
"Akane is fine, for the moment," he said. "She is a strong girl.
It's easy to see why you love her."
Ranma's jaw sagged.
How did he..? He never said...
*Had* he?
Then he remembered his other dream. He *had* said those
three little words that had terrified him for so long. But... it
was just a dream, right? And how did this thing know?
*Duh,* he realized. **This* is a dream too. Of course
something you dream about would know.*
"I think you've got it wrong, Ranma. You are dreaming, yes,
but you are also here."
"Huh?"
"We are on the outskirts of Yuki-onna's domain. Akane is
here, staying with Yuki-onna. She is safe, but she cannot leave,
and you cannot see her. For now."
Ranma eyes lit with excitement, his brain missing everything
the tengu said after "Akane is here."
"She's here?!" he asked anxiously. "Where? Can you take me
to her?"
The tengu looked at Ranma gravely. "Listen, boy," he said
sharply, getting Ranma's attention. "We don't have much time
here. Normally, I would not be allowed to interfere with a
mortal life in such a way, but because the Snow Woman tried to
take your life unfairly, I have... decided to take this brief
moment to talk with you."
Ranma blinked, not understanding half of what the strange
creature was talking about, but he nodded mutely, realizing the
seriousness of the situation.
"You cannot see Akane now because you are merely a dream
presence that I summoned, and that I alone can interact within
the Kami realm, whereas Akane is a real, physical presence here.
You would not be able to see her, nor would she be able to see
you, even if you were standing right next to each other."
"Oh," said Ranma. A wave of bitter disappointment washed
over him. To be so close, and yet fail..!
"Stop it," the tengu snapped, his black eyes sparking
fiercely. "What are you trying to do, unleash the voices again?
I've locked them away from your mind temporarily, but even as we
speak, the blood spell is eating away at my barrier, and when it
breaks through, you will have to be strong enough, and *positive*
enough to withstand their tauntings. Otherwise, when Akane
finally comes home, you won't even be sane enough to appreciate
her. Do you understand me?"
Ranma gulped and nodded.
"Now listen carefully. You two are linked. You both love
each other, in spite of your mutual ineptness at expressing your
true feelings. That, combined with the ki blasts you released on
the spell, which weakened it before it reached you, has created
some interesting side effects not originally intended, not the
least of which is a transdimensional link in the blood spell
between you and Akane. This is good because, were it not for
that link, Akane's memory of the mortal world would gradually
fade, as well as would your memory of her. It is the nature of
the Kami realm to affect mortal minds in such a manner.
"Even so, there is a danger. The link is weak. It was
never meant to exist. If by some chance it should fail, *you
must not forget Akane.* If you do, she will surely forget her
home, and remain forever in the Kami realm. Do you understand?
The best thing you can do for her now is remember her."
Ranma looked at the tengu, askance. "There's no way I'd
forget Akane," he said. "How could I forget all those times that
violent tomboy has pounded me into the pavement or sent me
through the roof?" *Or those times when she smiles and looks so
cute, or those times when she's done something really nice for
me, or when she's scared me to half to death when something's
happened to her, and I'm afraid that I won't be able to save her
in time...*
*...in time...*
The tengu watched Ranma silently, his black eyes calm and
unblinking.
Ranma slowly came out of his reverie, his fists clenching at
his sides. He looked the tengu in the face. "I won't forget
Akane," he said firmly.
"Good. Because you're not going to remember this dream."
"What?!" Ranma looked around at the snowy landscape and
realized that it was fading away, as was the strange bird
creature in front of him. "Wait," he said in frustration. "I
*need* to remember! Why would you go through all the trouble of
telling me this only to make me forget?!"
"You'll be allowed to retain this conversation
subconsciously," said the fading tengu, "but to allow you to have
conscious access to this memory would break our already seriously
bent rules."
"But... but I..." The landscape had almost completely
melted away.
"Don't worry, Ranma." The tengu had disappeared, leaving
only his voice behind. "You can do it. I wouldn't have made the
effort to contact you if I didn't think you could succeed."
"Wait, please!" Ranma pleaded. He could feel himself
rising to consciousness, waking up. He grit his teeth,
fighting to stay where he was, willing the creature to come back.
"I have so many questions!"
"Goodbye Ranma." The voice faded to a slightly indignant,
yet amused mutter... "Mutant sparrow indeed..." ...and was gone.
Ranma gasped awake, sitting straight up on his futon. His
father in panda form snored loudly beside him and rolled over.
"Damn," he muttered, wiping the cold sweat from his
forehead. "What a weird dream." He thought about it and
frowned. What was it about? Something about snow and... red
feathers?
He shrugged and sighed. His body ached with exhaustion.
Without preamble, he collapsed back onto his pillow, and in
moments was snoring louder than the panda.
This time, he didn't dream.
--------------------
End of Part Six
Please send all C&C to:
The characters of the Ranma 1/2 universe are the sole creation
and possession of the brilliant Rumiko Takahashi.
------------------------
Hearts of Ice
Part 7: Power Play
by Krista Perry
------------------------
Nabiki padded quietly out of her room and walked down the
hall. The house was dark and silent except for the familiar,
comforting sound of Kasumi starting her early morning ritual of
preparing breakfast in the kitchen downstairs. Nabiki shook her
head, a half smile tugging at her lips. How oneechan managed to
get up so early every single morning and stay so damn cheerful
was a mystery to her.
She was not a morning person herself. Under normal
circumstances, she would still be in bed cherishing every extra
moment of unconscious bliss, curled in her downy-soft covers.
For her to be up so early -- willingly at least -- was a rare
thing indeed.
She headed downstairs, but then, on an impulse, she paused
outside Akane's room. Reaching out, her hand hovered just over
the door knob, her eyes lingering on the English letters that
spelled out Akane's name on the little wooden duck that hung on
the door.
A small, sad frown furrowed her brow, not quite reaching her
mouth. She blinked, shook her head slightly, and opened the
door.
Pale, pre-dawn light seeped through the closed drapes.
Akane's homework was still spread open on the desk from where
she'd left it to go down to dinner three days previous, just
before the blood spell hit.
Nabiki went over to the desk, sat down in the chair, and
opened the bottom drawer. Underneath stacks of papers and
letters was a smooth metal tin, decorated with hand-painted
flowers... or were they little animals? Nabiki grinned.
Whatever they were, the bright splashes of color had been painted
with tender care, if little skill.
She carefully pulled the lid off to reveal Akane's most
personal treasures within. Lifting them out, she examined each
item in the dim light contemplatively, almost reverently.
First Place award ribbons from martial arts tournaments.
Mother's cook book, carefully folded open to the "How to boil
water" page. Old photographs of the family, with Mother, holding
baby Akane on her lap, her beautiful face smiling in two-
dimensional black and white. And, on the very bottom of the tin,
a picture of...
Nabiki's eyes widened as she looked at the photo; a photo
which clearly showed Ranma kneeling on her sister's lap, his
hands curled into cat paws, kissing a very surprised Akane.
A slow smirk crept onto Nabiki's face. *Well, well. After
all the fuss she made after that incident, who would have thought
she'd keep *this?** She chuckled softly. It was a shame that
Ranma could only show his true affection for Akane when his
pathological terror of cats sent his mind on a temporary
vacation.
*Hmm. I wondered if Ranma ever figured out the *real*
reason Akane was so angry after his cat-kiss.*
"Probably not," she muttered out loud as she placed the
treasures back into the tin. She looked around the room, looking
at everything from the spare school uniform hanging on the wall
to the weights on the floor. The whole room had the feel of
Akane, even though she was gone.
Nabiki sighed heavily. She had no illusions about her
relationship with her little sister. They didn't always get
along, and they had very little in common. But that didn't
change the feelings and the bond of sisterhood between them. Out
of the three siblings, Akane was more of a sister to her than
Kasumi. Kasumi had taken the mantle of motherhood upon herself
after Mother's death; she had made the sacrifice and had grown up
fast so that the younger Tendo sisters could enjoy their youth,
and all the typical sibling rivalry that went with it.
Sure, she and Akane argued frequently, and very rarely saw
eye to eye on anything.
But that didn't matter.
It was time to get her little sister back.
Nabiki stood and left the room, closing the door softly
behind her. She walked down the hall and peeked into the
Saotomes' room. Ranma was sleeping deeply, curled on his side, a
thin line of drool running from the corner of his open mouth to
soak his pillow. The lines of exhaustion that had creased his
face the previous night seemed to have smoothed slightly.
Smiling in satisfaction, she quietly closed the door, and went
downstairs.
Kasumi noticed her as she was on her way out the front door.
"Why, Nabiki! You're certainly up bright and early this morning.
Where are you off to?"
"I'll be back in a few minutes, oneechan." Nabiki smiled,
her eyes glinting with secret devilment. "I've got a little
errand to run."
--------------------
Ukyo wanted to scream.
She didn't, of course. Cute fiancees don't scream.
She groaned instead, pulling her knees up to her chin as she
lay curled on her borrowed futon, staring up at the ceiling of
the Tendo living room. Her long, thick hair spread out on her
pillow behind her head in a silky chestnut halo. Her brow
furrowed in frustration over bright green eyes that glimmered
with conflicting emotions.
*Why do I do this to myself?* she thought.
The opportunity of a lifetime had just been dropped in her
lap, thanks to Shampoo's disastrous trip to China. But she
wasn't completely happy with the way this opportunity had come
about. Even though Ranchan's turbulent roma... er,
relationship... with Akane drove her crazy with frustration
sometimes, she didn't wish any real harm to come to her rival.
In fact, she actually felt bad that Akane was gone. Strange
though it was, she and Akane were almost... friends? But that
wasn't the only reason. She could see how badly the whole
situation was affecting the Tendo family. Kasumi's cheerful
demeanor was tainted with strain and worry. Ukyo hadn't seen
Tendo-san, but she knew that Kasumi was taking meals to his room,
leading her to believe that the grief-torn man had withdrawn into
himself. And Nabiki...
She didn't know what to think about Nabiki. Out of all
those close to Akane, the middle Tendo daughter seemed the least
affected by her disappearance, at least emotionally. Nabiki was
as cool and distant and calculating as ever. And yet, last night
at the Nekohanten...
Ukyo shook her head. The workings of Nabiki's mind were a
mystery to her. She couldn't understand how someone could
blackmail, extort and manipulate people the way she did, and
still be able to live with herself...
*Oh, and who are you to judge?* she thought to herself
wryly. *It's not like you've never benefited from Nabiki's
schemes before.* Memories rose to the surface of her mind of all
the times she'd bought candid pictures of Ranma-kun from Nabiki,
or even rented him by the hour so that she could spend time with
him.
Ukyo cringed in shame, clutching her knees tighter to her
chest. *I... I can't believe I'm so desperate for a piece of
Ranchan that I'd stoop to *that.** And yet she did. She had.
And now, Akane was gone. Whisked away by the blood spell to
some unknown place, leaving Ranma behind, minus one fiancee.
The opportunity of a lifetime. Now that Akane was out of
the way, even if it was only temporarily, she could finally show
Ranchan what a supportive, helpful, loving person she really was;
prove to him once and for all that she was the right one for him.
And without Akane's constant, violent presence to distract him,
he might finally notice. And might finally start thinking of her
as more than just his childhood buddy.
She knew, of course, that Shampoo had similar plans for
Ranchan. It was so obvious, the way the purple-haired hussy had
hovered over him the night before.
Ukyo scowled at the thought. Though she didn't have any
proof -- and though she hated to admit it because of what it
implied -- she was of the strong opinion that Nabiki might be
right about Shampoo. She didn't think that Shampoo had really
been kidnapped by any Chinese dragon. The whole blood spell
thing had to be just an elaborate ruse concocted by Shampoo to
get Ranchan for herself. At least it was certainly easier to
believe *that* than the fanciful story Shampoo and Cologne had
perpetuated. Still, stranger things had happened...
If what she believed was true, though, then Shampoo had
failed to take her seriously as a rival for Ranchan's love. In
that, the Chinese Amazon had made a big mistake. Shampoo didn't
realize that once Akane was gone, *she,* Ukyo Kuonji, Ranchan's
best friend and confidant, was next in line for his affection.
*Next in line...* Ukyo grimaced. *It almost sounds like
I'm waiting to get on an carnival ride.*
She wanted to tell Ranchan of her suspicions about Shampoo.
She would have in a second, but for one thing. He believed
Shampoo's story. He had stood up for her against Nabiki when the
canny girl had expressed the very things that had run through
Ukyo's own mind. If she said anything now, she ran the risk of
alienating him just when she finally had him within her grasp...
Ukyo sighed in frustration, uncurling herself and running
her hands through her hair as she sat up on the futon. *Oh
Ranchan, why do things have to be so complicated?*
Just then, Kasumi walked past the open screen. "Good
morning, Ukyo," she said. "Would you like some breakfast?"
Ukyo looked at the eldest Tendo daughter. In spite of all
that had happened, Kasumi still found time to think of others.
Feeling strangely guilty, Ukyo pushed her confused emotions to
the back of her mind, and smiled. "Thanks, Kasumi, that would be
nice. Do you need any help in the kitchen?"
"That's alright. I'm almost done. Do you mind waking up
Ranma and Ryoga? Nabiki is gone, and Uncle Saotome is already at
the table."
"Sure, no problem," she said, kneeling to fold the futon.
*Nabiki's gone?* she thought. *I wonder where she ran off to so
early?*
At that moment, Nabiki burst through the front door. She
ran down the hall and past the two astonished girls, holding a
small cardboard box to her chest, and leaped up the stairs,
taking two at a time. She then disappeared into her room,
closing the door behind her.
"Oh my," said Kasumi, looking at the stairs. "I've never
seen Nabiki in such a hurry before. I wonder what she's doing."
Ukyo shook her head, baffled. "I have no idea," she said.
*But knowing her, it's something sneaky.*
Kasumi went back into the kitchen. Ukyo finished folding
the futon and the blankets, stacking them neatly in the corner.
Then she walked up the stairs, pausing just outside of Nabiki's
room. She strained to hear what the girl might be doing, but it
was deadly quiet on the other side of the door.
Ukyo frowned in puzzlement, then shrugged, and walked over
to Ranchan's door.
She knocked. "Ranchan, wake up, it's time for breakfast."
There was no answer. She opened the door carefully and
peeked in. Ranma was still asleep, lying on his back, tangled up
in his covers, wearing nothing but his tank top and boxers. His
arms sprawled on either side of his head, and his mouth hung
slightly open. He was snoring softly.
He looked so peaceful. At that moment, it seemed impossible
that he could be the center of the tangled tapestry of chaos and
misunderstanding that always seemed to surround him.
Ukyo blinked, and realized that a silly smile had plastered
itself on her face as she looked at Ranma. He was so *cute* when
he was asleep! Akane was so lucky. She probably saw him like
this all the time...
Ukyo swallowed, and cut off the thought as her mixed
emotions over Akane's disappearance swelled within her. She
pushed them back down, and went over to kneel by Ranma.
"Hey," she said, putting her hand on his shoulder to shake
him lightly. "Wake up. It's time to eat. You don't want to
miss breakfast, do you?" She shook him again.
Ranma sighed, rubbed his arm across his forehead, mumbled
something incoherent, and rolled over. Still sound asleep.
Ukyo grinned and felt her eyes moisten. That was just so...
so *him.* Watching him, being near him, she wondered what it
would be like to wake up every morning and see him like this, by
her side. At the thought, her heart seemed so full it felt like
it would burst. She pressed a hand to her chest to hold in the
sensation, almost afraid that her physical frame couldn't contain
the emotions she was feeling. *Now I know what that old saying
means,* she thought, looking at Ranma with glistening eyes. *I
love you so much, it hurts.*
"Hey, silly," she said, speaking both to herself and Ranma
as she blinked back the wetness in her eyes and shook him again.
"Wake up already."
"Unghh," Ranma moaned, waving his arm limply as if trying to
brush away whatever was disturbing his sleep. Ukyo giggled.
"Don't wake him up."
Ukyo gasped and turned to see Nabiki standing behind her in
the doorway, looking at her with a frown.
"N-Nabiki! You startled me. Kasumi just asked me to wake
him for breakfast, I..."
