Chapter 4 - The Price of Honor
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Kasumi sat at the table quietly watching Ranma, sensing that everyone else was in the process of recovering from the shock of her previous statement. When he’d made the announcement about leaving, Ranma’s expression had been grim and determined, though she saw the sadness in his eyes at the prospect. Now his face showed nothing but confusion. He looked her in the eyes for a few moments, and then his expression changed, as if he were withdrawing into himself.
‘I wonder what he’s thinking,’ she mused. ‘Maybe this was too much of a shock for him.’ Kasumi didn’t think so though. ‘He’s been through so much, this should be mild by comparison.’
Seeing that Ranma might not react anytime soon, Kasumi decided to examine everyone else. She first looked towards her father and Mr. Saotome. They both were shocked as well, but they were already starting to get these silly smiles on their faces. ‘Oh boy, they’re probably already thinking about a wedding. We’ll have to nip that in the bud, once Ranma snaps out of it.’
Her gaze next went to her sister Nabiki. She appeared to have recovered the fastest of all and Kasumi could practically see the yen signs dancing before the girls eyes. ‘I’ll have to ask her to not hurt Ranma or Akane with this information.’
Finally, almost against her will, she looked at her youngest sister. Akane sat there, mouth agape, but she too appeared to be coming around. She clamped her mouth shut and then glared at Ranma. After a moment, Akane looked at Kasumi with a confused expression. However, there was something else in Akane’s eyes that Kasumi wasn’t used to seeing there. Fear. ‘Why is she afraid?’
Before she had a chance to ponder the question, Ranma cleared his throat, causing everyone to focus on him. He had that determined look again, but rather than looking directly at her, he glanced at their fathers and spoke.
Before Ranma had made his announcement about leaving, Akane sat at the table staring at nothing in particular. Her thoughts drifted back to earlier when she’d visited Dr Tofu. ‘What the hell was I thinking? I can’t believe I lost control like that,’ she mentally berated herself. ‘I should apologize to him, but I’m afraid I’ll look like a fool.’
Once she heard Ranma make his declaration, she continued to stare at nothing, as if she didn’t have a care in the world. Inwardly though, it was a different story. ‘Leave?! Typical jerk, can’t take it anymore so he wants to run away.’ Somewhere deep in her mind though, a smaller part of her asked what it was that was keeping him here, since she’d made her intentions clear. She started to ponder that when her father made the comment about her ‘coming around,’ which quashed any good feelings that might’ve possibly developed at that moment.
“Maybe when hell freezes over,” she’d growled, and gave them the coldest stare she could. And then Kasumi had talked about transferring the engagement, and Akane almost laughed. ‘As if Kasumi or Nabiki would want to be with that jerk.’
Nabiki’s little speech after the fact just confirmed what she thought. She was ready to laugh into Ranma’s face, and tell him he wasn’t the Casanova he thought, when Kasumi had dropped the bomb.
“I would like to be Ranma’s fiancée.”
‘No!’ Akane panicked. ‘I can’t let that pervert become engaged to my sister! Who knows what he’d do to her? Kasumi is so sweet and innocent, while Ranma is so... so...’ Her thoughts trailed off and she glared at the pig-tailed martial artist.
Then Akane turned her attention towards Kasumi and felt nothing but confusion. ‘Does she really want to be engaged to him? No! He must’ve tricked her somehow. But what if it does happen? There’s no way I could ever win him back from Kasumi. Not that I’d want to,’ she added hastily. ‘But if Ranma falls for Kasumi, he’d never want to be with me. She’s so beautiful, and kind, and her cooking...’
Akane’s thoughts degenerated into a comparison between her and Kasumi, and she found herself woefully lacking. ‘If I ever want Ranma back, I better speak up now. But how can I do it without losing face? I don’t want to give that jerk the satisfaction. Dammit, what am I going to do?’
Before she was able to contemplate anymore, Ranma cleared his throat and finally began to speak.
 |
“I would like to be Ranma’s fiancée.” Ranma heard these words over and over again in his mind. ‘How could she possibly wanna be with someone like me? Why is she doing this? I know how important this is to her dad. She must be doin’ it for her families honor. But dammit, it’s bad enough that me and Akane got trapped in this crap, there’s no way that Kasumi should have to.’ As he thought about Kasumi, Ranma’s thoughts turned towards his other fiancées. ‘Kami, if we really did become engaged, they might tear her to pieces! At least Akane can fight back, but Kasumi is so sweet and gentle.’ These thoughts made Ranma think back to earlier when he’d been talking to Daisuke and Hiroshi. ‘Not to mention she’s really beautiful, and that unbelievable smile... Dammit, what the hell’s wrong with me!?’ |
Firmly setting his jaw, Ranma cleared his throat to get everyone’s attention. When everyone looked his way, he spoke.
“No.”
Kasumi felt a tightness in her chest that she found difficult to explain, and she found herself staring down at the table. ‘Is... is Ranma rejecting me?’ It took her a moment, but she realized that she felt hurt. ‘Why? Why do I feel hurt? Of course I care for him, but I was doing this for him. And maybe Akane too,’ she added as an afterthought. ‘So why does it feel so painful?’
Trying her best to hide the hurt, Kasumi looked back up into Ranma eyes. When they made eye contact though, she guessed that she wasn’t hiding the hurt as well as she’d hoped. The way in which he flinched made that clear. She could see his resolve melting away and he started to stammer. However, before anything coherent could come out, the two fathers began to yell at the young man.
“Are you rejecting my daughter?!” Soun yelled. He looked ready to jump up and attack Ranma.
“You ungrateful little runt!” Genma shouted, as he started to raise his fists in anger.
The resolve that Ranma had shown earlier came back. “Listen ya jerks! Kasumi ain’t doin' this 'cause she wants to be with me. She’s only doing it ta make you happy. I mean, it’s not like she wants ta be with a freak like me.”
At first, Kasumi felt a flutter in her heart as she processed Ranma’s words. ‘He’s only saying no because he cares about me.’ She couldn’t remember the last time that someone had actually cared about what she wanted. Then his last sentence sunk in, and she could feel the self-loathing that he still felt. ‘Between his curse and what Akane is always saying, it’s no wonder!’
“You are not a freak,” Kasumi objected. Ranma looked at her gratefully, but Soun and Genma weren’t done with him yet.
“Be that as it may,” Sound said, “she’s doing what honor demands.”
“That’s right boy,” Genma growled. “Are you going to let her show more honor than you?”
Kasumi watched Ranma cringe at those words. ‘Poor Ranma. I don’t want him to be pressured into this by our fathers, but I don’t want him to leave either.’
“Are you both insane?” Ranma asked incredulously. “Do you know what’ll happen if the other girls find out? Ukyo might not try to hurt her, but what about Shampoo? And Kodachi...” Ranma shivered involuntarily.
It appeared to Kasumi that this idea actually sunk into her father’s thick skull. He actually went white at the prospect. ‘I hadn’t thought about that part of it either,’ she thought. ‘Ranma really is worried about me.’ The idea warmed her in a way that she found inexplicable.
Genma wasn’t going to be so easily deterred though. “She’ll have you to protect her boy,” he said smugly. “And with me and Tendo here, she’ll be perfectly safe.”
“And what about when she goes shopping? Or any other number of situations,” Ranma said, folding his arms across his chest.
Apparently her father had come back around to Genma’s way of thinking. “Your father is right son,” he said. “It may be a little dangerous, but the life of a martial artist is fraught with peril. And such it is for the spouse of one as well,” Soun said, looking like he might burst into tears at the thought of Ranma and Kasumi getting married.
Ranma threw his hands into the air. “Jeez, it’s like talking to a freakin’ wall!”