Nabiki's expression softened, but her eyes were still angry.
Ukyo was surprised to realize that the anger wasn't directed at
her. *What, then..? Maybe it has something to do with that box
she had...*
"Let him sleep, Ukyo. He hasn't slept since he woke up
Friday morning."
"Friday?! But today's Monday!"
"Exactly." The corner of Nabiki's mouth quirked in a half
smile. "I'll bet you 2,000 yen that, left to himself, he doesn't
wake up before noon."
Ukyo knew better than to bet against Nabiki. "I'll pass,"
she said, waving her hands and getting to her feet. "I'm sorry,
I had no idea he'd gone so long without sleep."
"Yes, well," said Nabiki, turning to walk down the hallway,
"Akane's disappearance and those spell voices in his head have
really messed him up."
"..." Ukyo followed Nabiki silently down the stairs.
Ryoga was already awake and kneeling at the table as Kasumi
dished out breakfast. Ukyo knelt down next to him and cast a
disparaging look at Genma-panda, who was already wolfing down his
food with alarming speed. "Pig," she muttered, failing to notice
when Ryoga flinched beside her.
Ryoga glanced sidelong at Ukyo, and relaxed slightly when he
realized she was looking at Genma. He sighed in relief and
turned to Kasumi. "Thank you, Kasumi," he said, as she finished
loading his plate. "I'm sorry if we're being a nuisance and
all..."
"Nonsense," said Kasumi. She smiled as usual, but Ryoga
could see that the past few days had taken its toll on her. Her
smile was sincere, but her eyes were sad and tired. "I know that
both you and Ukyo will do everything you can to help Ranma find
Akane. It's nice to know they have such good friends."
Ukyo and Ryoga both looked down and stared at their hands
uncomfortably.
"Nabiki, aren't you going to have breakfast?" Kasumi turned
as Nabiki walked by headed for the front door wearing her spring
jacket, her hands stuffed in the pockets.
"No time, oneechan," she said without turning. Then she
muttered, "The whole thing was silent, not a thing. Time for me
to stir the pot a little and see what comes to the surface."
And she was out the door.
"What did she say?" Ryoga asked, turning to Ukyo.
Ukyo raised a single eyebrow in confusion. "Something about
a silent pot, I think, but don't ask me what she meant by it."
"Oh my," said Kasumi.
--------------------
Mousse was stooped over sweeping up broken glass from the
shattered door when Nabiki arrived at the Nekohanten. "Don't
mind me," she said lightly, stepping through the door frame and
maneuvering around the Chinese boy. "I'll let myself in."
Mousse straightened and peered at her through his glasses.
"Nabiki Tendo? What are you doing here so early?"
"Oh, nothing much." She flashed a bright smile, not knowing
or caring if Mousse could see it or not. "Just thought I'd stop
by and chat with the old ghoul for a few minutes."
"Insolent girl."
Nabiki's smile suddenly turned reptilian, and she turned to
face Cologne. The withered crone stood balanced on her staff by
the kitchen doorway. Shampoo stood behind her.
Even better.
"Well, Nabiki Tendo, what do you want?" Cologne asked,
unconcerned. "We aren't open until 10, so if you need food,
you'll have to come back later."
"You know that's not what I'm here for," Nabiki answered.
The ancient Amazon and the teenage girl stared at each other
for a few moments, neither of them blinking, like two coiled
snakes ready to strike. Shampoo and Mousse watched the silent
exchange uneasily.
Finally Cologne spoke. "I'm not a mind reader, girl. Are
you going to tell me what you want, or are you going to leave so
that we can get back to work? I'm a busy woman, you know."
Nabiki raised an eyebrow. "Oh yes, I know. You've been
hard at work the past few weeks. Or perhaps even longer. Tell
me, exactly how long did it take you to think up this flimsy
Chinese dragon/kidnapping alibi when you decided to cast a blood
spell on my sister?"
Cologne's eyes narrowed. "So that's what this is all about.
You still believe that this was all a plot to get rid of Akane
and trap Ranma, is that right?"
"To put it bluntly -- yes."
The old crone sighed. "I'm sorry you feel that way. I can
see that your mind is set, so there's probably nothing I can say
or do to convince you of the truth."
Nabiki smiled nonchalantly. "You're right on that count.
However, that doesn't mean I don't have a few things that *I*
could say to Ranma to convince him that your so-called truth is
nothing but a pack of lies."
"Is that so?" Cologne's voice was like ice.
"Mm-hm." Nabiki nodded. "Things like pointing out the big
gaping holes in your story that he was too tired and distracted
to notice. Such as, if this blood spell was supposed to make him
hate Shampoo, and it succeeded in taking my sister away and
putting those voices in his head, *why, then, didn't the spell
make him hate Shampoo?* Surely, for such a powerful blood spell,
that would be the easiest thing of all to accomplish."
Shampoo paled. Nabiki smiled at her, slow and cold, her
eyes glinting.
Cologne gazed at Nabiki levelly. "You do not understand,
foolish child. Allow me to explain. The *purpose* of the spell
was to turn Ranma's heart away from Shampoo. The actual
*mechanics* of the spell, to accomplish that purpose, involved
the removal of your sister and the placement of the spell voices
in Ranma's mind."
Nabiki blinked. Cologne smiled, and continued, speaking
with clear, cold reasoning. "There was nothing in the actual
spell that would force Ranma to hate Shampoo by magically
altering his feelings. The dragon knew that once the spell was
cast, Shampoo would seem the most likely culprit. Ranma's anger
-- which, I might add, *did* occur --was completely natural, and
completely uninfluenced by any magical mind-control, which is
just the way the dragon wanted it.
"You can now see the deviousness of the dragon's plan. The
dragon wanted to break Shampoo's spirit with the knowledge that
Ranma hated her of his own free will, without any actual mind-
altering influence exerted over him. So you see, the spell did,
in fact, accomplish its purpose. Fortunately, however, Shampoo
and I escaped the dragon -- something the beast did not count on
-- and we returned to Japan as soon as possible with the hope
that we could somehow undo the damage that was wrought by the
dragon's evil."
Nabiki's smile had crumbled to an expression of defeat.
Cologne's wrinkled face split in a chilling grin.
"As you know," the old ghoul continued, "Ranma is no longer
angry at Shampoo and myself. We have thus undone at least half
of the damage. Now we will try to undo the other half, by
finding a way to break the blood spell, and return your sister to
you."
Cologne moved closer to Nabiki, who was blinking in shock.
"We really do want to help you, but it would be nice if you
stopped leveling these unfounded accusations at us. I
understand you want Akane back. We all do. Give us a chance,
and we will do everything in our power to help you."
Nabiki blinked, then her expression dissolved into one of
cool blankness. *Damn,* she thought. *She's good.*
Her expression hardened. "Well, I'll give you one thing,"
she said, forcing anger into the coolness of her voice. "You
spent more time thinking up that story than I originally gave you
credit for. If you think I'm going to give up so easily, think
again. I'm going to prove to Ranma that you are the one behind
the blood spell."
Cologne sighed and shook her head as if patiently dealing
with a not-so-bright child. "And how are you planning on doing
that? With this?" She held out a small hand-held tape recorder
that, moments ago, had been in Nabiki's jacket pocket. It was
still recording. Nabiki blanched.
"Hoping to trip us up, eh girl? Get it on tape and play it
for Ranma as indisputable proof of our treachery?" She tossed it
back to Nabiki, who caught it clumsily. "Go ahead and play this
conversation for him. I'm sure he'll find it fascinating. Now,
if you don't mind, we have a business to run, as well as a blood
spell to remove."
Nabiki stared at Cologne, her expression unreadable. Then
she turned on her heel, walked past a gaping Mousse, and out the
door.
--------------------
Shampoo stood in Cologne's meditation chambers, pacing back
and forth nervously while the old Amazon leafed through an
ancient tome. She glanced up in mild irritation.
"Shampoo, calm down. As you just witnessed, our alibi is
solid. Not even the scrutiny of that devious Tendo girl was able
to penetrate it. If anything, she's firmly established the
validity of our claim."
Shampoo stopped pacing and faced Cologne, her face pale, her
expression troubled, but firm. "Great-grandmother, I worried.
Nabiki, she sneaky girl, she perceptive. She..." Shampoo lowered
her voice, even though she knew Mousse was gone on errands. "She
know we cast the blood spell."
"What does that matter?" Cologne responded archly. "It will
do her no good. She won't convince Son-in-law. You saw for
yourself how he stood up for you last night when she went after
us then and there." She chuckled. "I tell you, great-
granddaughter, that boy is practically yours. When he finally
accepts the fact that he'll never see Akane again, he'll fall
right into your arms, and you'll be there to comfort him and be
his wife. Then your honor will be restored, and we will all
return home together."
Shampoo sank down to the floor, her arms wrapped around her
shoulders, shuddering as if she was cold. "I hope you right,
great-grandmother."
"Of course I'm right."
"Good," said Shampoo. *Because I have a horrible feeling
about all this. We've done too much, we've gone too far...*
"Is... " Shampoo paused, swallowed. "Is there way to get
Akane back?"
Cologne turned and faced her granddaughter, her eyes
narrowing. "Why are you asking that?" she said coldly.
Shampoo shrank under Cologne's gaze, but then straightened.
She had faced the Ancient One, after all. She had fought demon
hoards, and had cast a blood spell bought with her own blood
price. After all that, she should be able to face her great-
grandmother without fear. "Because," she said strongly, "Akane
gone not just affect Ranma... or Nabiki. Her family miss her.
Mousse tell me her father, he shrivel up inside. He may die of
much sadness."
Cologne looked at Shampoo speculatively, surprised at the
girl's show of defiant spirit. She had seen it often, but it had
never been directed at her before. "This does not affect us.
Why do you care?"
Shampoo frowned as she searched for the words to make her
grandmother understand. "Is... Is not honorable. Maybe... after
we take Ranma to China... maybe we bring back Akane so her father
not die. Ranma no need know she come back."
Cologne was silent. Shampoo waited patiently.
"There is a spell..." Cologne said at last, "but I'm afraid
it is impossible to do without Ranma's presence, making it out of
the question."
Shampoo's countenance fell.
"I'm sorry Shampoo." Cologne's voice was surprisingly
sympathetic. "Your desire is honorable, but out of reach. Just
be glad that you will soon have your husband by your side."
"Yes, great-grandmother." Shampoo sighed. "I happy for
that."
--------------------
A few hours later, Nabiki ran into her room, closed the door
firmly behind her, sat down at her desk, and plugged her
earphones into the stereo. Fitting the earphones over her ears,
she picked up the long, thin, nondescript cardboard box that she
had just rushed home with, and dumped it upside-down. A cassette
tape fell into her open palm.
She slid the tape into the stereo cassette player, hit the
play button, and listened. After a moment she hit the fast
forward button. "Yeah, yeah," she muttered. "Let's get on with
it." After a moment, she hit the play button again. And heard
her own voice.
"...long did it take you to think up this flimsy Chinese
dragon/kidnapping alibi when you decided to cast a blood spell on
my sister?"
"So that's what this is all about. You still believe that
this was all a plot to get rid of Akane and trap Ranma, is that
right?"
"To put it bluntly -- yes."
Nabiki sighed and hit the fast forward button. She didn't
want to listen to that tedious explanation again.
Play.
"...actual spell that would cause Ranma to..."
FF. Play.
"...and return your sister..."
FF. Play.
"...think I'm going to give up so easily..."
Almost there. FF. Play.
"...don't mind, we have a business to run, as well as a
blood spell to remove."
Bingo.
Long pause. The sound of footsteps walking across broken
glass. Long pause.
Mousse's voice. "Wow, she was *angry.*"
Cologne. "Mousse, finish sweeping up that glass, and then
go order us a new door. When you're finished, come back and put
a temporary screen over the entrance."
"But I--"
*Whap!*
"Gah! Okay, okay, I'm going. Jeeze..."
Sound of sweeping glass. Mousse mumbling something
unitelligable and quite probably profane. Footsteps fading away
as Mousse leaves. Long pause.
Even longer pause.
Nabiki drummed her fingers on her desk.
Still nothing. Just silence. *Good grief, don't these
people talk to each other?!* She hit the Play/Search button.
The tape sped through minutes of silence. Nabiki's frustration
grew with each spin of the tape reel. Nothing! All that work
for--
*Click.* Play.
"--mother, I worried. Nabiki, she sneaky girl, she
perceptive. She... she know we cast the blood spell."
*YES! JACKPOT!!!* Nabiki threw up her fists in silent
victory. *TOOK THE BAIT, HOOK, LINE and SINKER!! I just KNEW it
was a good idea to bug their house before they got home from
China!!*
She listened, her mind ecstatic, yet her outward appearance
calm and collected once again as she listened to Cologne and
Shampoo spill the whole scheme. *This is beautiful,* she
thought. *This is... a work of art.* There it was. The whole
thing. Immortalized on tape. In Japanese, even. She wouldn't
even have to bother getting a translator. She just couldn't wait
to--
"--way to get Akane back?"
Nabiki froze. Then her hand jerked up and hit the rewind
button.
Play.
"...course I'm right."
"Good."
Long pause.
"Is... Is there way to get Akane back?"
"Why are you asking that?"
"Because... Akane gone not just affect Ranma... or Nabiki.
Her family miss her. Mousse tell me her father, he shrivel up
inside. He may die of much sadness."
Nabiki's fists clenched convulsively, her mask of
impassiveness shattering. Tears -- real tears, not the phoney
ones she was so expert at -- built behind her eyes, and she
blinked, trembling with anger. *How dare they...*
"This does not affect us. Why do you care?"
"Is... Is not honorable. Maybe... after we take Ranma to
China... maybe we bring back Akane so her father not die. Ranma
no need know she come back."
Nabiki's breath caught in her throat. She listened, her
eyes wide and unblinking.
"There is a spell... But I'm afraid it is impossible to do
without Ranma's presence, making it out of the question."
Nabiki's hand flashed out and hit the rewind.
Play.
"...a spell... But I'm afraid it is impossible to do
without Ranma's presence--"
Stop.
Nabiki smiled.
--------------------
The Nekohanten was busy, swarming with customers for the
lunch hour rush. Cologne had her hands full, having sent both
Mousse and Shampoo out on delivery runs, but it was nothing she
couldn't handle. Using the Chestnut Fist, she had the orders hot
and ready almost as soon as they were requested, to the delight
of her patrons.
She spared a glance to the screen entrance as it swung open
once again. Nabiki Tendo stepped through and walked straight
towards her with a cool confidence that Cologne found strangely
unsettling. *That girl,* she thought, frowning. *How many more
times will it take before she realizes that she's 200 years too
early to defeat me?*
Nabiki slid casually onto the stool in front of the counter,
directly across from Cologne. "Okay, old ghoul," she said,
smiling slightly, looking at the crone through half-lidded eyes.
"We need to talk. I'd close the restaurant down if I were you."
Cologne bristled at the girl's audacity. "What is it this
time?" she said irritably. "Another attempt to force a taped
confession from me? I notice you brought your recorder along
with you again. When are you going to realize--"
Nabiki pulled the recorder out, a barely contained smirk on
her lips, and hit the play button.
"She know we cast the blood spell."
"What does that matter? It will do her no good. She won't
convince Son-in-law. You saw for yourself how he stood up for
you last night when she went after us then and there. I tell
you, great-granddaughter, that boy is practically yours. When he
finally accepts the fact that he'll never see Akane again, he'll
fall right into your arms, and you'll be there to comfort him and
be his wife. Then your honor will be restored, and we will all
return home together."
Nabiki hit the stop button. Cologne's face had turned the
color of rice paper.
"You were saying?" said Nabiki sweetly.
Cologne visibly took control of herself. There was a sudden
flash of movement, and Nabiki found herself empty-handed. A
moment later, she saw the crushed remains of her tape recorder
falling from the old ghoul's hand.
Nabiki rolled her eyes. "Oh please," she said disdainfully.
"You actually think that I wouldn't make back-up dubs of that
tape? At this moment, over 50 dubs have been distributed to 50
of my... associates... all over Tokyo and the surrounding area.