“Ranma,” Kasumi said quietly. When she saw that everyone was listening, she continued. “I’m very thankful for your concern. It means more to me than I can express. But, I... I want to give this a chance. I know that it will be difficult, but I’m willing to risk it.”
Soun and Genma started hugging one another again, while Ranma’s befuddled expression returned. ‘He looks so cute like that,’ she thought wistfully. Then she realized what had just gone through her head and gave an internal ‘Oh my!’ Her attention was brought back to reality when she heard the two fathers starting to talk about wedding plans.
“However,” Kasumi said loudly enough to quiet the men down, “there are two conditions.” Once she had their attention, she continued. “First, under no circumstance will there be a wedding until after Ranma graduates high school.”
Both men started to stutter, but she cut them off. “Second, when Ranma graduates, if he decides that he doesn’t want to marry me, then I want him to be released from this promise.” This really caused both men to go into an uproar, she stared them down with her best angry stare. She knew it wasn’t very intimidating, but found that it was effective nonetheless.
“It’s either that father, or Ranma will leave for good,” she said, once the men had quieted. “Which would you prefer?”
The fathers got up and moved to a corner of the room where they could converse. During that time, Ranma was still giving her that confused look. She smiled at him, which for some reason she couldn’t fathom, caused the young man to blush and look down at the table.
In the corner, she could hear phrases like “best chance” and “work on the boy” being batted around. Finally, after a minute, both men returned. Soun spoke for the both of them.
“We accept.”
Out of the corner of her eye, Kasumi saw Akane go slightly pale. Ranma on the other hand just looked grim.
“This is a mistake,” he said. “I wish you guys could see that.” Before anyone could respond, Ranma got up and headed out to the dojo.
Both fathers sat down again, and the meal continued without Ranma. Soun and Genma sat close, heads bent together, and whispered throughout the meal. Kasumi nearly sighed in exasperation. Finally, everyone finished and the fathers went to play Shogi, while Akane and Nabiki went to their rooms. Kasumi wanted to go talk to Ranma, but decided to let him cool off for a bit. ‘Besides, I need to finish my housework and I want to talk to Nabiki first.’ With that, she began to clear the table.
Nabiki sat at the desk in her room going through homework. The day had certainly been an interesting one, no doubt about that. Because of that, she found it was hard to concentrate on the math in front of her. ‘I can’t believe Kasumi did that. That one was totally out of left field. Does she really want to be engaged to Ranma?’
Images of the pig-tailed martial artist sprung into her mind, including a few that she’d captured with her camera that left her a little flush. ‘He’s certainly gorgeous, no doubt about that,’ she thought with a snicker. ‘But he can be so insensitive and such a jerk sometimes. His heart is in the right place though, even if he is clueless.’
With a sigh, Nabiki closed her homework folder up. She contemplated whether or not she should go talk to Kasumi, hoping maybe to get some answers. Her deliberations were cut short though when there was a knock on the door. She told the person to enter, only to find that her sister had sought her out instead.
Kasumi came in and closed the door behind her. She then walked over and sat on Nabiki’s bed. ‘She seems awfully fidgety,’ Nabiki thought.
| “What’s up sis?” she asked casually. “Nabiki, I... I want to ask you a favor,” Kasumi replied. Nabiki raised an eyebrow, and then nodded. Her sister continued, “I don’t want you to sell the information about what happened tonight.” The grin that had been on Nabiki’s face up to this point turned into a frown. “Sis,” she murmured, “I know that people think I’m a heartless mercenary, but even I have my limits. Do you really think that I would do something that would endanger your life?” “No,” Kasumi replied without hesitation. “But I’m afraid that you might somehow twist it into something that might hurt Ranma or Akane. And I don’t want that.” |
 |
“I know,” Kasumi said. “I can’t expect you to completely stop what you’re doing, but I would like to ask you to please be more considerate if you can.”