They have orders to take this straight to Ranma and play it for
him should anything happen to me." She leaned back in the stool,
her hands behind her head. "I may play it for him anyway. After
all, it seems like such a waste for that 'dragon' to go through
all the trouble of casting a spell to make Ranma hate Shampoo,
and have it not work."
Cologne's eyes were narrowed in fury, and her battle aura
was raging red. The patrons of the Nekohanten, noticing this,
carefully got up from their seats and beat a hasty exit out the
front door. In moments, the place was empty but for Nabiki and
Cologne.
"Hmm," said Nabiki thoughtfully. "I'd watch that if I were
you. It seems bad for business."
"What do you want?" Cologne hissed through clenched teeth.
Nabiki smiled and leaned forward, resting her elbows on the
counter. "Okay, here's the deal. I want my sister back. You
know a spell that will bring her back. Of course, casting this
spell will completely destroy your elaborate scheme to trap
Ranma, but... Well, that's just too bad. However, I'm going to
give you a choice."
Cologne couldn't believe that she had been out-maneuvered by
this impertinent stripling of a girl. There had to be a way to
regain the upper hand... "A choice?" she asked, visibly
swallowing her fury.
"That's right. The choice is this: You cast the spell that
brings Akane back, and I don't play your confession to Ranma.
You *don't* cast the spell that brings Akane back, and you have
one extremely pissed martial artist ready to tear you and your
precious granddaughter to pieces."
Cologne stared.
Nabiki smiled pleasantly.
*Check and mate, you old witch,* she thought.
"I'll give you an hour to think about it," she said, sliding
off the stool and heading out the door. "But if I were you, I'd
cut your losses while you still can." She turned and eyed
Cologne a final time. "Ranma doesn't have to know about this,"
she said evenly. "It really doesn't matter to me either way. He
can take care of himself. I just want my sister back."
And she walked out the screen door, leaving Cologne stunned
and wide-eyed.
--------------------
End of Part Seven
Please send all C&C to:
The characters of the Ranma 1/2 universe are the sole creation
and possession of the brilliant Rumiko Takahashi.
----------------------
Hearts of Ice
Part 8: Barriers
by Krista Perry
----------------------
"You wanted to see me, Yuki-san?"
The Snow Woman looked up from her calligraphy, her long
white hair flowing around her on the floor, to see Akane standing
in the doorway of her quarters, smiling at her. The girl was
wearing the new sapphire-colored silk bodice and matching silk
pants with gold trim that she had made for her. The outfit was
cinched at the waist with a gold buckler to emphasize her
feminine curves. Strapped to Akane's back was her now ever-
present katana; a gift from Masakazu.
Yuki-onna returned the smile warmly and gestured for Akane
to sit down. "So, do you like it?" she asked as Akane knelt
across from her.
Akane beamed, and fingered the silk of her sleeve. "Oh yes,
thank you. It's beautiful. And very comfortable. Easy to move
in." Her smile turned droll. "Although I don't know how long it
will last. That rather persistent oni yesterday totally scorched
the outfit I was wearing."
"Ah well, if this gets ruined, it will just give me an
excuse to make you another one, as usual." Yuki-onna smiled, but
then raised an eyebrow in concern. "How is your arm doing?
Better?"
"Thanks to you." Akane extended her arm for the Snow Woman
to examine. "You can hardly tell I was burned at all. If I'd
only been a split second faster, he would have missed me with
that flame burst altogether." She sighed, brushing her dark
bangs from her eyes, and fingered a strand of shoulder-length
hair. "Sensei's going to really give it to me over this, I just
know it."
The Snow Woman chuckled. "Well, you tell him that I said
I'll make sure he has the chills for a week if he does. Besides,
from what I heard, the oni got the worst of it in the end."
Akane flushed, pleased, and laughed lightly. "Well, let's
just say that I doubt this particular oni will try to come after
you again any time in the near future."
"I'm very glad to hear that. You know, I've been watching
your sparring matches with Masakazu. You're becoming quite
proficient with your sword."
"Well, there's still a lot of room for improvement," said
Akane. "I'm still light years away from beating sensei." *Heh.
I *might* be able to give Ranma a good fight, though,* she
thought, knowing better than to express thoughts about her fiance
out loud in front of the Snow Woman. Yuki-onna wouldn't say
anything, but whenever Ranma was mentioned, Akane could feel her
friend grow cold and angry. She sighed, a sad smile on her face.
*I wonder what he's doing. Wouldn't Ranma be surprised to see me
now...*
Thanks to Masakazu-sensei's rigorous and merciless training
over the past nine months, she had developed her martial arts
abilities to the point where she was now a force to be reckoned
with. She was faster and more dexterous than she had ever been
-- had ever hoped to be -- and her skill with wielding the katana
more than surpassed anything she'd ever seen Kuno do with his
bokken.
Akane smiled wryly, thinking back to the moment Masakazu-
sensei had decided to train her in the use of the sword. At his
insistence, she had been trying unsuccessfully for days to
develop a ki attack. After three weeks, Masakazu had held his
feathered head in his hands in exasperation...
*****
"Akane," the tengu groaned, "how is it that you are unable
to grasp this simple, fundamental aspect of martial arts? You
cannot possibly hope to defeat a demon without learning to focus
your ki. You can't just *punch out* a demon, you know.
Inhabitants of this realm must be defeated with *spiritual*
energy."
"I know, I know," Akane snapped, her mouth pinched in
frustration. "I just *can't!* I don't know why!" Then the
anger drained out of her and she sagged to the floor, sitting
cross-legged in her gi. She looked dejectedly at her hands, her
short black hair hanging in wisps around her sad, weary eyes.
"Why can't I do it? Ranma made it look so easy," she said
softly. "He just concentrated, and the energy would form in his
hands." She thought back to the ki blast he released at the
blood spell. She'd never seen him use so much power before.
Yes, it had left him totally drained, but he'd summoned and
focused the power so effortlessly. Then again, when it came to
martial arts, Ranma seemed to do *everything* so effortlessly...
"Back to Ranma again, is it?" the tengu asked, his black
eyes blinking with a sympathy that she didn't notice. He sighed
and shook his head. "I find it amazing that you can harbor so
many mixed feelings about this boy within your heart. One moment
you are aching for his company, the next you are insanely jealous
over his superior skill as a martial artist, or at the thought he
might be spending time with one of his 'other fiancees.'
"The fiancee thing I can understand," he said, when Akane
winced at his exasperated tone. "But how can you begrudge him
when he excels in something he takes such pride in, and gives him
such happiness? Correct me if I'm mistaken, but I was under the
impression that you love Ranma."
Akane flushed with both embarrassment and shame.
Embarrassment because, even though she had admitted it to
herself, it still sounded strange to have someone point out her
true feelings for Ranma -- something the tengu did frequently, in
spite of his merciless habit of tormenting her with Ranma's voice
during their sparring matches. Shame because she knew that
Masakazu-sensei was right. If she really did love Ranma, she
shouldn't be angry at him just because he was naturally gifted at
martial arts, whereas *she* had to fight and struggle for each
iota of improvement in her skills. She should be proud of him,
happy for him.
She *was* proud of him, actually. Though she never would
have admitted it a few months ago, Ranma was strong and swift
and... handsome. And so nice when he wanted to be. When she
*allowed* him to be...
The memory of him doing his morning katas surfaced in her
mind. His fluid grace, his intense focus, the way his finely
toned muscles moved as he went through each difficult routine...
She remembered watching him from her bedroom window, her
expression surprisingly soft, and feeling proud, glad in her
heart that he was her fiance. *If only I had told him...*
She sighed. Tears again. She swiped at them angrily. How
in Kami was she going to make it through six and a half more
years of this? She had so many regrets over how she'd mishandled
her relationship with Ranma, so many fears that she would never
get the chance to tell him how she really felt...
*Oh Ranma. I miss you. Please don't forget about me...*
"Akane. I want you to have this."
Akane looked up, wiping the wetness from her eyes, to see
Masakazu holding out a katana, the blade resting on his
outstretched, feathered palms. She stood, confusion flickering
over her face as she took the sword by the hilt and hefted it.
"You... you want me to learn kendo?" she asked, trying to
push thoughts of Ranma aside so that she could concentrate on her
sensei's teachings. She gave the sword an experimental circular
swing with a movement of her wrist. Its weight and balance
perfectly suited her, and she smiled. She had trained a little
in kendo, but she had learned from experience that anything
Masakazu taught her always surpassed anything she'd learned
before she came to the Kami plane. It was as if all the training
she'd done in the mortal plane had been in a half-lit room,
whereas being trained by the tengu was like pulling back the
window shades and allowing the sun to stream in.
"Actually," he responded, "I want to try a little experiment
to see if it will help you focus your ki. I know you have no
lack of it," he said, his black eyes gleaming. "Your battle
aura, which flares so frequently, is proof of that."
Akane looked at the smooth sharp blade in admiration. It
was a beautiful weapon. "But how will a sword help me focus my
ki?"
The tengu tilted his head and blinked at her, looking very
bird-like. "I believe your problem with focusing your ki lies in
your inability to find your own path. You've spent too much time
trying to imitate Ranma's methods, when his methods do not suit
you. Think of the time when Ranma tried to master Ryoga's Shishi
Houkodan. He could not master it because it didn't fit his
personality."
Akane blinked, but said nothing. She always found it
unnerving, the way the tengu was able to pluck out memories from
her mind at will and use them as teaching examples. Still, it
kept her honest, especially with herself. She knew she could
never hide anything from Masakazu-sensei.
"Ranma created a ki attack that worked for him," he
continued. "You need to do the same, yet you keep falling back
into Ranma's shadow. His ki attack will not work for you." The
tengu reached out and put his ruddy feathered hand over her own.
"You must separate yourself from these fears of inadequacy you
have, Akane. You are not Ranma. You are not Shampoo, or Ukyo or
Kodachi.
"But you *are* Akane. As soon as you learn that this is
enough, you will find your focus."
Masakazu gestured to the katana. "Think of this as a part
of yourself. Something that is unique, something that separates
you from the others, that allows you to step from their shadows
and shine with your own light."
Akane looked at the gleaming metal of the sword and clasped
the hilt in front of her with both hands. Could she actually
think of herself being as bright and beautiful as this katana?
She closed her eyes and tried to feel as if the sword were an
extension of herself. Masakazu's voice seemed to come directly
into her mind.
**Focus on this, Akane. Think of it as a symbol of the
strength that lies within you. Let your ki flow through you and
into the katana. Allow it to be a conduit for your ki, a
physical representation of the power within you.**
Akane tried to imagine what the tengu was telling her. She
felt her battle aura build around her, and tried to will it
through her arms, into her hands, into the solid, strangely
comforting grip of the sword, and along the long, curved blade.
"Akane!"
Akane's eyes flew open at Masakazu's exclamation, and stared
wide-eyed at the blade she held in front of her. It pulsed with
blue energy. Akane let out a startled squawk and dropped the
sword. It clattered to the floor, the ki energy dissipating
instantly.
"Well done, Akane! I knew you could do it." Masakazu's
eyes smiled over his expressionless beak. "Now *that* is
something that will actually do some damage to those devils out
there!"
"I..." Akane blinked, and her throat felt tight. An
incredulous smile tugged at her mouth. "I did it?" *I did it,*
she thought ecstatically. *I can't believe it. I've got a ki
attack.*
"Now that you've managed this much, the rest should be
easy."
Akane's cheer plummeted. She knew from experience what
*that* meant. She groaned in exhausted protest. "The... rest?"
Masakazu patted her on the shoulder. "Of course! Now that
you've gotten a taste of what it's like to actually focus your
ki, you need to practice controlling it. If you could release it
in controlled blasts from your sword, that would really give
those demons something to think twice about. And we'll start on
your kendo training immediately. The blade itself, especially
charged with your ki, will be a most formidable weapon..."
******
"Do you want me to work on the blood spell now, or do you
want to wait until after supper?"
Akane blinked, coming out of her musing. The Snow Woman was
smiling, her frost blue eyes twinkling. "Well? Sorry to startle
you out of your train of thought. Do all mortals get glassy-eyed
as often as you do?"
Akane humphed. "Very funny," she said with mock seriousness
that dissolved into a grin. "I don't mind if you work on the
blood spell now, as long as that's okay with you."
"Very well." Yuki-onna patted the mat in front of her.
"Come sit."
Akane got into her standard position, her back facing the
Snow Woman. The Snow Woman focused herself, then began pulling
at the wisps of dragon blood in Akane's ki.
She always worked in the same place, in the spot just
between Akane's shoulder blades. When Akane had asked why, the
Snow Woman simply replied that there was a certain strand of
dragon blood, woven deep within the spell, that, if she could
just get to it and remove it, would solve a lot of their
problems.
So every day, the Snow Woman removed strand after strand,
trying to hold back the rest of the blood spell that moved to
fill in the gaps she left, as she attempted to reach the
troublesome wisp that she insisted was the core of spell.
Akane closed her eyes, feeling the not-unpleasant tingle of
magic as the Snow Woman worked in silence. Minutes passed.
"Akane..."
Akane glanced over her shoulder. She usually didn't speak
when the Snow Woman was working, not wanting to disrupt her
concentration. She was surprised that Yuki-onna was addressing
her. "Yes?" she asked.
She suddenly felt the tingle of magic stop as the Snow
Woman's hands went still. She turned. "Is something wrong?" she
asked, worried. Yuki-onna was looking at her with a strange,
pensive expression. She had never seen such an expression on the
Snow Woman's smooth white face before. "What is it?" she asked,
her apprehension growing. Maybe there was something wrong with
the blood spell...
"Akane..." said the Snow Woman, her eyes shimmering with
some unidentifiable emotion. "Do you... do you like it here?"
Akane sighed with relief and smiled, reaching out to take
Yuki-onna's hand in her own. "Of course I do," she said. "I've
learned so much from Masakazu-sensei; and you... you've been so
kind to me. Almost like a mother..." Akane broke off as tears
suddenly brimmed in the Snow Woman's eyes, sliding down her face
and freezing into ice crystals.
Akane panicked, her brows creasing over her brown eyes in
concern. She had never seen the Snow Woman cry before. "I'm
sorry, did I say something wrong?"
The Snow Woman brushed the ice crystals from her face with a
slim, white hand, and she smiled tremulously. "No, dear," she
said, giving Akane's hand a squeeze. "You didn't say anything
wrong. I... I'm glad you like it here." She motioned for Akane
to turn around so she could resume her work. Akane complied, a
relieved, but slightly puzzled expression on her face.
"Don't worry, Akane," Yuki-onna said softly. "I'll get to
that stubborn wisp of dragon blood. Then, when I remove it,
everything will be fine."
--------------------
Akane started awake, bolting upright, her hand reaching to
clutch the hilt of the katana at her side as something... not
right... intruded on her awareness. Immediately, instinctively,
she slid out of her futon, moving swiftly and silently from her
room and into the crystalline corridors of the Snow Woman's home.
She paused in the main hall, where the entrance and three
separate hallways intersected. Standing barefoot in her white
pajamas, holding her katana aloft, her dark shoulder-length hair
sticking out in a pillow-messed, static halo around her face, she
listened carefully. Extending her senses in the unique way
Masakazu had taught her, she tried to pinpoint where the
unnatural intrusion was coming from.
She frowned, her brows creasing over her brown eyes.
Whatever it was, it wasn't an oni. Oni were loud and raucous,
and into destroying whatever lay in between them and their
desired goal. Not to mention their very distinctive smell --
reminiscent of burning hair -- that gave them away every time.
*Is it a demon?* she wondered, tensing, trying in vain to
recapture the sensation she'd felt upon waking. Demons came in
all shapes and sizes, and could be quite silent and sneaky -- and
scent-less -- when they wanted to be. But no, it didn't feel
like a demon, either. She could always tell whenever a demon was
around by the tight, almost suffocating feeling in her chest, and
the way her pulse always shot up a few notches in physical
response to their presence. She wasn't feeling anything like
that.
Still, *something* had woken her up out of a sound sleep.
If it wasn't an attack, then what was it?
She headed for Yuki-onna's chambers, the way she always did
whenever she sensed something was wrong. After all, whenever
something intruded into the Snow Woman's realm, it was usually
coming after the Snow Woman herself.
The past few days, though, there had been instances when
lustful invaders, while battling Akane to get to the Snow Woman,
had figured one woman was just as good as another. More and more
often, Akane found that she was defending herself almost as much
as she was preventing the carnal denizens of the Kami plane from
reaching her friend. In a strange way, the battles brought back
memories of mornings at Furinkan High after Kuno had issued that
stupid challenge to the male population of the student body.
Of course, demons and oni were much more difficult to defeat
in combat than a bunch of hormone-crazed high school boys. But
they were nothing she couldn't handle with her new skills.
Akane frowned as she approached Yuki-onna's quarters. The
feeling that something was not right still niggled at the back of
her mind, yet she could find no sign of any of the normal threats
that she usually faced. Not a demon or an oni in sight. Still,
she didn't discount the possibility that it could be some kind of
trap to lull her into relaxing her defenses.
She stopped outside the Snow Woman's door and knocked
softly. "Yuki-san?" she called. It was customary for the Snow
Woman to stay in her quarters when a threat was evident, for
there she could have the time to summon enough power to defend
herself, should it come to that.
It was silent inside. Akane slid the door open. The room
was dark. "Yuki-san? Are you alright?"
No answer. Panic began to build in Akane's chest. What if
a demon had somehow slipped past her and had managed to abduct
Yuki-onna? She would have failed in defending and protecting the
woman who trusted her, who had become her friend and confidant
over the past nine months; the woman who was her only hope to
remove the blood spell that bound her to the Kami realm.
"Yuki-san?! Where are you?" Akane focused her ki, and her
katana blazed with blue light. She held it aloft, lighting the
room. The room was empty. There was no sign of the Snow Woman.
*Oh no! Where...?*
She saw a movement out of the corner of her eye, and she
turned, sword ready, only to see that it was her own reflection
in the oval full-length mirror that stood in the corner of the
room. Akane saw herself, looking like a ghost in her white
pajamas, lit by the blue light of her ki, her mussed hair falling
past her shoulders, a strange reminder of the time that had
passed since she came to the Kami plane.
Fear and worry clawing at her mind, Akane turned to the
door, ready to run to outside and start searching the snowy,
barren landscape for her friend, when...
She froze. There it was; the sound that had roused her from
sleep. A soft wailing, faint and ethereal...
Akane swallowed, her brown eyes huge and scared. "Yuki-
san?" she whispered. *It's her... Where is she?*
A wail... sobbing... whispering through the room without
direction.
"Yuki-san!" Akane called, her voice echoing off the icy
walls.
The whispering wail again. It sounded so sad, so
desperate... Akane felt tears of helplessness spill down her
cheeks as she strained to hear, trying to locate its source.
"Yuki-san, please, answer me!"
"...oh please..." A voice. The Snow Woman's, so faint, so
distant and full of such pain. "... my little ones, my babies...
oh my lost ones..." The despairing cry echoed and ebbed from
nowhere.
"... my lost little ones..."
Akane stood, her katana hanging limp in her hand, her face
stricken in shock. She felt a familiar presence behind her, and
turned.
"Go back to bed, Akane-chan," said Masakazu, standing in the
doorway. "There is nothing you can do for her, not tonight."
Akane swallowed. "Where is she? Is she alright?"
"She is fine. You do not need to worry about protecting her
this night, or any night you awake sensing this... disturbance."
"She..." Akane's face twisted in sympathetic grief as the
evidence of her friend's suffering faintly reached her ears.
"She was... a mother?"
The tengu peered at her, as if carefully considering
something. Akane felt as if he was staring right into her soul,
and she shivered.
At last, he nodded. "Long ago. She fell in love with a
young woodcutter, whose life she spared when he... when he should
have frozen to death after he got lost in a snow storm. She gave
up everything to be with him. She lived as a mortal by his side,
and they had two children, both daughters, whom she loved more
than life itself. But the man... betrayed her... and in doing
so, broke the spell that allowed her to stay as a mortal in the
mortal plane. She was separated from both him and her children.
She never saw them again. Her daughters grew old and died
without knowing her. Some nights..."
The tengu trailed off as another faint sob whispered through
the room.
He bowed his head. "Some nights..." he continued softly,
"she returns to the mortal plane. Wherever the land is bitter
cold, she goes there and becomes one with the storm and the wind,
and mourns for her lost children. And on some nights, like
tonight, her grief spans the barriers between the planes."
Akane was speechless. There was nothing to say, no words
that could bring comfort to the pain she heard in the voice that
was so familiar, yet so alien. Tears slid down her cheeks as,
once again, the haunting wail echoed faintly in the room.
"Go to bed, Akane-chan. She will be back in the morning.
But do not mention this to her. It is not a subject she likes to
discuss."
Akane swallowed and nodded numbly. She wiped her tears on
her sleeve and, clutching her katana's hilt to her chest, walked
quietly back to her room.
*I can keep demons from reaching Yuki-san,* she thought
sadly, as she slid back into her futon and stared at the ceiling,
*but how can I help her with the demons that already have a hold
on her?*
--------------------
Cologne found the bugs right after Nabiki left the
Nekohanten, the girl's ultimatum still ringing in her ears. The
ancient Amazon trembled with fury, a fury that grew as she went
from room to room, searching, finding bugs in every single room
in both the restaurant and the living quarters. And she still
wasn't sure she'd found them all. The fact that she had been so
outmaneuvered galled her more than anything she'd ever
experienced in her life. Perhaps if they had spoken in
Chinese... But no, that pest of a girl probably had a translator
for just such an occasion.
Still, there was a chance...
When Shampoo returned from deliveries, Cologne motioned her
into silence. The purple-haired Amazon paled at the look on her
great-grandmother's face, but obeyed as she followed the old
woman out of the restaurant. They took to the roofs and crossed
half of Nerima district before coming to rest on the roof a house
in a quiet neighborhood. There, Cologne, her anger barely
contained, told the girl what had transpired.
Shampoo began to sob. "Aiya. It no work now. If you cast
spell to bring Akane back now, things just like before."
"Quit your childish crying, Shampoo," snapped Cologne.
"There is still a chance to salvage our plan." From her robes,
she pulled a small bottle with the label "110." Shampoo's
sobbing ceased when she saw it, and she took it from Cologne's
hands, a gleam appearing in her eyes.
"That sneaky Tendo girl will be back for our answer in less
than an hour," said Cologne. "When she comes, use this to erase
her memory of the tape's existence. If she doesn't remember it,
she can't tell her people to play it for Son-in-law. And nothing
will happen to her -- physically, that is -- so her people won't
know anything is wrong."
Shampoo nodded. "That good plan," she said.
Nabiki, however, was prepared.
When she walked into the Nekohanten for the third time that
day, she found both Cologne and Shampoo waiting for her. Shampoo
was looking at her with an expression usually reserved for cats
about to pounce on their prey, and in one hand she held a small
bottle and a comb. She tensed to leap at Nabiki when suddenly, a
beeping sound came from Nabiki's pocket. Nabiki held up her
hand, and Shampoo paused uncertainly, her eyes wide, wondering
what strange trick the Tendo girl had up her sleeve.
Nabiki pulled out a small cellular phone from her jacket
pocket. "Excuse me a moment," she said, lowering her hand and
smiling with saccharine sweetness at Cologne and Shampoo. She
flipped the phone open and held it to her ear. "Yes, I'm in.
Everything checks out okay," she said, deliberately looking at
the bottle in Shampoo's hand. "Hold the release of the tape for
another hour. We'll speak again then, and you'll get my
instructions. And you'll know what to do if anything... strange
happens. All right. In an hour then. Bye."
She closed the phone and slid it back into her pocket. She
turned to Shampoo. "You planning on doing something with that?"
she asked, her eyes wide and innocent as she looked at the bottle
and comb in the Amazon's hand.
Shampoo felt numb. It was all over. She had lost. After
all that she had done, after the Ancient One, the demons, and the
blood price, she had lost. Ranma would never willingly be her
husband; not if they were forced to bring Akane back. "Shampoo
not know what you talking," she said lifelessly. "Shampoo just
on way to take shower."
Nabiki smirked. "Of course." She turned to Cologne.
"Well, what will it be, old ghoul? Do you bring my sister back,
safe and unharmed physically, mentally, *and* without any weird
magical side-effects, or does Ranma get an ear-full of how you
got rid of her to trap him?"
Cologne seethed. She longed to reach out and break the
girl's neck with a flick of her finger. All the numerous and
diverse ways to kill a person, both painlessly and... not so...
flashed through her mind. She could do it. She could kill the
girl, and then she and Shampoo could flee to China to escape the
repercussions of the act. Perhaps even make it appear as if that
fool boy Mousse was responsible.
But then there would be no going home. To go back to the
tribe, having failed to return with Ranma, Shampoo's known
husband by law, especially after resorting to such serious
magic... For such dishonor, they would be banished, or worse.
On the other hand...
Cologne peered at Nabiki intently. The girl seemed to have
an agenda all her own. She only cared about getting Akane back.
It didn't seem to matter to her whether or not Ranma heard the
truth that was on the tapes. Hmm. If she *did* cast the spell
to bring back that troublesome girl...
"If I bring Akane back," she said slowly, "do you swear that
Ranma shall never know about Shampoo's and my involvement with
the blood spell?"
Nabiki looked at her coolly. "I already told you the terms.
You bring Akane back, and Ranma never finds out what's on those
tapes."
Cologne nodded slightly, noting to herself that Nabiki made
no stipulations about Son-in-law finding out through some other
means.
"If there is *any* chance of him finding out about our
involvement, we lose everything we have invested in the boy," she
replied. "Returning your sister will set us back to square one,
which is inconvenient, considering the work we've done to remove
the obstacles to Son-in-law's heart. But it's not something we
couldn't deal with... eventually."
Nabiki's eyes narrowed at the veiled threat, but she
recognized the offer as well. She pursed her lips thoughtfully.
"All right," she said. "Try this on for size. You bring back
Akane, and swear that you will never do anything to hurt or
enchant or displace either her or any member of my family again,
and I will use my... talents... to make sure that Ranma never
finds out that you and Shampoo had anything to do with the blood
spell."
Shampoo listened to the exchange, a small spark of hope
igniting in her heart once again.
Cologne considered the offer carefully. With Akane back in
the picture, she knew it would be next to impossible to get Ranma
to marry Shampoo willingly. That was a dream her great
granddaughter would have to live without. Still, Nabiki's terms
may prevent her from interfering with the Tendos, but didn't say
anything about including Ranma in the deal.
Nabiki was leaving Son-in-law open as fair game. And
Cologne could tell by the look in her eyes that the girl knew it.
That was the deal.
Resolved, she looked Nabiki in the eye. "I agree to your
terms," she said. "Bring Ranma here tonight, and we will return
your sister to you."
Nabiki's eyes glinted brightly from under lowered lids.
"Nice doing business with you," she said, smiling.
--------------------
Ranma woke up feeling better than he had in a long time.
Physically, that is.
The first thing that surfaced in his mind as he came out of
sleep was the thought that he had to find Akane. The thought
pierced through his soul with such anguished intensity that he
felt guilty for having slept at all when he should be searching
for a way to get her back.
Then he noticed that... something was missing...
*What..?* he thought. Then he realized. The spell voices.
The constant babble that he had forced to the back of his mind so
that he could think clearly, keeping them there by sheer will,
were gone.
*Gone... How?* He didn't know whether to be glad or
worried. Did that mean that the spell was broken? And if the
spell was broken, then did that mean that Akane might have come
back..?
Ranma leaped out of his futon before the thought was even
finished, almost tripping on his tangled blankets, burst out of
the bedroom door, and tore down the stairs. He stopped short in
the living room where Nabiki, Ukyo and Ryoga sat in a circle
playing poker. They stared at him with wide eyes.
"Is she here?" he asked breathlessly.
Ukyo blinked. "Is who here, Ranchan?"
Ranma's heart sank, and the hopeful expression on his face
imploded. He ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "N...
Never mind. I thought Akane might have come back, that's all."
"What made you think that?" asked Nabiki, looking at him
curiously.
"The spell voices," he said, pointing to his head. "They're
gone. I don't know how or why, but I don't hear them anymore. I
was hoping..."
*The spell voices are gone?* thought Nabiki. *That's
strange. But maybe Shampoo only wanted it to be temporary. I
guess she realized having a husband who hears voices in his head
isn't such a great thing.*
"It's about time you woke up, Saotome," said Ryoga
critically, his arms folded across his chest. "We've been
waiting for hours. Nabiki," he said, casting her an evil glance,
"has something to tell you."
Nabiki ignored the crusty look from Ryoga and looked at
Ranma. "That's right. I went over to the Nekohanten this
afternoon, and found out that Cologne has already found a spell
that can get Akane back." She smiled guilessly and put on her
best Kasumi expression. "Imagine that!"
Ranma blinked. He looked out the window and noticed the sun
was hanging low in the western sky. He turned back to Nabiki.
"You... you knew this afternoon, and you didn't wake me up?!"
Ryoga threw up his hands. "That's what *I've* been saying!"
"Oh, be quiet, you two. Ranma, you needed to sleep and get
your strength back. Now that you're rested, we'll all go.
Together," said Nabiki firmly, stopping Ranma as he turned to run
out the door. "You may as well stick around, because Cologne
knows not to start the spell until I get there anyway."
Ranma turned back, growling in frustration, and glared at
Nabiki. "And why is that?" he asked, disgruntled.
"Oh, just a little deal I worked out with her, to make sure
I didn't miss any of the action this time," she answered
smoothly.
"Well then," said Ranma impatiently. "We're all here.
Let's get going."
"One thing, Ranma?" said Nabiki coyly.
"What is it? We're wasting time standing here!"
She pointed at him. "You might want to consider getting
dressed first."
Ranma looked down to see that he was simply wearing his tank
top and boxers. Ukyo burst out laughing at look on his face.
"Ah, jeeze," he muttered, and ran upstairs to change into some
clothes.
Nabiki went over to the phone, picked up the receiver, and
dialed. "Hello, Doctor Tofu? Yes, Ranma's awake, and we're on
our way to the Nekohanten now... Great. We'll see you there."
She hung up the phone.
"Why does Doctor Tofu need to be there," asked Ukyo. "You
don't think something's going to go wrong with the spell, do
you?" There was a strange mixture of apprehension and...
hope?... in her voice.
Nabiki gave her a narrow look, but Ukyo just gazed back at
her. "Doctor Tofu is familiar with how some of those strange
Chinese spells work," she said finally. "Let's just say that I
want him there to make sure everything goes right. You never
know when all that weird archaic knowledge of his is going to
come in handy."
"That's a great idea, Nabiki," said Ryoga enthusiastically.
"No sense in taking chances, after all, especially when it comes
to getting Akane back."
"Yeah," said Ukyo, a little too cheerfully. "It would be a
shame if something were to happen and the spell didn't work."
Nabiki raised an eyebrow at Ukyo and opened her mouth to say
something, but at that moment, Ranma ran down the stairs, wearing
his red sleeveless Chinese shirt and black pants. "Is it okay to
go *now?*" he asked impatiently.
Nabiki smiled sweetly. "But of course, Ranma. After you."
She gestured out the door. Then she noticed that Ranma was
giving her a funny look. "What?" she asked.
"It'll take too long to walk if we have to wait for you," he
said, and in one swift movement, swept her up in his arms.
Nabiki let out a startled, undignified squawk. "What do you
think you're doing?" she exclaimed, but Ranma wasn't listening.
"Come on," he said to Ryoga and Ukyo. "Let's go, Ucchan.
Follow me, Ryoga, and don't get lost." Ranma ran out into the
yard carrying Nabiki in his arms, and leapt from the wall to a
neighboring roof.
Ryoga fumed, but followed close behind nonetheless.
Nabiki gasped as she saw and felt the ground moving away
rapidly leap after leap, and she threw her arms around Ranma's
neck to make sure she didn't slip out of his grasp. After
jumping from rooftop to rooftop for a few moments, and realizing
how solid Ranma's grip was, she relaxed, and allowed a little if
her indignation to dissolve away. She looked into Ranma's face.
He was staring straight ahead, moving with such focused ease, it
was almost as if he didn't realize he was carrying her. And he
had *that* look on his face. The peculiar shimmer in his blue
eyes that said he was thinking about Akane...