The seriousness that Kasumi was radiating made Nabiki pause. ‘Most interesting. I wonder if... Well, she broached the topic, so I guess it’s okay to ask.’
“Kasumi,” she said gently, “what exactly do you feel for Ranma?”
Nabiki was amused to see her sister blush. Nabiki could also see the hesitation on her sister’s face and guessed at the cause. “I promise that nothing you say will leave this room.”
This seemed to be enough to help Kasumi relax a little. “Well, it’s strange. The main reason that I brought up the engagement business was because I know that despite everything, Ranma considers this his home. I don’t want to see him have to go back on the road.”
“What else?” Nabiki prompted.
“I also thought if Akane didn’t have the pressure of the engagement over her, that she might be more inclined to listen to Ranma. I was hoping that in time the two might patch things up and she could take the engagement back.”
“Are you planning on telling Akane that?” Nabiki asked.
“I thought about it, but I don’t think it’s a good idea. She’ll probably just think she’s being manipulated again. If anything, I’d rather she directed her anger towards me and left poor Ranma alone.”
“Okay,” Nabiki said. ‘So selfless,’ she thought, wondering how her sister managed it. Then she noticed that Kasumi was looking at the floor with a slight blush. ‘Very interesting. There seems to be a little more to this story still.’
“Sounds like there’s a little more,” she said.
“Well,” Kasumi replied, “there is. When Ranma said no, I felt so... so...”
“Hurt?” Nabiki wondered aloud.
“Yes,” Kasumi said with a nod. “I couldn’t understand why. Actually, I still don’t. But when I realized that he did it for me, that he was worried about me, I couldn’t help but feel... content.”
“Do you think you’re developing feelings for him?” Nabiki asked, not sure whether she wanted to hear the answer.
It took a few moments for Kasumi to respond. “I don’t know. I’ve always cared about him, the same way I care about everyone else. When he was worried about my safety, that was nice. But the fact that he was actually concerned with what I wanted...”
Nabiki watched her sister trail off. “You don’t exactly get a lot of that around here, do you?”
“No,” Kasumi said simply. “And to be honest, it felt really wonderful. And it doesn’t hurt that he’s so cute-” She stopped and turned beat red. “Oh my! Did I say that out loud.”
With a snort, Nabiki nodded. Then she turned serious. “Sis, have you thought this whole thing through? What happens if you end up developing feelings for him and Akane decides she wants him back?”
“Well,” her sister said, “I don’t think that’s an issue yet. Yes, what I’m feeling is nice, but it doesn’t mean I love him. And I’m certain he doesn’t love me. But if that did ever occur, I think that it would be up to Ranma to decide then. He’s never been allowed to make any of the really important decisions in his life. And I’m not going to be like Akane and treat him like property.”
‘Great kami,’ Nabiki thought, ‘if Kasumi does end up falling for Ranma, then Akane is a goner for sure.’ She pushed that thought aside for a minute. “And what happens if Ranma decides he wants to marry you and you find that you don’t love him. Would you really marry him if that were the case?”
“I...” Kasumi began, then stopped. Nabiki could see that she was frowning in concentration. Finally her sister continued. “If that happened, I would tell Ranma how I feel. I think that Ranma is honorable enough that he would call off the engagement.”
“And if he didn’t?” Nabiki asked.
“I truly believe that’s not an issue. I don’t think Ranma is that kind of person. But if it happened, I would still marry him.”
Nabiki felt her jaw drop. It took her a moment to find her voice again. “Are you serious?!”
Kasumi nodded sadly. “I certainly don’t want to end up in a loveless marriage. And like I said, I don’t think Ranma would allow that to happen. But if it came to that, I would do what it takes to satisfy our family’s honor.”
The respect that Nabiki felt for her older sister increased dramatically at that moment. ‘I still think the whole thing is foolish, but Kasumi really is amazing.’
The two chatted a little more, before Kasumi said that she needed to go speak with Ranma privately. She stressed the last word enough that Nabiki understood that she’d better not get caught eavesdropping. ‘For you sis,’ she thought, ‘I won’t.’ With that, she went back to her homework.
Ranma had been in the dojo for nearly an hour practicing. As was his norm, he found the Art a great way to relieve stress. However, it wasn’t as effective today as it usually was. His mind kept drifting back to the conversation at dinner. ‘I swear they’re all insane.’
The thought of Kasumi getting injured by Shampoo or Kodachi actually frightened him. He was proud to say that few things in this world could actually do that. Cats were one, for obvious reasons. But the thought that Kasumi might get hurt, and because of him no less, really scared him.
During his practice, he kept trying to think of ways to talk his father and Mr. Tendo out of the engagement. However, he couldn’t think of anything that would even come close to penetrating their thick skulls. ‘And what’s up with Kasumi?’ he wondered, truly baffled. ‘Why did she look so hurt when I said no? She doesn’t really want this, does she?’
With a laugh of self derision, Ranma pushed that thought out of his mind. ‘Keep dreaming Saotome! How could someone like Kasumi ever want to be with you? Just remember how she pushed you off on Akane the day you first got here. Still, I wonder why she was so insistent.’
His thoughts were interrupted when he heard the door to the dojo open and he found Kasumi standing there. She quietly closed the door behind her and stood watching him. Ranma could tell she wanted to talk.
“Gimme a sec, okay?” he asked. Kasumi nodded and Ranma finished up the advanced kata that he’d been practicing. Then he walked over to where he had a towel and started to wipe off the excess sweat. Ranma then looked at Kasumi expectantly.
“Can we talk?” she asked quietly.
“Um, okay,” Ranma replied, in his usual nervous manner. He saw Kasumi smile at him and he could help but feel weak in the knees. ‘She should register that smile as a dangerous weapon,’ he thought with an inward chuckle.
Kasumi moved to the middle of the floor and sat down, motioning for Ranma to join her. He walked over and sat down in front of her so that the two were facing one another. Both were silent for nearly two minutes before Kasumi spoke up.
“Ranma, what are your thoughts about the engagement?”
“I... I’m scared of what one of the girls might do to you,” he stuttered.
“Let’s put that aside for the moment,” she said. “Let’s pretend that the other girls didn’t exist. Can you tell me what you’d feel then?”
“Uh,” he began intelligently, “I don’t know. I haven’t really thought much past that.”
“Well, please try to. For me. I’d really like to know what you think.”
Ever conscious of how his words always seemed to anger Akane, Ranma took the time to think through his answer. ‘I sure as hell don’t want Kasumi to be mad at me. What would it be like to not have all the other girls around? Kami, that would be like a dream come true. But even if that happened, it don’t change the fact that Kasumi is being forced into this.’ Ranma frowned at the idea of Kasumi being forced to be with him. She must have caught the look, because she decided to speak up.
“Is it that I’m not pretty enough?” she asked.
“No!” Ranma blurted, before taking the time to think about it. “You’re more than pretty enough, hell you’re beautiful and...” He trailed off as he realized what was pouring out of his mouth. The subsequent blush that both exhibited would’ve made Nabiki wish she was there to take a picture.
“Am I not smart enough? Or a good enough cook? Or too old?”
Ranma just sat there with an incredulous look on his face. ‘Does she really think those things?’ he wondered. Finally he responded. “Nah, it’s nothin’ like that Kasumi. I know you’re smart. And you’re not old. And your food is the best around.”
“Thanks,” she said with a blush. “Then can you tell me why you don’t want to be engaged to me?”
“I just don’t like the idea of you being forced into this. I mean, as a martial artist, it’s important for me to uphold my family honor. But you shouldn’t have to do that too.”
The frown that Kasumi gave Ranma was one of the harshest looks she’d ever given him. It was nothing compared to looks he got from others, especially Akane, but on Kasumi’s face it just didn’t seem right.