Nabiki sighed. She allowed herself a small, self-indulgent
smile as she felt Ranma's sleek muscles moving beneath his shirt
as he ran. *Ah well,* she thought with a mental shrug. *There
are worse ways to travel, I guess.*
Ukyo stood in the Tendo yard, looking after Ranma's rapidly
diminishing form for a moment. The smile on her face had long
since crumbled away, as if a huge weight had settled over her,
crushing it. Then she sighed heavily and leaped to the wall,
following after the man she loved.
*So close...* she thought.
The light of the setting sun reflected off the unshed tears
in her eyes.
--------------------
Ranma swallowed and licked his lips nervously as he sat
cross-legged on the floor of the Nekohanten restaurant. Cologne
knelt on the floor next to him, drawing arcane symbols, and
spreading a thin, musky smelling powder in a circle around him,
occasionally consulting an ancient leather scroll, and muttering
in Chinese. Ranma wondered how she could read the strange
Chinese scrawl in the semi-darkness. The lights were off, and
the blinds had been partially pulled, allowing the last of the
sunset glow to stream in on the proceedings. The tables and
chairs had been cleared out of the way, and his friends, Ryoga,
Ukyo, Shampoo, Mousse and Nabiki, sat on the edge of the room,
watching the proceedings uneasily.
Nabiki seemed especially anxious. She kept looking at the
door as if expecting someone to come through at any moment.
Ranma tried hard not to fidget. He could hardly believe it!
He was going to get Akane back. His chest felt tight as a
plethora of emotions swirled inside him. He was excited and
nervous all at the same time. He was happy and scared to see
Akane again. Was she okay? Would she be glad to see him? Or
would she be angry at him for not being able to save her and
mallet him into the floor?
He cleared his throat. "Uh... How exactly is this supposed
to work?" he asked as Cologne consulted the scroll again. She
glared at him briefly for interrupting her.
"The mechanics of the spell are simple, Ranma. All you have
to do is concentrate on Akane. Focus on her with all your being,
and when the incense is lit and the incantation recited, you will
pull her from wherever she's been sent to."
Nabiki frowned. That seemed *way* too simple...
Shampoo and Ukyo frowned, not liking the idea of Ranma
focusing on Akane with his whole being.
Just then, there was a knock on the screen door. Cologne's
irritation at the interruptions grew. "Now who could that be?
The sign says we're closed."
Nabiki stood, not allowing the relief she felt to show on
her face. "Oh, that must be Doctor Tofu. I invited him to come
and help you with the spell. I was sure you wouldn't mind.
After all, we're all here to help Ranma and Akane, and give them
our support, aren't we?"
Cologne shot Nabiki a look that would have turned anyone
else into stone. Nabiki returned the gaze steadily.
"Doctor Tofu's here?" asked Ranma. He glanced around out of
habit, just to make sure Kasumi wasn't anywhere around. "That's
great," he said. "Just in case Akane needs help or anything when
she comes back."
Cologne glanced at Ranma, and forced herself to relax.
"Shampoo," she said at last, "go let the man in."
Shampoo nodded and went to unlock the screen door. Tofu
stepped through and blinked a few times as his eyes adjusted to
the dim light. "Hello," he said, bowing to Cologne. "Thank you
for allowing me to come and participate in this. I've read about
the magic of the ancient Chinese Amazons, but I've never had the
opportunity to see that magic in use. This is a priceless
opportunity for me."
Cologne looked up at the young doctor. They sized each
other up for a moment.
Tofu looked at her calmly through his glasses. He was glad
Nabiki had informed him of this little gathering. He'd been a
personal witness to some of the underhanded tricks the ancient
Amazon had pulled on Ranma, such as inflicting him with the Full
Body Cat Tongue so that he couldn't stand to touch the hot water
he needed to change back into a man. Tofu was pleased to hear
that there was a chance to find Akane, but he wasn't sure whether
or not to believe the crone's claims of innocence when it came to
the blood spell, and he wanted to make sure that, in this
instance, she didn't try any dark magic.
"Yesss," said Cologne reluctantly. "Well, we're just about
to begin. So if you'll just step over to the side with the
others..."
"My, this looks impressive," interrupted Tofu, staring at
the chalked symbols on the floor. "And is this the scroll? Mind
if I take a look at it?"
Cologne scowled and held it just out of his grasp. "It's in
ancient Chinese, sonny-boy, you wouldn't understand it anyway."
"Oh, on the contrary. I'm quite fluent in ancient Chinese."
Cologne paled.
"If you let me just glance at the scroll for a moment," he
continued, "that would help me understand what happens when you
actually cast the spell."
Ranma watched the exchange with growing impatience. "Aw,
come on, just let him look at it, he ain't gonna hurt it or
nothing."
Shampoo looked at her great-grandmother, her brows
furrowing. Grandmother had not even allowed *her* to look at the
scroll. What could possibly be on there that she wouldn't want
anyone to see?
Cologne peered at Tofu. "All right," she said, relenting,
much to everyone's surprise. "I trust that when you read it,
you'll know *exactly* what needs to be done for the spell to
succeed."
Tofu took the scroll from the Amazon elder, a puzzled
expression on his face. Then he held it up and scanned it. His
eyes widened as he read the name of the spell, and he glanced
briefly over at Ranma, who was watching him curiously. Then he
scanned the rest of it, his eyes moving up and down quickly. It
took a few minutes for him to read the whole thing. When he
finished, he cleared his throat uneasily.
"Well," he said. Everybody leaned in closer, looking at him
intently. "Yes. That's it then. Very good. So, Ranma, you
know that all you have to do is think of Akane while Cologne
lights the incense and recites the incantation. I guess we can
get on with it." And with that, he went and sat against the wall
between Nabiki and Ryoga. Cologne smiled.
Nabiki leaned over to the doctor. "And what was *that* all
about?" she whispered.
Tofu went to answer, but noticed that Ranma was watching
him, the boy's eyebrows raised in confusion. "It's nothing,
really," he said. "I'll tell you later."
Nabiki scowled. She was dying to know what that scroll
said, and why Doctor Tofu was so reluctant to say anything.
Still, he seemed to think it was okay to proceed with the spell,
so that eased her fears a little. She felt better knowing that
he knew what was going on and could make sure the old ghoul did
it right.
"Are you ready?" Cologne asked Ranma. "Remember, you must
think of nothing but Akane. You must focus on her totally, and
let nothing distract you. Do you think you can do that?"
Ranma snorted. "Jeeze, whaddya think I've been *doing* the
past few days?!"
Cologne frowned, but nodded. "Very well. I will begin the
spell." She walked over to Ranma and passed a withered hand over
his eyes, making him blink his eyes shut. She pressed her
fingers to his eyelids. "Keep your eyes closed," she said
softly, "and concentrate."
Ranma swallowed and nodded silently.
Striking a long match so that it flared brightly in the
growing gloom, Cologne leaned over and lit the circle of incense
that surrounded Ranma. It began to smoulder, sending wafts of
spicy smoke through the room.
Ryoga fought the sudden urge to sneeze, pinching his nose
and holding his breath until the itching sensation passed. His
eyes watered, but he just blinked, and tried to ignore the
burning. There was no way he was going to do anything that might
prevent the spell from bringing Akane back...
He watched as the smoke from the incense thickened the air
in the restaurant. Ranma sat in the circle, his eyes closed, his
breathing focused, his expression one of intense concentration.
Cologne began to chant softly in Chinese.
Shampoo and Mousse strained to hear what Cologne was saying.
Shampoo frowned in frustration. Great-grandmother's voice was so
low, she could only make out the occasional word. *Is that the
way the spell is supposed to be cast?* Shampoo thought. *Or does
she just not want Mousse and I to know what the spell says? Why
would she relent and let Doctor Tofu know, and not me?*
Mousse, on the other hand, with his exceptional hearing,
caught a lot more than just the occasional word. What he heard
made his eyes go wide behind his glasses. Phrases like "true
love," "forever binding," and "eternally linked, overcoming all
barriers."
Mousse felt a slow half-smile grow on his face. No wonder
the old ghoul had been so hesitant to tell anyone, *especially*
Ranma, about the true nature of the spell. From what he could
gather from the crone's mumbling, the spell's power was based on
True Love; more specifically, the True Love that existed between
Ranma and Akane. The power of that link, combined with the magic
of the spell, would draw Akane from wherever she had been sent
and bring her back home.
No wonder Doctor Tofu didn't say anything when he read the
spell. It seemed that *everybody* knew of Ranma and Akane's true
feelings for each other, except for Ranma and Akane. If Ranma
knew the true nature of the spell -- that it was his unconfessed
love for Akane that would bring her home -- his brain would
probably freeze right there, sending him into a blind, stuttering
panic of denial, and then everything would be ruined.
Mousse didn't think that, even if Akane's safe return was on
the line, Ranma would be able to confess his true feelings.
Especially in a room full of people, most of whom would want to
kill him or, at the very least, beat the living daylights out of
him over such a revelation. Besides, Akane had been in serious
danger before and, although Ranma always came to her rescue
without fail, he would *never* admit that he even *liked,* let
alone *loved* her. Whenever it seemed as if he was about to say
those three little words, they always turned out to be "macho
kawaikunee tomboy."
Still, if this spell succeeded, it could change
everything...
Mousse leaned back against the wall, his arms folded over
his chest, and smiled. No way was he going to do anything that
might interfere in this spell. With Ranma and Akane back
together, and the true nature of the spell revealed, Shampoo was
practically his.
Cologne continued her low chant, and as the soft, barely
audible words filled the air, the incense smoke began to curl and
waft around Ranma. Ranma, his mind completely focused on Akane,
didn't even notice as it slowly swirled around him, clinging to
his skin like a living thing. He breathed it in through his
nose, and as the smoke filled his head, the mental picture of
Akane in his mind came into even sharper focus than before. It
was like she was standing in front of him, so real, that he felt
he could open his eyes and she would be standing there.
Then he frowned. There was something different about her.
She seemed happy, and she was smiling in that way that made his
heart flutter inside his chest, but that wasn't it. She was
wearing unusual clothes, and her hair seemed longer than usual.
That was odd, she'd only been gone three days... Some weird
side-effect of the spell, perhaps? Oh well, it didn't matter, as
long as it brought her back to him. Ranma felt a strange
tingling fill his body, especially his heart...
--------------------
Akane was laughing at a funny story the Snow Woman told when
suddenly her smile broke, and she doubled over in pain, her cup
falling from nerveless fingers, splashing tea across the table.
"Akane! What's wrong?" Yuki-onna was immediately by her
side.
"I -- I don't... know," Akane gasped, tears of pain
streaming from her eyes. Her heart felt as though it were being
pulled out through her back. There was a sudden, solid *wrench,*
and Akane screamed as she felt herself being ripped asunder.
Yuki-onna grabbed Akane by the shoulders and focused all her
magic on the girl, placing barriers around her, trying to protect
her from whatever was trying to pull her apart. She concentrated
on the blood spell in Akane's ki, fearing that it was the cause
of her pain, and gasped.
The blood spell was flaring brightly, almost blindingly,
especially the wisp of dragon blood that served as the
transdimensional connection between Akane and her wretched
fiance. Some magic in the mortal plane was trying to pull her
home. But the blood spell was fighting back, refusing to let its
captive go, and in the process, was killing Akane.
*Those *fools!** she thought, her white face a mask of both
rage and concern as she poured her power into building protective
barriers around Akane, trying desperately to block the mortal
magic. *Don't they know that such a spell as this cannot hope to
counteract the effects of a spell cast with dragon blood?!* Her
lips curled into a snarl. The boy Ranma was behind this, she
just knew it. Even separated by dimensions, he still found a way
to hurt Akane.
"Akane, hold on," she said as the girl cried out again.
There had to be a way to stop the mortal spell completely...
The Snow Woman's frost-blue eyes lit with an idea. Swiftly,
she summoned the last scrap of her power, and poured it into the
magical barriers she'd placed around Akane, imbuing them with
reflective properties, sending the spell back to the mortal
plane...
*Heh,* she thought. *This will give that wicked boy a taste
of his own medicine.* With her spell finally in place, Akane
immediately collapsed in relief as pull on her body and soul
abated.
Yuki-onna held Akane close as the girl trembled in reaction.
"W-what was that?" she asked, frightened that the soul-wrenching
pain might return. "What happened?"
The Snow Woman hushed her softly. "It's alright, my child,
it's over. Don't worry about it."
But Akane wasn't in the mood to be comforted. Shakily, she
pushed herself upright. "I *am* worried about it," she said.
"What if it happens again? What *was* it, anyway? I felt like I
was being ripped to--" She stopped short as she suddenly felt a
strange, warm tingle fill her body, especially her heart. Her
brown eyes widened in surprise...
--------------------
Cologne frowned. She had ceased chanting moments ago, but
the spell didn't seem to be working. Akane should have returned
by now. She glanced at Ranma. The boy was concentrating so hard
that beads of sweat stood out on his brow. The others, still
sitting against the wall, were beginning to fidget uncomfortably
and cast nervous glances at each other. Her eyes narrowed.
Could it be that she overestimated Ranma's feelings for Akane?
The spell would only work with True Love...
If that was the case, then that meant Shampoo might still
have a chance to win Ranma. Of course, if the spell didn't work,
then Nabiki would play that damned tape and, True Love or no,
Ranma wouldn't have anything to do with Shampoo after that.
Cologne began to sweat. The only other way she knew to get
Akane back was by breaking the blood spell itself, and such a
feat was far beyond her power...
Ranma sat in the silence, concentrating on Akane with all
his heart, willing her to come back to him. But he knew, with a
sinking sensation in his chest, that the spell hadn't worked.
Maybe it was because he hadn't focused hard enough. Tears began
to leak from his closed eyelids. *Akane,* he thought, fighting
the sob that was rising in his throat, threatening to break
loose, *please come back! I... I need you...*
The thought was cut off, and he flinched as a jolt of pain
abruptly stabbed through his body. The image of Akane shattered
in his mind, and his eyes flew open as wave after wave of tearing
agony suddenly washed over him. He looked at Cologne, who was
staring back at him in surprise, and opened his mouth, but the
pain was so great, he couldn't make a sound; he simply collapsed
onto his side, curled into a fetal position, trembling in pain
and torment as he felt himself breaking apart, body and soul.
"Ranchan!" Ukyo leaped to her feet to run to Ranma's side,
but Tofu jumped up and restrained her.
"Don't just rush into the middle of the spell," he said,
holding her. "You might make things worse!" That stopped her
but didn't erase the fear on her face. By this time, everyone
was standing, just outside the spell boundaries, wanting to help,
but not knowing what to do. Tofu looked at Ranma's ki. "The
blood spell... Oh no.."
"What's happening?" demanded Nabiki, glaring at Cologne.
"I don't know!" Cologne was shaken, and everyone could
tell. "I don't know what's causing this! Akane should be pulled
here from wherever she's been sent--"
"The blood spell!" said Doctor Tofu. "The blood spell is
fighting back! It's trying to keep Ranma and Akane apart! It
won't allow the True Love spell to work!"
"The *WHAT* spell?!" yelled Ukyo, Ryoga and Shampoo
simultaneously.
Then Ranma began to fade out of existence.
"Great-grandmother!" Shampoo screamed, "*do* something!"
Cologne hesitated only a moment. "Quickly!" she said to the
others, "erase the symbols on the floor! You, lost boy! Open
the door and the windows to air out the incense!" It was
dangerous, so dangerous to mess with the spell elements while its
power was still active, but she could see no other option to save
Ranma...
Shampoo rushed to the kitchen and was back a moment later
with dishtowels. Immediately, Tofu, Nabiki, Ukyo and Mousse were
on their knees, rubbing away at the arcane symbols of the spell.
Ryoga opened the doors and windows, and Cologne whirled her
staff, creating a wind that blew the choking incense smoke from
the room. Then they turned to the still fading form of the boy
who had affected each of their lives so deeply, to see if their
efforts had helped.