“Let me tell you something mister,” she began, shocking Ranma with the hint of anger in her voice. “Do you really think that honor is something that’s only important to marital artists?”
‘Yeah,’ he thought. But having enough sense to realize that wasn’t the answer she wanted to hear, he kept his mouth shut.
Kasumi let out an exasperated sigh. “I can tell by the look on your face that you do. Well, I guess that’s to be expected with the way you were raised.” She put her hand under her chin in a contemplative gesture that Ranma found amusing.
‘I better not laugh,’ he thought, ‘or even smile. Who knows how she’ll react?’
“Ranma,” Kasumi said. “I want you to understand exactly what honor means to me. So I’m going to tell you something about myself that I haven’t told anyone. I would like to ask that you keep it to yourself. Okay?”
Sensing the seriousness in her voice, Ranma nodded. “I promise, on my honor, not to tell anyone.”
“Thank you. Let me start by asking you a question. Do I seem like a happy person to you?”
The question sounded ridiculous to Ranma. “Sure. I mean, yer always smiling and stuff.” He tried not to think of what that smile did to him.
“And do you think that all I want out of life is to cook and clean for my family?”
That question was much more difficult for Ranma, because he’d never seen Kasumi doing anything else. “I guess so,” he said, though it didn’t come out very convincing.
“Ranma,” she sighed, “since my mother died, I’ve been the one who’s had to do everything around the house. Nabiki has made sure that we’ve had enough money, but everything else was left to me. I became the surrogate mother to my sisters, and all the responsibilities of the woman of the house fell to me. I did it because someone had to, and father was certainly in no shape to at the time. I always hoped that eventually he’d come around and help with what Nabiki and I were doing, but he never did.”
Watching her carefully, Ranma was able to see how much this pained her. He could also see that she was starting to tear up. He wanted to reach out and put his hand on hers, or do something to comfort her. ‘Better not,’ he thought. ‘Who knows who’d come running through that door and misinterpret things.’
“Anyhow,” she continued, “because father never snapped out of it, I’ve had to continue on. Believe it or not, I wanted to go to college when I graduated high school. If it were just father left in the house, I think I would have. But because Nabiki and Akane are still here, I felt I had to wait. At least until they graduate and go to college themselves. I’ve had to put all my dreams on hold because of that. I do it, and do it cheerfully, because that’s the honorable thing to do.”
By this point, Ranma was beginning to feel like a heel. “I’m sorry Kasumi,” he apologized. “I never understood...” he trailed off. He then stared intently into her eyes but was unsure what to say. “I... I...” he mumbled, but was only able to finish in his head, ‘I feel like a jerk.’
Kasumi gave him a sad smile. “That’s okay Ranma. Like I said, I’ve never really spoken about it before. But your comment about honor did make me a little upset.”
“I’m sorry,” Ranma repeated. As he looked at her, a question popped into his mind. “What do you want to do?”
“Pardon?” she asked, not understanding.
“In college, I mean. What do you want ta study?”
“Oh,” she replied with a blush. “Actually, I was hoping to be a nurse someday.”
Visions of Kasumi in a nurses uniform danced in Ranma’s brain until he forced them out. And then a stray fact made its way to the forefront of his thinking process. “Is that why yer always borrowing books from Dr. Tofu?”
“Yes,” she said. “If I do ever get to go to college, I want to be as prepared as possible. Plus,” she added with a twinkle, “the first aid knowledge I’ve learned has come in handy around here.”
Both chuckled at that, because they knew how true it was. Ranma thought about all the times Akane had pounded him, and how Kasumi was always there to patch him up if he needed it. Thinking about Akane led his mind to the conversation that they had earlier. This immediately caused his mood to turn foul.
“Kasumi,” he said quietly. “Can I ask ya something?”
“Of course.”
Ranma thought about what Akane had said as he formulated his question. “How can you want to be engaged to an honor-less, immature freak like me?” He looked down as he spoke, afraid to watch her face when she answered. Suddenly he felt both of her hands on his cheeks. Pulling his head back up so that they were looking into each others eyes, she spoke.
“I already told you that I don’t believe that. I think you’re one of the most honorable people I know. You’re also brave and kind, and I don’t think you’re a pervert. I won’t say you aren’t immature,” she added with a wink, “but everyone has their flaws.”
This caused Ranma to smile. ‘Leave it to Kasumi to tell me like it is.’ Ranma took his hands and pulled hers away from his face. He set them towards the ground, but didn’t let them go. The smile he had faded and he turned serious again.
“You didn’t answer my question. I’m glad you don’t think those things about me. I really am. But that’s not a reason to be engaged to me.”
“Well,” she replied hesitantly, “this is your home. I know you were serious about leaving, even though it would hurt you. I didn’t want to see that happen.” Ranma was about to interrupt when she continued. “Please let me finish. I also hoped that if Akane doesn’t have the pressure of the engagement on her, that you and her might be able to make up.”
“I’d like to believe that,” Ranma said. “But I really don’t think that’s possible.”
Kasumi sighed. “You might be right. I guess I didn’t realize how bad things had gotten. Anyway, I’m also concerned about the oath between our fathers. I hope I’ve made it clear how important my family’s honor is to me.” When Ranma nodded she continued.
“Because of that,” she said a little more hesitantly, “if things don’t work out with you and Akane, then I’d at least like to see if we can make a relationship work. I don’t know if it’s possible, but I’d like to try to honor the agreement between our fathers. If we can’t, well, that’s why I added those conditions.”
To say that Ranma was shocked was an understatement. ‘She thinks we might be able to develop a relationship?’ He thought back to earlier when he believed that scenario an impossibility. ‘Maybe it’s not as farfetched as I thought.’ However, his thoughts came back to the whole fiancée situation again.
“I’m flattered that you did all this for me,” Ranma said. “But you asked me to pretend that the other girls don’t exist. Well, we did, but now it’s time ta come back to reality. I don’t wanna see you get hurt. That would tear me up inside.” Ranma didn’t understand why she started smiling at that, but he went on. “Also, I don’t want you ta get forced into a marriage with me. You deserve someone better. And I want you ta be able ta follow your dreams, not get stuck as a housewife.”
Ranma saw tears forming in Kasumi’s eyes, and wondered what he said wrong. He began to review what he’d said in his mind to try to figure it out, so he could apologize. He was surprised when she leaned forward and wrapped her arms around him in a hug.
“Thank you so much,” she whispered in his ear. “That is the most caring thing anyone has done for me in a very long time.”
Realizing that what she was experiencing were tears of joy, Ranma allowed himself to relax, despite the fact that Kasumi currently had her arms wrapped around him. He couldn’t explain why it was that he felt so comfortable like this. Normally when a woman grabbed onto him, he was in full panic mode. ‘Maybe it’s because she’s not demanding anything. She’s not trying ta glomp me, she’s just happy. And I did that.’ That made Ranma swell up with pride.
Without thinking, Ranma took his arms and tentatively wrapped them around Kasumi, hoping it would continue to make her feel good. When she didn’t jerk away, or try to slap him, Ranma figured he was doing the right thing. When she tightened her grip on him, he was sure of it.
 |
Akane had been doing some serious soul searching since dinner. She’d heard her sisters chatting in Nabiki’s room, but she couldn’t make out what they were saying and wasn’t in the mood to eavesdrop. Unconsciously, she began to look around the room for P-Chan. She stopped when she realized what she was doing, and let out a feral growl. ‘Maybe this whole mess is Ryoga’s fault, not Ranma’s,’ she thought. ‘Hah! Yeah right. It’s both their faults. Those insensitive jerks.’ Her mind began to wander towards different memories of when P-Chan had been around. She’d accused Ryoga of watching her undress, but the more she thought about it, the more she |
That small part of Akane that attempted to reason with her tried to tell her that some of this was her fault too. She almost allowed herself to believe that she might be at least partially to blame, until she focused on all the things Ranma had done recently to piss her off. ‘No! This is not my fault. It’s his! But do I really want to lose him forever?’