Ranma was completely transparent. He seemed to hover like a
ghost on the edge of reality, curled on his side, his eyes
clenched with pain. Then he opened his eyes and looked up, his
eyes focusing on the air a few feet in front of him. Slowly, in
spite of the agony that coursed through his being, he uncurled
himself and reached out with an intangible arm. He opened his
mouth and whispered a single, hoarse word. "Akane...?"
--------------------
The Snow Woman looked at Akane in concern, as the girl broke
off her sentence. "What is it? Are you alright?"
Akane didn't answer. She looked down at the back of her
hands as the tingle throughout her body grew stronger. Her heart
began to pound, not painfully as it had a few moments before,
when she felt as if she was being ripped to shreds by some
unknown force, but... almost in anticipation..?
A crackle of energy split through the room, causing her to
jump in surprise.
The Snow Woman let out a startled gasp. "No! It can't
be..." *My reflection spell! It's pulling him through the
barrier instead of Akane!*
"What's happening?" asked Akane. She had experienced
strange things since she had come to the Kami plane, but nothing
like *this*...
Something began to appear on the floor a few feet away from
her. She stepped away from it in alarm. What was it? A spirit?
Was this another attack? In an instant, her katana was in her
hand, blazing with blue ki, and she moved towards it.
"Wait! Akane, no!" Akane was startled by the urgency in
the Snow Woman's voice, but didn't take her eyes off the slowly
solidifying object.
"Don't worry, whatever it is, it won't..." She stopped, her
voice catching in her throat. The ghostly image was a figure...
a boy, curled on his side, as if in a terrible amount of pain.
He was wearing black pants and a... red silk shirt...
Akane felt the blood drain from her face. The sword fell
from her hand.
... dark hair, braided into a pigtail...
"R... Ranma?" Her voice was so soft, she thought she'd
mouthed the word. But he seemed to hear her. Slowly, he opened
his eyes and looked at her.
His eyes! They were as blue and beautiful as she
remembered, in spite of the pain that she saw reflected in them.
An expression of indescribable happiness flickered across his
face, fighting with the pain, and he slowly uncurled himself,
reaching out a transparent arm towards her. "Akane..?"
Akane stumbled forward a few steps and sank to her knees.
"Oh Ranma," she whispered, tears streaming down her cheeks.
She couldn't think of anything else to say. After all the
hours and days and weeks she'd spent daydreaming of what she
might say if she ever got to see Ranma again, she couldn't think
of a single thing. Almost two whole years had gone by, and she
had been so sure that Ranma had long since forgotten her and
married one of his other fiancees...
"Akane..." The word was a gasp of pain, and both Ranma and
Akane flinched at his agony. "I... I'm sorry..."
Akane began to sob quietly. "R-Ranma, *I'm* s-sorry..."
Suddenly she remembered. The most important thing she
wanted to tell him. "I'm sorry... I never told you that I l-love
you..."
She looked at his ghostly form anxiously, expecting some
type of off-the-cuff response, but was surprised to see Ranma
looking at her in shock, his pain forgotten even though he was
still torn between two planes of existence.
"Really?" he whispered.
Akane's throat closed off with a sob. She nodded
vehemently.
His expression softened, and his eyes warmed with inner
light. "Akane, I-- "
There was a crackle of energy, and Ranma's words choked into
a strangled cry as the dimensional pull on his body suddenly
reversed itself. He began to fade from Akane's sight the same
way he appeared.
"Ranma!" she screamed. She was losing him again! She
couldn't..! He had come for her, how could this be happening?!
Ranma looked up, tears of agony and despair streaming from
his eyes as he felt himself being pulled back to the Nekohanten.
"Akane," he choked through the pain. "W-where are you?"
"I'm in the Kami plane, Ranma!" She hoped he could
understand her, she was crying so hard. "I'm with Yuki-onna, the
Snow Woman!"
She could barely see the outline of his form. "I-I'll
f-find you." His sobbing voice came to her as if from a great
distance. "Akane..."
And he was gone.
A moment passed, and Akane heard footsteps behind her as the
Snow Woman walked away, slowly, deliberately.
Akane sat, her arms wrapped around her knees, and shook with
silent sobs.
--------------------
End of Part Eight
The characters of the Ranma 1/2 universe are the sole creation
and possession of the brilliant Rumiko Takahashi.
-----------------------------
Hearts of Ice
Part 9: Memory and Mayhem
by Krista Perry
-----------------------------
Akane was in the Kami plane. Ranma now knew where she was,
and a small spark of hope lanced through the despair that filled
him as he felt himself painfully wrenched and twisted by the
fighting spells -- one sending him to Akane's side, the other
forcing the two of them apart.
He thought at first that perhaps Cologne's spell would win.
He could see Akane; hear her. She had spoken to him and said
words he thought he'd never hear. Words that filled him with an
unexpected joy that overwhelmed the physical pain of being torn
between two dimensions.
But suddenly, the tide turned and now the blood spell was
winning. Akane's beautiful, tear-stained face was fading from
his sight. *No!!* he thought fiercely, fighting to stay. But it
was no use. Akane reached out to him, her face a pale mask of
anguish. Her look of despair pierced Ranma to the heart.
"I-I'll f-find you." Ranma sobbed the promise with all his
strength through the blinding pain that engulfed him. The blood
spell was pulling him back, he was losing her again. He
*couldn't* lose her again! Not when he had found her! He
reached out desperately. "Akane..."
And then, as quickly as it had come, the tearing,
soul-wrenching pain left him. Ranma gasped and collapsed forward
onto the floor of the Nekohanten.
He lay still for a moment, his chest heaving as he gulped
air into his now-solid lungs. Then, slowly, shakily, as if
afraid the shattering pain might return, he pushed himself up to
his hands and knees. His head hung limply against his chest, and
tears ran unheeded down his face to splatter lightly on the
floor.
*Akane...*
Cologne, Tofu, and the others looked on in stunned silence.
They had pulled Ranma back by nullifying the effects of the True
Love spell, allowing the blood spell to once again pull him back
through the dimensional barrier.
Now, watching Ranma, Tofu wondered if they'd done the right
thing. The True Love spell had worked, albeit in reverse.
Instead of summoning Akane to Ranma's side, Ranma had been pulled
to her instead. They had all watched in amazed silence as a
transparent Ranma spoke with an unseen, unheard Akane. Watching
his suffering -- both physical as the dimensional forces
threatened to tear him apart, and emotional as he lost Akane once
again -- left each of them feeling hollow in a different way.
Some in sympathy. Some in self-pity.
Ukyo didn't know what to feel. Tears ran down her cheeks as
she moved hesitantly towards Ranma's shaking form. "R...Ranchan?
Are... are you okay?"
"I saw her, Ucchan," he whispered, his eyes closed. "She
was *right there,* in front of me, and I couldn't *do* anything."
A small, almost silent sob escaped Ukyo's throat. She
couldn't tell if it was because she hated seeing Ranchan
suffer, or because, once again, she had seen him display unvoiced
love...for Akane.
Shampoo stood numbly as she looked at Ranma. Mousse stood
behind her. She could feel his myopic gaze on her back; could
feel his almost tangible desire to reach out and comfort her.
But he did nothing. Shampoo didn't know whether to feel relieved
or... sad. Her eyes still burned from watching the scene that
had unfolded a moment before; watching as her dreams of having
strong, handsome Ranma as her willing husband crumble to dust.
Her hands tingled, and her heart felt frozen in her chest.
Ryoga swallowed audibly and knelt down next to Ukyo.
"So...so you talked to... to Akane?" he asked Ranma, not willing
to think about... anything else. "Is she okay? What did she
say?"
Ranma leaned back and sat on his heels, wiping his eyes with
the back of his hand, not meeting anyone's gaze. "She..."
*She told me that she... loves me.*
*Akane *loves* me.*
The thought sent such a mixed surge of happiness and grief
through him that his chest felt tight and the tears threatened
again. He swallowed hard and turned to face the others.
"She told me where she is."
"*What?!*" Ryoga reached out and grabbed Ranma by the front
of his shirt, his eyes wide and anxious. "Where?! Where is
she?!"
Ranma didn't even react to Ryoga's manhandling. "She's in
the Kami Plane," he said softly.
The room fell into stunned silence. Cologne's eyes went
wide.
"The... Kami Plane?" whispered Ryoga, releasing Ranma's
shirt.
Ranma nodded, but his eyes were unfocused as he stared past
Ryoga's shoulder at nothing. "I have to find a way to get
there..."
Unnoticed by all, Cologne's amazement dissolved into a slow,
wicked smile. *The Kami Plane,* she thought with a mental
chuckle. *Well. Who would have thought that the blood spell
would send her *there.* All may not be lost after all.* She cast
a subversive glance at Nabiki, who was staring at Ranma in
disbelief, and her eyes lit with triumph. *Akane is well and
truly beyond their reach if she's in the Kami plane. And
soon...*
"Ranma, I think I can help you," she said. Everyone turned
to Cologne with hope on their faces, except for Nabiki. She
regarded the crone with open hostility burning in her eyes.
*You didn't fulfill your part of the bargain, you old
witch,* Nabiki thought, glaring directly at Cologne. *Not only
that, but now I know you sent Akane to the *Kami Plane.* This
had better be good, or you *know* what the consequences will be.*
Cologne simply nodded slightly, as if acknowledging the
unspoken, yet clearly understood threat without any real worry.
Ranma looked at Cologne, his face serious. "Can you try and
cast that spell again? It almost worked. I almost made it."
"Are you crazy, Ranchan?!" shouted Ukyo. "That thing almost
killed you!"
Ranma looked at her and smiled slightly. "Aw, come
on, Ucchan. You know I'm tougher than that."
"I'm afraid she's right," said Cologne. "The blood spell
reacted much more violently to my magic than I thought it would.
It's a good thing that the spell tried to send you instead of
summoning Akane. She doesn't have your constitution, and might
not have fared as well, even had we stopped the spell in time."
"I wonder why it did that," said Tofu, looking down at the
smeared remnants of the spell on the floor. "Sending Ranma
instead of bringing Akane."
"I'm not completely sure," answered Cologne, "but I suspect
there was some interference from the Kami Plane."
Ranma's head jerked up. "Interference?" he asked. "What do
you mean?"
Cologne frowned. "I mean that if Akane really is in the
Kami Plane, some kind of spirit or demon may have altered the
spell."
"What?!" yelled Ranma. He jumped to his feet and looked
down at the old Amazon. "Whaddya mean 'demon?!'" Fear gripped
his heart at the thought of Akane being in the hands of some evil
supernatural entity. No *way* could that clumsy slowpoke tomboy
stand up to something like that!
Then he blinked in surprise, and the fear in his heart
seemed to spread through his body. His eyes went wide in horror
as realization hit him. "The Snow Woman," whispered Ranma,
remembering Akane's last words to him.
"What was that?" asked Cologne.
Ranma didn't hear her. An image came to his mind, an image
from his dream from the night before -- his dream of a ghastly
white Akane freezing him to death, cold seeping from her long
white fingers into his chest. His dream where, when he had
forced the words "I love you" from his frozen lungs, she had
changed. Changed into a strange white-skinned woman with flowing
white hair and ice-blue eyes...
He had seen that same woman standing behind Akane.
*Oh no...*
Ryoga saw the look on Ranma's face, and felt a hard core of
dread settle in his stomach. "What? What is it, Ranma? You
know something, don't you?!"
"Akane," said Ranma, turning to face his rival as his voice
rose in panic. "She's with some weird lady in the Kami Plane
called the Snow Woman. I... I think she's a spirit or a demon
or something."
"What?!" A faint flicker of blue-green ki began to glow
around Ryoga's form. Ukyo, Mousse, Shampoo and the others began
to back away from him in alarm. "Ranma! How could you leave
Akane in the hands of a demon?!"
Ranma's eyes sparked with anger, his own ki blazing in
response. "Hey, pig-boy! I didn't have much of a choice! You
guys were the ones who screwed up the spell on this end,
remember?" He gestured to the smeared floor. "I didn't *want*
to leave her!" he yelled, his throat thickening. Ranma began to
tremble with emotion, and his eyes moistened as the ache of grief
joined his anger. His fists clenched at his sides, and his ki
burned bluer than Ryoga's.
"I didn't *WANT* to leave her!!"
The force of Ranma's emotion made Ryoga blink in surprise,
and he realized he had overstepped his boundaries. He took a
step back in shock as he recognized a despair equal to if not
greater than his own in his rival's face. "H-hey, Ranma, I... I
didn't mean..."
Fortunately, Tofu stepped in before Ranma could incinerate
them all with a Shishi Houkodan. "Hey, none of that!" he said
firmly, stepping forward, yet not quite between the two
combatants. "Ranma, Ryoga, settle down. I know you're both very
upset. We all are. But now is not the time or place for a
fight." He stood there, his hands gesturing for peace, looking
Ranma in the eyes, practically willing the boy to calm down.
Ranma returned the gaze, trembling in anger, his brow
furrowed over glistening eyes as he fought back tears. But Tofu
was like Kasumi in that it was difficult to refuse either of them
anything. Finally, Ranma relaxed slightly and blinked, the glow
of his ki fading.
Tofu breathed a sigh of relief that was echoed by the others
in the room, especially Ryoga. "That's better," he said. "Now
what was it that you said before? Did you say Akane was with the
Snow Woman?" Tofu raised his eyebrows inquisitively. "Not the
Snow Woman from the old fairy tales?"
Ranma looked at him blankly. His father hadn't read many
fairy tales to him while he was growing up on the road. He drew
a shaky breath and tried to focus himself as he fought to reign
in his emotions. "I don't know," he replied at last, "but I
think I saw her. She had really white skin and long white hair.
She was standing behind Akane."
*And... I think she tried to kill me last night,* he added
silently, not wanting to voice that particular fear. After all,
it was only a dream, right? Surely he would have been able to
tell if he'd actually nearly frozen to death during the night.
He turned to Cologne. "You said you can help me. If we can't do
that spell again, isn't there something else you can do? Do you
know how to get me to the Kami Plane?"
Cologne glanced at Nabiki from the corner of her eye. The
Tendo girl had her arms folded severely across her chest, and her
expression was full of the unspoken threat she had every
intention of fulfilling if Cologne didn't do everything possible
to save her sister. Cologne closed her eyes briefly.
This would have to be good.
She raised her head and looked at Ranma. "There is an
ancient treasure among my people known as the Eye of Spirit, or
Eye of Kami. It is a stone of great power which has been passed
down through our tribe since the time of the first Amazon. Its
power is such that it may be able to overcome the blood spell and
send you to the Kami Plane to retrieve Akane safely."
Ranma blinked. So did Shampoo. She'd never heard of any
"Eye of Kami" before... What was great-grandmother up to?
"Why didn't you say so?" said Ranma anxiously. "Let's go
get it!"
"Unfortunately, it's in China." Cologne turned and met
Nabiki's narrowed gaze. "And I must retrieve it alone," she said
before Ranma had the chance to start an expedition. Both Ranma
and Ryoga deflated at her words.
"The other elders of the tribe will not be happy to
relinquish such a sacred treasure into my care to help outsiders,
but I believe I can persuade them. Give me five days. Five days
and I will return with the stone. Then we will get Akane back."
"Five days?!" Ranma groaned. Who knew what horrible things
the Snow Woman would do to Akane in five days?
"I'm sorry, Ranma." Cologne once again glanced at Nabiki,
who looked *slightly* mollified, yet still angry. "If I can be
back sooner, I will. In the meantime, you must be patient."
Ranma grit his teeth. Patience had never been his strong
suit.
--------------------
"Five days," said Nabiki. She stood outside the doors of
the Nekohanten in the cool spring evening and gazed at the old
ghoul with barely subdued fury. The others had left a few
minutes earlier, since it seemed nothing else could be done.
Mousse and Shampoo were inside cleaning up the smeared spell mess
on the floor. "That's it. If you're not back in five days,
Ranma hears the tape. And if this so-called 'Eye of Kami'
doesn't work, Ranma hears the tape. This is your last chance."
Cologne's mouth twitched into a slight half smile. "And
what if, by some chance, it *does* fail? You play the tape for
Ranma, and poor Akane is still trapped in the Kami Plane without
any way to save her."