The thought gave her pause. She tried to imagine a life without Ranma, and to her credit, was able to see both the good and bad sides. ‘Maybe... maybe I’ll give him one more chance to apologize. If he gets it right, then I might take him back.’
Deciding that she should rush to find Ranma before she changed her mind, she went in search of her ex-fiancé. She checked his room first and found that he wasn’t there. She figured he’d probably be in the dojo, so she made her way there. As she approached, she didn’t hear anything, but decided to check anyway. When she opened the door, she immediately felt herself go numb.
She found Ranma and Kasumi sitting on the floor facing one another. Finding the two of them together like that would’ve been bad enough, but finding them locked in an embrace sent her anger through the roof.
“Ranma! You pervert!” she screamed. Both Ranma and Kasumi jumped back at the noise. They looked at her and Ranma started waving his hand in front of him.
“It’s not what it looks like,” he pleaded. However, Akane was too far gone to listen to reason. She briefly wondered if she was angry that he was hugging her sister, or the fact that he’d never held her like that. Pushing those thoughts aside, she started stalking towards him.
“I can’t believe you’re taking advantage of my sister!” Akane allowed herself to surrender to the rage that she was feeling. At this moment, only two things mattered. One was beating the daylights out of Ranma. The second, more practical one, was that she at least remembered that she needed to use her left hand because of her injury.
As Akane made her way towards him, she was aware that both he and Kasumi had scrambled to their feet. She was also aware that Kasumi was saying something to her, practically yelling in fact, but she was unable to focus on anything but her current mission.
Just before she reached Ranma, Akane whipped her left fist back. Ranma didn’t flee, or even flinch, he just stood there. As her hand began to sail forward to intersect with his face, everything seemed to be happening in slow motion. Suddenly, she became aware of two things going very wrong. First, she saw that Ranma had simply been waiting for her to start her swing so that her momentum would make it easier to follow-up when he dodged. Because as the swing made it’s way towards him, he had begun to step away.
The second, and much more horrifying thing, was that Kasumi was suddenly in the path of her fist. Apparently she didn’t realize that Ranma was going to dodge, and she jumped forward in an effort to protect him. Akane’s higher brain functions suddenly turned back on. She realized that with Ranma already committed to his dodge, that he wouldn’t possibly be able to move Kasumi. Also, she knew that because she’d been so intent on inflicting damage on Ranma, that she’d put all her strength into the punch.
This meant that her forward momentum was too great for her to stop. The only thing she could hope to do now was slow down as much as possible. In the split second that all of this flashed in her mind, she began to pull back as much as she could. She also prayed that Kasumi wouldn’t be too injured in the process.
And thus it was that a mortified Akane watched her fist connect with Kasumi’s right cheek with a sickening thud. The eldest Tendo flew backward and became nothing but a heap on the floor. The worst part, in Akane’s tortured mind, was that her sister wasn’t moving at all.
Akane wanted to rush forward to help her sister, but the only thing she could do was sink to her knees. She held out her hands in front of her and stared at them. One thought kept repeating itself over and over in her mind.
‘What have I done?’
Author’s note: Yes, yes. I know that Akane would never purposefully hit Kasumi. It was obviously an accident, but knowing how some people would react, I wanted to make sure to point this out again to head off the flames. So I will say it one more time. “It was an accident!” So any reviews or emails saying that “Akane could never do such a thing” will be ignored. Otherwise, all comments and criticism welcome.
Thank you for taking the time to read Aijou & Aitou. I hope you have enjoyed yourself. I would love to hear all feedback, positive or negative (as long as it’s constructive). Please take the time to leave a review on fanfiction.net or send me an email letting me know your opinion. Thanks.