Nabiki smirked. "I think it's a pretty safe guess after
what we saw tonight that Ranma will never give up until he finds
a way to bring Akane back. If you can't do it, we'll find
someone who can. As I said before, it doesn't matter to me
whether or not Ranma hears that tape. I don't care if he hates
you and Shampoo or not. He's a big boy, he can take care of
himself."
Cologne blinked.
Nabiki leaned forward and looked down at the withered
Amazon. "Five days. This is your last chance to stay on Ranma's
*good* side. After that, if Akane's not back, you can wave
goodbye to... well, mortal existence probably. After his
demonstration this evening, I'd place the odds 50 to 1 that Ranma
could produce a depression ki blast that would make anything
Ryoga's done look like a measly firecracker."
Cologne nodded, much to Nabiki's surprise. "You're quite
right," she replied. "Which is why you should believe me when I
tell you that when I come back in five days, you will be *much*
happier. I expect you will then fulfill your end of our little
bargain, and take all the necessary precautions to make sure
Ranma never finds out that Shampoo and I were responsible for the
blood spell." She smiled. "I have no intention of giving up on
Son-in-law just yet."
Nabiki's eyes narrowed. "Fine," she said, even though
something in her gut told her something was wrong, that she was
missing something. But what? She'd examined all the loopholes
thoroughly... "Just be sure you don't try to pull anything. Any
sign of anything out of the ordinary, and--"
"Yes, yes, and Ranma hears the tape." Cologne sighed.
"Fear not, Nabiki Tendo. You will be pleased when I come back
from China."
"I hope so. For your sake." Nabiki favored Cologne with
one last half-lidded glare before turning and heading for home.
Cologne watched her go.
A minute later, a sullen, confused Shampoo came out and
joined her in front of the restaurant. Cologne motioned with her
staff, and then they were jumping along the rooftops, leaving
Nerima district behind.
Ten minutes later they returned. Cologne gave the girl some
brief instructions on how to handle the business while she was
gone. Then, without fuss or fanfare, she left for China.
Shampoo went back into the restaurant, smiling from ear to
ear.
--------------------
Unforgivable. Death was too good for him.
Yuki-onna stood in front of her frosted mirror gazing at the
object of her hatred as he entered the dojo and began performing
difficult katas with intense ferocity. Her frost-blue eyes
narrowed.
Yes, he was frustrated. He had come so close...
*Too close...*
The boy's feelings paled in comparison to what *she* felt.
She had come so far with Akane. Akane *liked* it here, liked
being with her. True, she had yet to forget... that boy... but
she had been almost happy...
And now he had ruined it all. Akane would never be content
to stay knowing that *he* was looking for her. Not as long as
that blasted wisp of dragon blood connected them, at least.
She was getting closer to removing it. After almost two
years of daily work, she was finally feeling a weakening in the
blood spell. It wouldn't be long now...
But it might not be soon enough. Especially if the boy
intended to live up to his parting promise.
Yuki-onna frowned. Something must be done about him. He
needed to be dealt with; eliminated from the picture... somehow.
And he needed to be punished for Akane's pain. Yet she couldn't
kill him. If she did, Masakazu would know, and then...
But... there *were* fates worse than death.
All she had to do was find one that was... appropriate.
Yuki-onna reached out her hands and placed them on either
side of the image showing in her mirror. This was the present,
the "now" of the mortal plane.
"Back..." she whispered, and her icy breath flowed across
the reflective surface.
Ranma's image froze in mid-movement. Then, slowly, the
frost swirling with magic, the image began to move again. But
this time in reverse. Slowly, eerily, Ranma performed his fluid
katas backwards, his jumps and flips smooth and faultless and
seemingly without impact so that it was almost impossible to tell
that time was moving in the opposite direction.
"Faster," she breathed. "Show me the past. Show me
*his* past that I may find a punishment suitable for his crimes
against my little Akane-chan."
The image blurred and sped up, moving faster and faster.
Yuki-onna pressed her white palms against the frosted glass and
closed her eyes, seeing the images in her mind with a hundred
times the clarity of her eyes.
Ranma, reaching out for Akane as the blood spell pulled him
back...
Ranma, glowing with red ki amidst the shattered ruin of the
Nekohanten door as he screamed Cologne's name in fury...
"Further," she whispered. "Before the blood spell."
Ranma, running along the top of a fence while Akane ran next
to him on the sidewalk. He calls her a cruel name and she sends
him flying into the drainage ditch to emerge a moment later as a
red-headed woman...
Yuki-onna smiled. Akane had told her of his Jusenkyo curse,
of course. It was amusing to say the least. Perhaps she could
use it to her advantage as part of his punishment. "Further,"
she whispered.
Images of Ranma's life flashed before her. Ranma sleeping,
eating, fighting. The entire fiancee fiasco. Her fury grew as
she saw how this boy not only made Akane suffer, but other women
as well. The lonely girl, Ukyo. The desperate Shampoo, and even
the crazed Kodachi.
Even the boy's own mother. Tears of ice slid down
Yuki-onna's face as she witnessed how desperately Ranma's mother
wanted to see him, to love him. And yet he spurned that love,
mocked it by hiding in female guise right in front of her;
enjoying the pleasure of her company, yet denying her the joy and
comfort that would come with the revelation that he was her son.
The tears Ranma's mother shed for her lost son, not knowing he
was mocking her grief right in front of her, pierced Yuki-onna to
the heart.
*How dare he...*
"Back..." she choked.
Time sped backwards in her mirror.
She witnessed Ranma's encounter with Herb. Yes, being
trapped as a female certainly seemed to cause the boy enough
anguish. That was a definite possibility, yet still didn't seem
like quite enough justice for her tastes.
She reached out with her mind as Ranma's life rewound itself
in her mind's eye, reaching out with tendrils of magic,
amplifying the images to include emotions, trying to sense his
greatest moments of anguish or pain or... fear...?
She paused. *There* was something interesting. She had
only sensed a brief flicker or two of real fear from Ranma as his
life sped past, but *here,* in his early youth, was a
concentrated clump of sheer terror. Her mouth quirked at the
corner. "Show me," she whispered. "From the beginning."
*****
A young Ranma, not more than 10 years old, knelt in front of
his father in a dojo.
"Ranma, today I will train you in the secret art of the
invincible Cat Fist. The Nekoken."
The child Ranma looked up, his blue eyes puzzled. Cats?
What was so special about cats? Oh well. Pop was always
teaching him strange new techniques.
"Stand up, Ranma. Hold out your arms. Good."
"What are you doing, Pop?" Ranma wrinkled his nose as his
dad pulled out a length of fish sausage from a package he'd
bought earlier.
"Just hold still while I tie this around you, son."
Ranma looked at his dad, disgusted. "What good is this
gonna do?" he asked.
"Trust me, son. This is going to help teach you one of the
most powerful techniques in all of the martial arts."
Ranma's eyes went wide. "Really? Wow! How does it work?"
Genma spun Ranma around and picked him up by the scruff of
his gi. It was then that Ranma noticed the open trap door in the
floor. "Huh? Pop, whaaaAAAHH!!" Ranma yelled as his father
flung him into the dark hole.
He landed on something soft. It let out an inhuman screech
that pierced his hearing. Startled, he leaped into the air, but
not before he felt the pain of claws raking the flesh of his arm,
leaving hot bleeding wounds in its wake. Shocked, he landed on
his feet, only to have the experience repeated. He jumped in
panic, landing on more cats, who began biting and clawing in
defense.
"Ite! Aughh!" Ranma looked up to see his father looking
down at him from the square of light of the trap door above him.
"P-pop, get me out! The cats are -- ite! -- biting me!"
Genma looked at him for a moment. Then he closed the trap
door, leaving Ranma in a writhing cat-filled darkness.
Ranma stared at the ceiling in disbelief. "Pop?" He wasn't
actually going to *leave* him down here, was he? He stood
perfectly still, his eyes straining to see in the absolute
darkness, afraid to move for fear of tripping and falling on a
cat again. "Daddy?"
But soon his fear of not moving was moot. The cats,
catching the scent of the fish sausage, began to converge on him.
He couldn't see them, but he could hear them yowling as they
pressed against his legs. The cats fought and hissed and climbed
over each other, raking Ranma's bare feet with their claws as
they began to devour the sausage around his legs. They reached
up with their clawed paws to get a better purchase on him in an
attempt to reach the first food they'd been given in days.
Ranma's dark-blinded eyes widened in fear. "Ite!" Claws
and teeth dug deep into his skin and he stumbled back at the
sharp pain, falling onto his rump. The cats swarmed around him
then, jumping onto his chest, clawing and biting indiscriminately
at the sausage he was bound with, the haste of starvation fueling
the fury of their hunger.
"D-daddy!" he called. He knew it was unmanly to be scared,
but there were so many of these cats, and it was so dark, but he
could *feel* them, and their inhuman yowls surrounded him and
filled his ears as they nibbled at his flesh and scratched at his
arms and face, and why did his father throw him down here to be
eaten, didn't he want him anymore, was he a failure as a student,
why wasn't he answering and opening the door to get him out...?
"Daddy, p-please!" the little boy called desperately as he
was slowly buried under a living mound of hissing and yowling and
scratching. His voice rose in desperate panic. "Please! L-let
me out!"
But his father didn't answer. And soon the fish sausage was
all eaten, but the cats were still hungry, and the scent of fish
was all over him, and the cats clawed and fought and bit in
frustration...
Ranma lay trembling, his arms thrown protectively over his
eyes, blood seeping from hundreds of scratches and bites all over
his body. He didn't know how long he lay there, sobbing quietly,
until his father finally opened the trap door to pull him out.
"Well." His father held him in front of him, cleansing his
wounds with stinging antiseptic. "You learn anything?" He
looked narrowly at Ranma's puffy red eyes and sunken expression.
"What's wrong with you, boy? You're supposed to be learning
the Cat-Fist down there! Don't tell me you just curled up in a
corner and cried?!"
"I couldn't see," Ranma answered quietly. "And there
were... so many of them..."
"Feh! That's no excuse! I'm ashamed of you, boy. How can
you be the heir of the Saotome School of Indiscriminate Grappling
Martial Arts if you --"
Just then, a cat, who had somehow managed to escape the pit,
walked into the dojo.
Ranma gasped and cringed away, the fire of his wounds
flaring in both body and mind.
Genma scowled as he looked back and forth between the cat
and his son. "So that's the way it is, eh? Well, no son of mine
is going to be afraid of a silly thing like a cat!"
Ranma looked at the floor, his face flushing with
humiliation.
And so it was that he didn't protest when his father tied
him with dried sardines the next day.
The cats converged a few moments after he hit the floor,
their eyes glowing like demonic lamps in the light from the trap
door just before it slammed shut above him, sealing him in
darkness. Then the yowling and the hissing and the hot fire of
sharpened claws doused his spark of determination to not be
afraid. Ranma cried in fear and pain.
The next day, Ranma stood before his father, trying to hide
his trembling. "Please, daddy, don't throw me in again. I... I
promise, I'm not scared of cats no more."
"Good. Then you won't mind another go at it. You'll master
that Cat-Fist yet, boy."
The next day, Ranma couldn't hide his trembling. Tears
streamed from his eyes uncontrollably, and he tried to push them
back with his hands, ashamed at his weakness. His father stood
over him, glowering in disapproval. "P-please, daddy," he cried.
"I don't wanna go in the pit again. The cats, t-they --"
"Look at yourself, boy! I didn't raise you to be a
sniveling coward! Now you're going down there, and you're not
coming out until you learn to master your fear! Or the Cat-Fist,
whichever comes first. Now go!" And with a shove, Genma pushed
his son back into the pit.
By this time, the cats knew that food was coming. Ranma was
covered with clawing, biting felines before he even hit the
floor. The door slammed shut above him, leaving him in darkness
with the terror and the pain, and no hope of getting out any time
soon. These cats were demons who wanted to claw his eyes out,
who wanted to eat his flesh down to the bone. They would devour
him before he ever learned the Cat-Fist...
His father would never let him out. He was trapped there
forever. There was no escape...
No escape...
**Frightened, boy?** The words were a low growling hiss in
his mind. Ranma was too terrified to open his eyes. But he
found he didn't need to open his eyes to see the Shadowcat that
had just appeared in the room. The supernatural animal glowed
with black ki and padded silently towards him through the thick
mass of yowling, hissing cats that were trying to tear him to
pieces.
If the cats were demons, then this was their master.
**You dare try to learn the Cat-Fist, eh? For that there is
a price. You have *almost* paid it. Your delicious fear has
summoned me to collect the rest. Just a bit more now...**
The Shadowcat reached out with a paw and extended its
needle-sharp claws. Ranma saw them coming towards his face, even
with his eyes clenched shut, even with his arms thrown over his
face. A terrified whimper escaped his throat.
**Good. Just a bit more...**
"D-daddy! Help m-me!"
No answer.
The Shadowcat's claws flashed out towards his face.
Ranma screamed. And kept screaming.
**Yessss.** The Shadowcat rumbled in contentment. **That's
the sound I like to hear. Now just one more thing.** The
Shadowcat leaned over and pressed it's forehead against Ranma's.
As the Shadowcat's forehead touched his own, something in
Ranma's young mind snapped. His eyes flew open and glazed over.
And his scream turned into a yowl.
The Shadowcat chuckled; a strange purring growl. **There
now, all done. Enjoy my... gift.** The words entered Ranma's
uncomprehending mind as the Shadowcat faded away, returning to
the netherworld.
Genma sat quietly in a lotus position just outside the trap
door, burning with shame as he listened to his son whimpering
below. Oh, that this should happen, after all his dedication and
hard work in training the boy. He heard his son's begging pleas
to be pulled out, but he ignored them. For his son's own good.
Then Ranma began to scream. Genma's eyes flew open, and he
moved towards the trap door. But no... He hesitated. If he
pulled his son out now, how would Ranma ever learn to overcome
his fears? He couldn't allow Ranma to believe that his father
would be there to save him every time something got a little
scary...
Genma froze in shock as he heard Ranma's voice change from a
cry of terror to an inhuman yowling, like an animal in pain.
"Ranma!" Without another thought, he threw open the trap
door.
Ranma burst through the opening in a single leap, still
yowling, and landed on all fours. The boy turned, hissing, to
face Genma, who knelt about ten feet away.
Genma paled. Ranma's hair stood on end and there was a
wildness glinting like a high fever in his eyes. An inhuman
growl issued from his throat. He raised a hand, curled paw-like,
and swiped in the direction of his father from across the room.
Genma gasped in pain as he felt his clothes and the flesh
beneath shred with the force of Ranma's casual bat of the hand.
He collapsed backwards onto the floor, the air knocked out of him
as well. *The Cat Fist! He did it! But... what has happened to
him?! My son..!* He raised himself up on one elbow to see Ranma
fleeing with unnatural speed on all fours out the window.
"Ranma! Wait!"
But his son was gone.
He grunted as he pushed himself painfully to his feet, and
noticed that he was bleeding through the gashes on his arms and
chest. *I have to find Ranma...*
Blocks away, Ranma curled himself up on the branch of a
tree. He was shaking, and his heart thumped swiftly in his
chest. His mind seemed incapable of forming words, but feelings
and instincts overwhelmed him, and he knew he had to get away --
get away from the source of his fear and pain.
Pain. He hurt. He was covered all over in scratches and
bites. He looked, listened, smelled. The big cruel one was
nowhere around. He was safe. Feeling a little more secure, he
carefully, methodically began to clean the wounds on his paws and
forelegs with his tongue.
"Here now, boy, what are you doing in my tree?" Akemi
Fujisami brushed a strand of grey hair from her eyes with a
wrinkled hand as she stood on her back porch looking up into the
branches of her huge shade tree. "Come down this instant."
The boy, who didn't look a day over ten, was wearing a
tattered, blood-stained white gi. He looked down at her through
the leaves from his odd position, and she could see that his face
and arms were covered with bloody scratches.
Akemi gasped. The black of his pupils and the blue of his
irises seemed small and lost in the wild whiteness that filled
his eyes. He blinked at her. Then he went back to calmly
licking his curled fingers.
"Oh my," she said. The old woman peered at him with wide
eyes. Her husband had been a great martial artist before he
passed away. Because of him, she had seen things, heard things
in her lifetime... *Could it be..? But no, that's just a
legend. And who would do such a thing to a child?*
She looked at him piercingly and frowned. *Still...*
She went inside and emerged a moment later with a bowl of
cream. She set it on the porch, and looked back up at the young
dark-haired boy. Clearing her throat a little in embarrassment,
she reached out a beckoning hand. "Here kitty kitty," she called
softly. "Come on now. I've got some cream for you. Here kitty
kitty."
Ranma paused, blinked at her, then continued his task.
Akemi realized that he wouldn't come down until he was
finished, and quite possibly would simply wait until she left.
Sighing, she went inside the house and slid the screen door
closed. Then she sat on the other side of the door and waited
patiently.
Ranma watched cautiously as the strange big one went into
the house. After a few minutes, he leaped softly to the grass
below and padded carefully to the porch, sniffing the bowl. The
white liquid smelled good, and his stomach hurt with hunger. He
began to lap it up.
The door slid open, and Ranma tensed and paused. It was the
strange big one. She slowly reached out a hand. "Easy now," she
cooed. "Nice kitty. I'm not going to hurt you." Her voice was
soothing, relaxing, her body language carefully non-threatening
as she knelt next to him. Ranma relaxed and continued to lap at
the cream.
He didn't even flinch when she cautiously stroked his head.
It felt good. He nuzzled against her hand and began to purr.
Akemi stifled a gasp. Human vocal cords weren't designed to
make the sound this boy was making. And yet he was doing it.
This was definitely unnatural... She drew her hand away in
alarm.
The boy looked at her, cream dripping from his chin, and
meowed. It sounded almost like a question, as if he was
wondering why she stopped.
She smiled. In spite of her misgivings, she reached out
again to stroke his head, and he arched his back in pleasure,
rubbing up against her side. She laughed lightly. "Hmm. Looks
to me like someone is a little starved for affection."
She gasped a little in surprise as he suddenly climbed into
her lap and curled up. Tucking his arms and legs under him, he
took one paw-like hand and began to wash the cream from his face.
She grinned, increasing the smile wrinkles on her face. He
was a cute boy. She could tell that he would be a real
heart-breaker when he grew up.
If he ever regained his senses, that is.
Her smile turned sad. "How do I snap you out of this,
child?" she whispered. "You can't stay like this forever." She
sat quietly, stroking his hair as he purred in her lap, his eyes
closed in contentment. She began to hum absently, and eventually
she felt the boy's breathing deepen as he fell asleep.
Her legs began to tingle from kneeling so long with the
weight of the boy in her lap. She sighed and shifted her
position, trying to get comfortable. Her movement woke up her
young visitor.
Ranma blinked groggily. *That's weird,* he thought. *I
don't remember falling asleep.* He yawned hugely, then heard a
soft chuckle. It was then, as he looked around, that he realized
that he had no idea where he was. Or why he was kneeling on an
old woman's lap.
"Gahh!" he yelled, backpedaling off the woman's lap and
tumbling off the back porch, landing hard on his rump.
Akemi smiled in relief as she saw the boy's eyes, large and
blue, the wildness replaced with confusion. His fingers were
splayed on the grass rather than curled into paws.
"Welcome back to humanity," she said wryly.
"Huh?" Ranma blinked. "Where am I? Who are you?" He
looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings and frowned. "How
did I get here?" he asked.
"You don't remember anything?" Akemi asked.
Ranma shook his head as he looked at her, his eyes narrowing
in suspicion. Then he paused. "I remember..." A shadow passed
over his face and he shuddered. "...cats," he finished.
Akemi nodded. "I thought so." She stood and bowed deeply.
"I am Fujisami Akemi. You are a welcome guest in my home."
Ranma blinked again in shock as he tried to comprehend what
was going on. Plus, no one had ever bowed like that to him
before. He got to his feet and bowed back. "I am Saotome
Ranma," he said.
Akemi smiled. Such a sweet boy. "Pleased to make your
acquaintance. It appears you have been studying the Nekoken."
"How did you know?" Ranma looked at her with wide eyes.
"Your battle scars, for one thing," she replied, "and as for
the other--"
"Rannmaaaa!" The call was faint, as if from a block or so
away.
Ranma jumped in his skin, as if caught doing something he
wasn't supposed to do. "It's my Pop," he said, glancing guiltily
at Akemi. "I'm sorry, I... I gotta go." And with an agility
that surprised her, he leaped to the lowest branch of her tree, a
good 10 feet off the ground, and clambered over to the wall that
surrounded her house.
"Ranma, wait," said Akemi.
He paused, looking back at her.
*Stay with me,* she wanted to say. *I'll take care of you
better than he can.* Instead, she took a deep breath and smiled.
"Remember where I live," she said. "Tell your father about me,
and let him know that if he ever has trouble with... with the
Nekoken, that I can help him. You promise you'll tell him for
me?"
Ranma didn't understand the strange request, but he smiled
at the old woman. "Okay," he said. "I promise. Domo arigato,
Fujisami-san!" And with that, he disappeared over the wall.
*****
The Snow Woman let her hands fall from the mirror to her
sides, the images and feelings from Ranma's past fading from her
mind.
This... This was *interesting.* Definitely priceless
knowledge.
Link or no link... Perhaps there was a way to make Ranma
forget Akane after all...
--------------------
"Hey, Ryoga! Wake up!"
Ryoga clenched his eyes shut and groaned. "Go away, Ranma.
It's too early. It's not even light out yet."
Ranma snorted and unzipped the front flap of the tent to
stick his head in. "Since when have you been concerned about
getting beauty sleep, Mister I - can - walk - across - an -
entire - continent - and - not - realize - it - because - I -
don't - get - tired? Besides, it's not like you've never gotten
*me* up in the middle of the night to fight."
Ryoga sighed heavily and sat up. "Fine, Ranma. I'll spar
with you. And then tonight I'll borrow some sleeping potion from
Kodachi and drug your food so that you'll sleep through the
night. Got it?"
Ranma scowled. "Not funny, Ryoga."
"Who's trying to be funny? Come on. Maybe if I beat you
unconscious I can get some decent sleep."
Ranma chuckled. "Not likely."
Then he frowned. He *did* feel slightly guilty for waking
Ryoga in the middle of the night. It certainly wasn't Ryoga's
fault that he wasn't sleeping well. It was just that whenever he
fell asleep he would have... such horrible nightmares...
Some were about Akane. He would see the look on her face as
he was pulled away from her, hear her crying out his name in
desperation, see the glint of cold, shimmering light on her tears
as she reached out for him...
He always woke from those nightmares finding himself tangled
up in the blankets, his eyes red and swollen, and his pillow
soaked through.
Not all dreams were just about Akane, though. Sometimes he
would dream of the cold, emotionless face of the Snow Woman as
she stood behind Akane, looking at him with thinly-veiled hate in
her eyes...
Ranma shuddered slightly.
But what woke him up this night was not a dream about Akane
or the strange Snow Woman. Tonight he dreamed about... cats.
Two huge cats with fur the color of fresh blood, both with red
eyes and gaping, fang-filled mouths, each yowling with blood
thirst as they leaped at him...
Ranma stood frozen in terror, unable to move but to throw
his arms over his face and wait for the feel of their claws and
teeth in his skin...
Yet nothing happened. And when he found the courage to look
up, he saw the cats, clawing and scratching ineffectually at an
invisible barrier a foot or so away from him.
At the base of the barrier lay a single feather, the color
of burnt umber.
Relieved, yet still unnerved by the sight of the cats, Ranma
cautiously stooped to pick up the feather to examine it. There
seemed something... familiar about it...
Then his blood froze, and the feather fell from numb
fingers, his eyes widening in horror. One of the cats had
stopped clawing at the invisible barrier. It pressed its face
against the barrier and began to... *push.* Slowly, as if it
were moving through clay, it began to squeeze itself through.
After a moment, the other cat imitated its companion, pressing
its face against and pushing through the only thing that
separated it from its intended prey.
Terrified beyond words, Ranma looked for a place to run, but
found he couldn't move. He could only watch helplessly as the
blood cats slowly worked their way through the barrier...
"Well, Ranma? You just gonna stand there, or are we gonna
fight?"
Ranma blinked and realized that he had walked into the dojo
without realizing it. Ryoga stood across from him, crouched in a
ready stance.
"Jeeze, Ranma, you're really out of it. I'm gonna wipe the
floor with you."
"Heh. You wish." Ranma shook his head, forcing the dream
from his mind, and dropped into an attack stance. This is what
he woke Ryoga up for in the first place. To fight. And
forget...
At some unseen signal, the young men attacked each other
simultaneously. There was a flurry of mid-air kicks and punches,
and Ryoga was sent flying into the dojo wall.
Ranma grinned as he landed lightly. "Come on, Ryoga. That
was pathetic. I know you can do better than that."
Ryoga staggered to his feet, wiping blood from his mouth.
"Shut up, Ranma. I'm still half asleep anyway. I don't see why
you have to take it out on me just because you can't handle
waiting another two days for Cologne to get back from China."
Ranma glared hard at his friend/rival. He sure was acting
casual about the whole situation... "Well, I don't see how you
can sleep at all, *P-Chan,* especially knowing that Akane's in
trouble, and there's nothing we can do about it!"
Ryoga bristled at the "P-Chan" remark and was about to
retaliate, when suddenly he paused and blinked.
"Who?"
Ranma froze. He stared at Ryoga in disbelief.
"What did you say?"
Ryoga gave Ranma a puzzled look and scratched his head.
"Well, you said... *Who* is in trouble?"
"Who do you think, idiot?! *Akane's* in trouble! I would
think that you of all people would be worried about her!"
Understanding suddenly lit in Ryoga's eyes. "Oh," he said.
"*That* Akane. That girl that the spell voices put into your
head, right?" He cast a sympathetic look at Ranma. "Look,
Ranma, I know this is hard to believe, but there *is* no Akane.
That's just the blood spell talking. Just concentrate, you'll
remember."
Ranma's blue eyes flashed. A sick feeling was building in
his stomach. "That's not funny, Ryoga," he said hoarsely.
Ryoga held up his hands. "Hey, I'm not trying to *be*
funny, Ranma! What's with you tonight, anyway?" Suddenly his
brow furrowed in concern. "The spell voices... Have they come
back? Is that why you're so worked up?"
"No," Ranma snapped irritably, "that's not it, I..."
*Wait...* Ranma paused as the image of two blood-red cats
pushing through an invisible wall came into his mind. *Spell
voices...*
Suddenly, a sharp, blinding pain lanced through Ranma's
head. "Ungggh..." Ranma clutched at his temples and sank to his
knees.
"Ranma! Are you okay? What's wrong?"
"R... Ryoga..." he gasped. He cried out as another blinding
pain, worse than the first, threatened to split his head in two.
And then...
--------------------
And then he stood, facing the barrier. The cats were almost
all the way through, yowling and screeching in delight.
He held out his shaking hands, palms outward. "N-no," he
stammered in fear. "G-go away, I don't want you in my head
again!"
The cats kept coming.
--------------------
Ryoga watched in shock as Ranma crumpled to the floor,
clutching his head in agony.
"Ranma!" Ryoga stood, looking on helplessly, not knowing
what to do to ease his friend's pain. The spell voices were
back. That *had* to be it. Ranma had been acting so strange the
past couple of days, he suspected that the spell voices were
working their way back from wherever they'd disappeared to. Ever
since Cologne had left for China to get that stone to remove the
blood spell, Ranma's behavior had become more and more erratic...
"N-no," Ranma moaned from the floor, rocking back and forth
in pain. "G-go away, I don't want you in my head again..."
That did it. Ryoga ran for the house. "Kasumi-san!
Nabiki-san!"
He burst into the house just as the girls stepped groggily
from their rooms. Nabiki looked down the stairs at Ryoga. "What
is it, Ryoga-kun? This had better be good. It's not even 3
a.m."
"It's Ranma. He and I were sparring in the dojo and he
collapsed. I... I think the spell voices are back."
"What?!" shouted Nabiki, heading quickly down the stairs.
"And you just *left* him there?"
"What was I supposed to do?" Ryoga snapped back. "Stand
there and do nothing?"
A hand flew to Kasumi's cheek. "Oh dear! I'll call
Doctor Tofu."
Genma-panda stuck his head out of his bedroom door and held
up a sign. [What's going on?] But no one was there to answer
him.
--------------------
With twin screeches of glee, the blood-spell cats leaped
free from the barrier that had confined them for too long.
Without pausing, they leaped straight for Ranma's face.
Ranma screamed as, with an explosion of pain, the cats
passed ghostlike into his head.
And the whispering began again, increasing in intensity...
**Akane is alive Akane is alive AkaneisaliveAkaneis
aliveakaneisaliveakaneis...**
**You'll never see her again, you're doomed to fail,
you already have, you should give up you'll never see her
again you're doomed to fail you already haveyoushouldgive
upyou'llneverseeheragainyou'redoomedtofailyoualreadyhave...**
"NO!!!"
--------------------
Ranma bolted upright, clutching his head as the dark, thick
spell voices filled his mind once again.
"Ranma!" Nabiki was there, grasping his shoulders to steady
him.
Ryoga knelt on the other side. "Hang in there, Ranma.
Doctor Tofu's on his way."
Ranma clenched his teeth, his eyes squeezed shut as he
struggled for focus. The spell voices were back, but he'd
controlled them once before so that they weren't so overwhelming.
He could do it again, if he could just...
There. He found his center. He forced himself to relax,
and as he did, he concentrated on pushing the spell voices to the
back of his mind, where he'd held them until they'd mysteriously
disappeared a few days ago.
The spell voices retreated reluctantly. If Ranma were
unconscious or asleep, they would have been able to find greater
purchase against his will. But with him awake, using all his
martial arts ability to focus his will, they were pushed slowly
to the back of his mind until they were but a low, constant
murmur.
Ranma slowly opened his eyes. He was drenched in sweat.
Nabiki and Ryoga were watching him in concern.
"Hey," said Ryoga. "You okay?"
Ranma nodded shakily and swallowed. "I guess you were
right, Ryoga. The spell voices are back. But I think I've got
them under control again."
Nabiki sank back on her heels and sighed. "That's a relief.
You had us going there for a moment, Ranma." She cocked a
critical eyebrow at him. "Do me a favor and don't do that again,
okay?"
Ranma pushed himself to his feet. "Yeah, sure." He sighed
heavily. "I just wish Cologne would get back with that Eye of
Kami so I can go get Akane back. Then maybe these stupid spell
voices wouldn't be so damn annoying."
Ryoga and Nabiki cast nervous glances at each other.
"Akane?" asked Nabiki.
Ryoga shrugged helplessly. "Don't look at me, Nabiki-san.
I figured that she's the girl the blood spell put in his head.
You know, the one that was supposed to get him to hate Shampoo?"
"Ah." Nabiki nodded understandingly. "So her name's Akane,
is it? That's new."
Ranma stood frozen, looking back and forth between the two.
Then his eyes narrowed to slits of blue fire. "This had better
be your idea of a sick joke, you guys," he said in a low voice.
Nabiki looked at him, startled. Then her expression went
grim. "Hmm," she said, looking Ranma in the eyes. "Looks like
the spell voices really came back with a vengeance. You'd better
work harder on pushing them back, Saotome. That is if you don't
want everyone thinking you're ready for the looney bin until
Cologne can cure you."
Ranma blinked, taken aback by Nabiki's tone. "W-what? Cure
me? You... you mean... you guys are serious?"
Ryoga and Nabiki just looked at him in sympathy.
Ranma thought that, after what he'd been through, nothing
else could phase him. He was wrong. He felt the strength
trickling out of his legs and he sat down hard. "But... but what
about Akane?"
"Look, Ranma," said Nabiki, "this Akane person your so
obsessed with is just a figment that the blood spell stuck in
your brain."
"Figment..." Ranma felt his world crumbling around him.
"Hey, don't worry about it, Ranma," said Ryoga, coming over
to clap him comfortingly on the shoulder. "Hang in there.
Cologne will be back soon with that whatchamacallit stone, and
those voices will be gone in no time. Things will be back to
normal before you know it."
"Somehow," whispered Ranma hollowly, "I doubt it."
The spell voices in his mind echoed the sentiment happily.
--------------------
End of Part Nine